The Effects of Power on Responsibility
Power and responsibility have a complex relationship that is connected by factors such as a person’s morals and ethics, personality, and under what conditions the person was raised. In a world where power can be found in many forms and in many places, the use and abuse of power can be seen regularly. Power is not just being the CEO of a fortune five-hundred company, or being an elected political representative, the manager of Taco Bell has power, as well as parents as they raise their children. These are the people who have the most influence on how power is used, and if it is used with responsibility. In the United states there are five-hundred and thirty-five congressmen, a president, and a vice-president, whereas there are two-hundred and ninety-eight million citizens. Elected officials represent a microscopic piece of the population, while the citizens are the ones who raise children, teach children, and own and operate businesses, and ultimately keep the country running. Real power lies within the common person, and their use of power to influence those around them to have higher standards of responsibility and morals, because if responsibility is taught well and people have good morals, the use of power will not be abused.
When a person is given power, they become more responsible to society, because that power should give them the ability to accomplish certain things that were previously out of their reach. But that does not mean that their morals, or view of their responsibility to society has changed, it means that they now have the capacity to accomplish things that they could only have imagined before they gained their power. If Lance Armstrong had not been a world c...
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...come. The morals of those in power also have a very strong influence on how their power is used. A person in power with good morals can achieve great things, like Lance Armstrong, or terrible things like Dick Cheney. When using power one needs to keep in mind who it will effect and how it will effect them. Acting in a selfless manner with the best interest of those around you is best way to combine power and responsibility. Ultimately power and responsibility will be the reason why and when the world ends, so use power and responsibility in a complimentary fashion, rather than trying to separate the two.
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“Marine Says Rules Were Followed”
What is power to a human? As time has gone by, there have been many forms of control and influence in the world. Many strive to achieve total rule over a society or group of individuals. Yet the question still presents itself to the average man. Why does man desire power so greatly even though there is visible trouble that follows? Shelley’s Frankenstein, Vonnegut’s “Harrison Bergeron”, and Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, whether through the situation or the character themselves, depict the evils and hardships due to an imbalance and poor management of power.
Power can be defined as the ability to influence or outright control the behavior of people. A variety of different things can drive power, including both knowledge and experience. Power in most cases is needed to establish authority. In today’s country, the United States government has a lot of power. It has so much power that even American citizens are beginning to complain about it. Having all this power and authority has allowed the government to make decisions quicker. However, by making decisions faster, some mistakes can be made and innocent people can be convicted. This point is directly exemplified when using two New Yorker articles, “Surviving Solitary” and ‘A Shot to The Heart.” Both articles consist of results produced quite
All people have power, some people are just more powerful than others. Having power is the ability to create change. Examples of power being used wrongly is during the French revolution, and the residential school crisis. During the French revolution, two examples were shown of people abusing their power. King Louie XVI raised taxes so that he could buy things that he and his wife Marie Antoinette wanted, and took away rights from the third estate. In the residential schools crisis, the teachers, priests and nuns had power over the students and abused the students in different ways. Superior people take away the rights from those who are below them, but they end up corrupt.
Power is earned, not given. There are many different types of power that people can earn. Power becomes a problem when it is not questioned or tested. Therefore, the one with the power would have total control over anything or anyone they wanted, or they would feel that way. People with power feel invincible when it is not questioned. Throughout history it has been proven that this creates a problem. For example, Richard Nixon and the Watergate scandal is similar to the scandal with Father Flynn in Doubt. Doubt, by John Patrick Shanley, exemplifies an underlying message that unquestioned faith leads to abuse of power. Specifically, shown in Father Flynn’s reputation, cover up, and resignation, which all correlate to Richard Nixon’s Watergate Scandal.
In conclusion, power is often a source of violence. As a result the desire for power breaks down the boundaries set by rules and order, causes strife and competition, and governs the actions of many to act upon the animalistic instincts that are set deep inside even the best of us. There for once achieved, power has the ability to either improve or corrupt its holder.
They are not only its inert or consenting target; they are always also the elements of its articulation” (Foucault, “Two Lectures” 34). Power may take various forms, all of which are employed and exercised by individualsand unto individuals in the institutions of society. In all institutions, there is political and judicial power, as certain individuals claim the right to give orders, establish rules, and so forth as well as the right to punish and award. For example, in school, the professor not only teaches, but also dictates, evaluates, as well as punishes and rewards.
