Bentham's Reckoning
- Peter K F Cheung SBS
- Jun 30
- 3 min read
FADE IN
Act 1
INT. BEDROOM - 07:00
Sunlight struggles to pierce through the curtains. PETER nudges his WIFE, who is a lump under the duvet.
PETER: It's seven.
His wife stirs, groaning.
PETER (Cont'd): The high-speed rail won't wait for you.
His wife gets out of bed and goes to the bathroom.
PETER (V.O.): There's no point for me to stay in my urban home while my wife is away with her friends.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): My plan is to stay overnight in my NT home. I haven't done that for over 10 years.
Later, his wife exits.
Act 2
MONTAGE OF PETER DOING HIS ROUTINES
A. INT. HOME - 09:00. Phone. His Duolingo streaks. Seven languages.
B. INT. HOME - 12:00. Piano. The jazz standard: Autumn Leaves. Nailing the bridge.
C EXT. SILVERSTRAND BAY - 13:45. He swims. Four styles.
D. INT. NOODLE SHOP - 15:15 Dumplings and noodles in soup. Not a drop left.
END MONTAGE
INT. LIVING ROOM - 16:00
Peter puts his laptop and a mobile wifi unit into a bag. He talks to the MAID.
PETER: I'll come back tomorrow for dinner. Take good care of the dog and the turtle.
MAID: Yes Sir.
Peter exits.
EXT/INT. PETER'S NT HOME - 17:45
Peter goes to the driveway, gets in his 2003 SMART City Coupe, starts it. As the engine roars, he engages the automatic and manuel gears.
PETER (V.O.): Last time, it refuses to wake up to engage the gears.
Then he goes to his 1989 NISSAN 200SX, opens the hood to reconnect the battery cables.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): If I leave the cables connected, the battery would be quite dead the next time I start it.
He gets in and starts the coupe. It roars. He smiles. Leaving the cars idling, he enters the house and turns on the air-conditioners, the lights, and the audio systems on every floor.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Just to check what works and what doesn't. I'm going to spend a night here.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Next, let me see what can I declutter?
He sorts and checks a stack of papers and cards near him. Then he finds a light green UCL card with a quote by Jeremy Bentham. He reads it.
PETER: Create all the happiness you are able to create; remove all the misery you are able to remove.
INT. LAKESIDE MCDONALD'S - 20:30
Peter sits alone at a long table overlooking a dark lake. A cheap value meal sits before him: a cheeseburger, medium fries, and a Fanta.
PETER (V.O.): I won a UK Foreign Office scholarship to read an LLM in UCL in 1986...that's 40 years ago.
Recalling.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I was full of ambition.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): And now, I create a lot of happiness for myself. And I remove my misery with my routines.
Peter eats mechanically.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): But Bentham's quote is about others, not oneself.
Recalling.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I did donate to UCL...but not much.
He looks at the wrinkled old man in the reflection of the McDonald's window.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Can I do more?
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I must confess it's just my wife on my mind now.
Act 3
INT. PETER'S NT HOME - 22:30
Peter uploads an image to a draft on his laptop. It shows a stylized quote of Bentham's reckoning : Create all the happiness you are able to create; remove all the misery you are able to remove.
PETER (V.O.): When I was a civil servant, I designed and built Hong Kong's IP infrastructure. And after retirement, I volunteered to serve HKUST.
Thinking.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Indirectly, I create all the happiness I can and remove all the misery I can on scale. But Bentham's reckoning demands all - not just the systemic ones.
Reflecting.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I should exercise my best endeavour to expand my service - from serving the many from a distance, to serving anyone up close.
The END
FADE OUT
Comments