The After Party
Regina is throwing the junior class post-prom party at her house and invites Tom and Christine who have been dating for almost a year. Tom and Christine know that some of their other classmates will probably choose to drink while at the party but decided that if their parents give them permission to go, they will respect the law and their parents’ rules and not consume any alcohol.
After much discussion with their parents, Tom and Christine (who cannot yet drive) get permission to attend Regina’s party, on two conditions: Tom and Christine must not drink, and they must leave the party at 1:00 a.m. when Tom’s father, Scott King, will arrive to pick them up.
Tom and Christine have a great dinner at the country club, take lots of pictures with their friends, and dance the night away. After the dance ends at 11:00 p.m. Tom and Christine hitch a ride with Regina to her house where the after-prom festivities begin.
After finishing his fifth straight vodka martini, Mr. King gets into his car at 12:45 a.m. to drive to Regina’s house. Fortunately, he arrives safely despite his high blood alcohol content. The kids leave the party on time and both slide into the backseat of Mr. King’s SUV.
As Mr. King makes small talk with the kids, Christine smells alcohol on his breath and thinks he is slurring some of his words. Tom doesn’t act as if anything is wrong and Christine is unsure what to do. She feels like Mr. King may not be sober enough to drive them home, but she knows that it’s legal for adults to consume some quantity of alcohol and still operate a vehicle. Christine had been taught the dangers of drunk driving by her parents, but this is not a situation she ever imagined facing. Although she always knew better than to get into a car with a drunk teenager driving, she’d never faced this situation with an adult.
Christine doesn’t want to defy Mr. King’s authority or disrespect him, but she also wants everyone to get home safely. Unfortunately, Christine and Tom are the only sober party-goers, and neither has a license to drive.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Does Christine have a duty to look out for Tom and his father and make sure they return home safely as well?
If there were no way for Christine to communicate with anyone other than the party-goers, what should she do to ensure everyone’s safety?
Should adults and teens be held to the same ethical standards, despite the differences in their respective authority?
