Dollhouse - season 2

Originally Posted by Mikah Cerucco 

There's the small matter of a contract and choice. The Dollhouse employees have been able to labor under the protective umbrella of choice. The dolls agreed to do these things (even though they didn't know what things they'd be doing) for a period of time in exchange for something. None of them, that we know of, agreed to do in perpetuity -- until now.

 
Exactly. This episode actually calls into question the flashbacks we'd seen in "Epitaph One". When Rossum Corp. revised its business model to sell the dolls as a form of immortality, DeWitt balked and threatened to walk out. That was presumably the first time the "rules" of the Dollhouse were violated in such a serious way. Thursday's episode presents basically the same dilemma: DeWitt and Topher were under the impression that Sierra was a mentally ill woman who was being granted a reprieve from insanity by being transformed into a doll. Once Topher uncovered that this was not the case, DeWitt was presented for the first time with the "rules" of the Dollhouse being violated. She protested and threatened to quit here, too, and the Rossum guy again called her bluff.

There is a big difference between indentured servitude and slavery. The second is expressly forbidden by the United States Consitution, for one thing, while the first is forbidden only when said servitude is involuntary. The rest of the dolls (presumably) signed a three-year contract like Caroline did. The would who became Sierra never had that choice.
 

What DeWitt in fact pointed out was that the Dollhouse employees were chosen because they were already compromised morally before they stepped through the door. Squeaky clean people can work in such a morally bankrupt environment. And while the Dollhouse makes every effort to protect its assets, there's no 100 percent way to ensure that no harm comes to them. Signing away three years of one's life is a risk.
 

Nolan Kinnard was Rossum's prize pet, a unique asset that provided services that no other asset could provide. Since Rossum is an essentially God-like organization, Nolan was extended essentially God-like influence. At the point where he met the woman who would become Sierra, it had probably been a long time since anyone had said "no" to him. He couldn't stand it. Ironically, the best way for Sierra to free herself from Nolan would have been to indulge his infatuation until he tired of her and cast her aside. By turning him down, she ensured that he would settle for nobody else.

Originally Posted by TravisR 

Yes, there is more to a woman than just wanting money. However in these case of dollhouse clients, that has nothing to do with it. The clients are getting a fake that's programmed to think that they like them. To me, there's little to no difference between someone who is 'forced' to be attracted to someone for a day or two and someone who is just faking interest for money.

The difference is night and day. Maybe not on a moral plane -- if anything, "renting" the dolls is far worse -- but from an experience standpoint. The best escorts make the exorbinant amounts of money because they are the most skilled actresses. Prostitution is often about creating an illusion, to fill in something missing in the client's real life. In addition to providing valuable skillsets on demand, the Dollhouses perfect that illusion. For the length of the contract, the experience shared between the client and the doll is completely real. The persona crafted from Frankenstein parts is naturally everything the client needs or desires. They are not 'forced' to be attracted; they are designed to be attracted. If anything, it's the clients that are performing a role since they must fulfill whatever scenerio the doll has been imprinted to expect.
 

Except for the horny male looking for a quicky to satisfy carnal needs, everyone who seeks out a hooker has kinks or something missing in his life. The clients of the Dollhouse merely have greater means with which to compensate.