This piece may offend some. Near the end I express views about the danger of corruption, and eventually about how people choose to extend oppression, instead of love. I do share these views, but most approve, or at least choose to approve of both, so I’m going to add a disclaimer.
Power is having control and choosing to use it to reach your goals. Some leaders have had this, and been incredibly effective, others have chosen not to use their control, and been less effective. Oppressive, selfish leaders are considered to have more power than accepting leaders that cared for the people, rather than re-election and the opinions of fellow members of the aristocracy. Power is something which leaders seek to abuse, but citizens also use, and constantly abuse to achieve.
…show more content…
Those who abused power became more and more powerful, leading to autocrats and dictators becoming tyrants. Caligula, emperor of Rome, was one of their most powerful, but lacked integrity, due to his lack of morals. He wanted to make his horse consul, and spent his days abusing his power to make the lives of his fellow aristocracy miserable. He was sadistic, enjoying to torment and embarrass the nobility. There also was another emperor, Nero, who enjoyed using his power. He hated christians, burning them with oil, eventually burning down Rome and blaming the christians for it. There also was one emperor who had both power and integrity, Constantine. Constantine began the conversion of Rome to Christianity, and began ending legal persecution of the Christians. That act took his power, and he chose to use it, although this time to better a group of people, although this doesn’t extend throughout all of Rome, and those who were pagans suffered from this, it did, for a short amount of time, lessen legal persecution throughout
Power allows people to do anything they want. They can use it in different ways, they can tell people to obey them, they can use it to hurt someone they hate, and even rob. They can also use it in a positive way, they can help people and do a lot of good things with it.
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.
On August 31st, 12 AD Germanicus and Agrippina the Elder gave birth to the third Roman emperor during the Julio-Claudian Dynasty. During the beginning of his reign, it seemed to be, as most would call it “a dream come true”. But after a few favorable accomplishments, Caligula became the deranged tyrant he is known for today.
In the Ancient Roman times which was a very chaotic time period, with many different power struggles that led to some of the best and worst people ruling the Roman Empire Over the ages different emperors made their way to the throne, whether they killed to get there or inherited it from their parents, they all left distinct marks although some left bigger marks than others. The three considered the worst emperors, are Nero, Caligula, and Commodus (Champlin, E, 2003). Out of the three worst Roman emperors, the worst was Caligula because of the hideous crimes he committed compared the Commodus and Nero
Power is authority and strength, which is any form of motive force or energy, ability to act, or control. When too much power is given, a dictatorship government can form, in which all decisions are made by one authority. In the book Animal Farm, by George Orwell the author portrays how “Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely” (Lord Acton).
Emperor Nero, infamously known as one of the most malevolent, oppressive, and tyrannical leader throughout history, was the last ruler of the Julio-Claudian Dynasty. He was born outside Rome in Antium and his mother married his great uncle, Emperor Claudius, in order for her son to be the next Emperor of Rome. It wasn’t apparent that her son was to become one of the most feared and cruel leaders in Roman history from 54 CE to 68 CE. By examining his achievements and failures as an emperor, his influences and changes over the entire economic, political and social spectrum are revealed.
Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus, born 15 December 37 AD, was Roman Emperor from 54 to 68 AD, and the last in the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Nero was adopted by his granduncle Claudius to become his heir and successor, and succeeded to the throne in 54AD following Claudius’ suspicious death. Nero focused much of his attention on diplomacy, trade and enhancing the cultural life of the Empire. When he became emperor, Nero was a young man who enjoyed the theater, music and horse racing. Ancient Historian, Suetonius, stated that “Nero degenerated from the good qualities of his ancestors, yet he reporoduced the vices of each of them, as if tramsitted to him by natural inheritance” (Suetonius, 110 AD). His dominating mother, Agrippina, had already
Rome – of course, was not built in a day… but its fabrication was indubitably helped by its many great rulers, such as; Aurelius and Augustus. However, on the other end of the parameter, there is infamous Caligula.
The term power has a variety of definitions. According to the American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, the first definition of power refers to “the ability or capacity to act or do something effectively”, also include “a capacity, faculty, or aptitude,” (“power. (n.d.)
Gaining power can be constructive when growing a business or successful for members of a governing body, but if the desire for more power becomes increasingly out of control, all hard work and effort could face disaster and ruin. The desire for more power than is rightful to a person or position may lead to war and the loss of many lives. Recall from history, Adolf Hitler, now reviled as one of the most notorious and cruel dictators of the twentieth century. He was a German-Nazi leader, largely responsible for World War II and the deaths of millions. He nearly annihilated the European Jewish population all because of a thirst for power. Another power-hungry ruler from earlier history was King Herod of Judea. He was a ruthless tyrant who lived
Power has been defined as the psychological relations over another to get them to do what you want them to do. We are exposed to forms of power from the time of birth. Our parents exercise power over us to behave in a way they deem appropriate. In school, teachers use their power to help us learn. When we enter the work world the power of our boss motivates us to perform and desire to move up the corporate ladder so that we too can intimidate someone with power one day. In Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness Kurtz had a power over the jungle and its people that was inexplicable.
Power is how much control and support one has. Power can be controversial because the people who want it sometimes don't know how to handle it. In Julius Caesar, written by Shakespeare, many different people possess power. They gain the power in varied ways and react to having it differently. Since there are so many situations in Julius Caesar, power shifts are very common because diverse times call for the amounts of power to vary between different people.
Power is both a good and evil thing. With power, a person has the potential to change the world. With power, a person’s words would be so influential, that anything would be possible. But when a person uses power for evil, it could possibly provoke the most horrible events imaginable. One person who used power for evil was a character from the movie Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith created by George Lucas. The characters name was Chancellor Palpatine. In a span of about fifteen years, he was able to manipulate the political system of the Galactic Republic so that he would come to power. With various events such as the Clone Wars, he gained more and more power as Chancellor, so much so that the only thing that the Chancellor feared was to lose his power.
university president for instance has more power than a dean of a business school, but they both have formal power. Personal power, on the other hand, is the capacity to influence others that comes from being viewed as knowledgeable and likable by followers. This is a type of power that derives from the interpersonal relationships that leaders develop with followers (Yukl, 2006). Some argue that when leaders have both position and personal power, it is advisable to use personal power most of the time. Overuse of position power may erode the ability of a leader to influence people (Goffee, & Jones, 2007). Of course, it is important to know when it is most appropriate to use position power and to be able and willing to use it (Daft, 2005; Goffee,
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.