In 1984, Winston has to struggles with power through his government named The Party. The Party wanted influence over Oceania and no one else to have it: even over a person’s own body and mind. Everyone must love The Party, and they must never do anything the party denounces. They are recording everyone with telescreens and microphones. Winston hates the party and defies it, yet, his little fire is put out by the Party. They remain in control. Likewise, in Hamlet, Uncle Claudius kills multiple people for the chance at power. However, he winds up dead, as well. Orwell and Shakespeare both demonstrate how power will take control of your life and how it will eventually lead to death by demonstrating power causes direct selfishness, irrational behavior, and paranoia.
Power and control are the strongest desires. In 1984, Orwell exhibits how power can affect someone; he also shows that this leads to greed and selfishness. The Party is rampant. They do not care how many lives are lost; they will fight for power at all costs. The leaders are motivated by greed to consume and become even more powerful. Orwell writes, “The Party seeks power entirely for its own sake. We are not interested in the good of others; we are interested solely in power. Not wealth or luxury or long life or happiness: only power, pure power,” (Orwell, 263). O’Brien specifically says that all The Party wants is power and nothing less than that. Power is a never-ending battle; you will always want more. Shakespeare attributes greed and selfishness to power, as well. Claudius wants power all for himself and does not want anything coming between him and his power, even if it is his own nephew.
Power can make people do ridiculous and irrational things to people aroun...
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...ple’s thoughts and institutes a ‘thought police’ for potential insurgents. Orwell addresses this repetitively; paranoia is extensive throughout the novel.
At the end of each of these novels, the author expresses a moral concerning the effects of power. Power has the capability to damage and kill people; it makes life much harder. In 1984, “He loved Big Brother” (Orwell, 298) was the last sentence. Orwell’s inclusion asserts that we the Party has already won; power will always triumph. In Hamlet, Shakespeare confirms that if power is pursued through corrupt means, death is inevitable. Claudius causes the death of his brother, his wife, and his step-son to acquire the crown. While the grapple for power can be different in theory, the result is always disastrous. People can become selfish, do irrational things, and become very paranoid in their pursuit for power.
To conclude, power itself is not corrupt by its nature. Power turns corrupt when people use it for their self-interests instead of for the good of many. Shakespeare shows that the corrupt power does not triumph with the death of Claudius as well as those affected by it, including Hamlet, Gertrude, Rosencrantz, Guildenstern, and Laertes. Overall, Shakespeare was trying to show that power is not corrupt until an individual abuses it for wrong reasons. It is man's free will that allows the human race to choose how power will be used.
Rather, it contends that when government is unrestrained in the form of totalitarianism, as exemplified by the Party of Oceania, it can by nature exist only to serve itself. This argument serves as Orwell’s warning against the dangers of totalitarianism; it is so corrupting a force that it can hide behind claims of good intentions, but ultimately exists only to accumulate its own power. Furthermore, since a totalitarian drive for power constitutes a total control of its citizenry and a political structure that necessitates its existence, as shown by the military strategy of the Party, Orwell warns that once a truly totalitarian state is in place, there is no possible way to overthrow it or turn back from it. Ultimately, Orwell sees a government that is so distorted it has become completely self-serving as the largest threat, defining his view of totalitarianism and the themes of his
Power- power is the complete domination of others, and since all men want to dominate those around them, power is valued as one of the most important possessions. Power is highly sought after, thus the correct decisions must be made to obtain it, and this is clearly proven by Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar". Power is obtained much easier than it is kept. "Liberty! Freedom! Tyranny is dead!" The conspirators celebrate the death of Caesar, because they believe that they make the right decision in killing him, and so far they have, but the decision to spare Mark Antony is one that will haunt them in the end. Power is not always beneficial, it can be a very dangerous possession. "You shall not stir out of your house today." Calphurnia makes the decision to persuade Caesar to stay home, and not go to the Senate meeting. When one has power, there are those who want it, like Brutus and the other conspirators. Calphurnia makes the right decision, yet Caesar makes the wrong one by deciding ...
The more power one desires, the more corrupt actions one takes to fulfill those desires. In William Shakespeare’s tragic play, “Macbeth” the main character, Macbeth, becomes hungry for power which ultimately leads him to his tragic death. This is shown through the use of foreshadowing and apostrophe to prove Shakespeare’s theme that the gaining of more power leads to more corrupt influences. It is evident that there is no positive outcome from the craving of power and the act of doing morally or ethically corrupt activities in order to achieve a higher place in society.