If you ask a group of kids what they want to be when they grow up, what kind of answers would you get? Maybe an astronaut, or a football player, or maybe even a firefighter. According to mashable.com, the most frequent answers are likely to be police officer, teacher, or president. These three professions have one thing in common: they all hold power over a group of people. It is shown at a young age that children want power. But this isn’t just shown in children, or even just today. Throughout history, time and time again, all humans have craved
The quote once spoken by former president, Abraham Lincoln, in essay topic two questions the integrity of person’s moral character when introduced to power. The quotes centers upon Lincoln’s claim that power has a tremendous and drastic effect upon a person’s character and can ultimately reveal the true nature of a person. Lincoln goes on to say that many people are able to withstand and persevere through many struggles and trials in life, which often test a person’s character. By withstanding such troublesome struggles, a person’s character for the most part remains intact. However, Lincoln reasons that when given power, the ultimate authority and influence, to act unjustly without facing any ramifications for the committed actions, a person’s moral character is often
C. Wright Mills in his article “ The Structure of Power in American Society” writes that when considering the types of power that exist in modern society there are three main types which are authority, manipulation and coercion. Coercion can be seen as the “last resort” of enforcing power. On the other hand, authority is power that is derived from voluntary action and manipulation is power that is derived unbeknownst to the people who are under that power.
"Unlimited power is apt to corrupt the minds of those who possess it" [Lord Acton, British Historian]. It is human nature that the more power one desires, the more corrupt actions they have to commit to attain power. Power is the ability to have control over people and/or things. People who are powerful can, and in most cases will, create an illusion of anything they want you to see about them. This illusion can make people blind to their true intentions.
Some theorists believe that ‘power is everywhere: not because it embraces everything, but because it comes from everywhere… power is not an institution, nor a structure, nor possession. It is the name we give to a complex strategic situation in a particular society. (Foucault, 1990: 93) This is because power is present in each individual and in every relationship. It is defined as the ability of a group to get another group to take some form of desired action, usually by consensual power and sometimes by force. (Holmes, Hughes &Julian, 2007) There have been a number of differing views on ‘power over’ the many years in which it has been studied. Theorist such as Anthony Gidden in his works on structuration theory attempts to integrate basic structural analyses and agency-centred traditions. According to this, people are free to act, but they must also use and replicate fundamental structures of power by and through their own actions. Power is wielded and maintained by how one ‘makes a difference’ and based on their decisions and actions, if one fails to exercise power, that is to ‘make a difference’ then power is lost. (Giddens: 1984: 14) However, more recent theorists have revisited older conceptions including the power one has over another and within the decision-making processes, and power, as the ability to set specific, wanted agendas. To put it simply, power is the ability to get others to do something they wouldn’t otherwise do. In the political arena, therefore, power is the ability to make or influence decisions that other people are bound by.
Large groups of people are subject to a phenomenon known as groupthink which is a psychological phenomenon that occurs within a group of people, in which the desire for harmony or conformity in the group results in an irrational or dysfunctional decision-making outcome (Hockenbury & Hockenbury, 2008). The responsibility that comes with wielding that much power over a group of people can be heady and needs to be taken seriously for the simple fact that it can be abused. Lack of responsibility is easy to see as multiple examples are spread throughout history; Adolf Hitler or Joseph Stalin are great examples of abuse of power, but Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Mahatma Gandi exemplify how this responsibility can be used for the greater good as
In World War II, a lot of people are slaughtered by a man who has absolute power. This man was Adolf Hitler and he murdered 6 million Jewish. A lot of people see him as a powerful dictator, because of his mass murder. People often see often as the ability the to get what someone wants at first thought. However, it has wider concept, it has a more complex structure. It could be used for a lot of purposes and has a lot of type. If some leaders or some institutions have absolute power, ultimately the power they have will corrupt the order expects some kind of power such as knowledge, love, etc.
Politics is the means for attaining valued things. Although, valued things are different in every society, the means of securing those things has never changed. The competition for power, authority and influence will always be the backbone of politics. Applying power, authority and influence to the valued things that support the public good, will produce the quality of life a society desires. In the present day, citizens in the United States demand certain valued things such as welfare, education, safe streets and healthcare. Through politics, citizens can apply their power in many different ways to get the things they want. Power is the ability to get someone to do something they may or may not want to do. Through the use of or the application of coercion, persuasion, manipulation and negotiation, power is used to influence the system.
Power is defined in the course study notes as the “ability of individuals or groups to get what they want despite the opposition”. Power is derived from a variety of sources including knowledge, experience and environmental uncertainties (Denhardt et al, 2001). It is also important to recognize that power is specific to each situation. Individuals or groups that may be entirely powerful in one situation may find themselves with little or no power in another. The county Registrar of Voters, who is my boss, is a perfect example. In running the local elections office, she can exercise the ultimate power. However, in a situation where she attempted to get the county selected for a desirable, statewide pilot project, she was powerless, completely at the mercy of the Secretary of State. Power is difficult to measure and even to recognize, yet it plays a major role in explaining authority. In organizations, power is most likely exercised in situations where “the stakes are high, resources are limited, and goals and processes are unclear” (Denhardt et al, 2001). The absence of power in organizations forces us to rely on soley hierarchical authority.