1984, by George Orwell, depicts the psychological progression of Winston Smith, a rebellious citizen among an oppressive government. In such a government, each ministry deals with the polar opposite of its namesake, stupidity is as necessary as intellect, and Big Brother is always watching. Conformity is not the ultimate goal of the Party. It is a side effect of Two Minutes Hate, relentless torture, and a lack of meaningful relationships aside from the love of Big Brother. Orwell so vividly illustrates the crushing brutality of the Party in order to warn the reader that an absolute government with the power to drive a citizen to his or her breaking point will inevitably destroy the core of human drive and independence. Those with the power to exploit personal fears and control levels of commitment through torture can crush anyone, for “in the face of pain, there are no heroes” (Orwell 213).
William Shakespeare was one of the first to introduce many to the distinct divide in social class and those who where in power. Some of Shakespeare 's most famous literatures & playwrights tell the stories and air the dirty laundry of people associated high in power and social class. In William Shakespeare’s Hamlet Shakespeare gives many examples of social class and power and how they both can destroy and disrupt when greed and unrighteousness gets in the way. He also proves how both social class and power can break, manipulate, and ruin individuals caught up in the dramas of social class and power. It is without question that William Shakespeare 's Hamlet teaches us the truth about power
Friedrich Nietzsche once provided one of the truest opinions on power that the world has ever heard when he said, “All things are subject to interpretation whichever interpretation prevails at a given time is a function of power and not truth”. The promises and truths that those who gain power spread to their people are not always for the greater good. The worst leaders of people are the ones that put more effort and thought into jerking off their own ego rather than putting any real heartfelt effort into helping their people. These sociopathic evil dictators use their power to try and brainwash the minds of people who have to live under them with their own beliefs and hidden agendas, foolishly believing that they are a “savior”. There has yet to be a situation with a leader of a community who has this type of unchecked power and influence with a happy ending. Perhaps the greatest story ever written about good vs. evil, madness, abuse of power along with influence, and nature just might be Heart of Darkness. Heart of Darkness, written by Joseph Conrad tells the story of an agent named Marlow, who experiences hellish conditions and behaviors whilst trying to rescue a man named Kurtz, who turns out to be quite a handful. Throughout this journey the moral ramifications of both Kurtz and Marlow’s actions are left to be interpreted by the audience after Kurtz goes mad and becomes the catalyst of the events that transpire throughout the plot. Conrad uses his real life events along with themes of greed, power, and obsession to show what causes Kurtz who acts a symbol for the leaders of the real world to go mad and abuse power.
In conclusion, the human ambition for increased amount of power and influence causes the degradation of morality. This is proven through Macbeth’s new found untrustworthiness, his transformation into a deceitful tyrant and his loss of meaning for his life, and the lives of others. It is clear that power can transform all those who seek to gain and/or control it drastically.
Power is the ability to control a person’s life in a way in which the person being controlled has no say. Power is earned rightfully, sometimes. Most of the times, people use wrong ways to earn power which is never theirs to begin with. "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men." (Acton). This quote is a representation of the story Macbeth, and how the character Macbeth is corrupted by power. In William Shakespeare’s novel, Macbeth, a tragic story of a hero, displays this dominant theme of power. Macbeth, a loyal, respected, and strong leader becomes the prey of his wife, who forces him to obtain power. However, Macbeth’s sense of losing his power that he has just attained causes him to utilize his own mind to ensure that he does not lose that power, leading him to make the wrong decisions. This story demonstrates that excessive desire for power can corrupt a person’s life.
Based off of an old Norse play by Kyd, Shakespeare took the “revenge play” and made it modern for it’s time. Although it followed the same pattern; a king is killed by his brother who then marries his wife, in the meanwhile the prince has to avenge his father while avoiding being killed by the new king. Shakespeare’s innovation of adding in the aspect of politics drives the play to be a successful hit in every decade. People can always relate to deception, and Shakespeare has done it both politically and personally. It starts off with political deception by finding out that the king is dead and Claudius has taken the throne. In the times of monocracy this was always a concern because one always had to wonder if the new leader would be a tyrant and repressive. In terms of modern application this could be equivalent to corruption in our government. When running for office if one has unfairly and dissolutely (for example with bribes) taken control of a position over an opponent it can be like “murdering” them politically.
All of these characters want power and control. The choices they make in life are largely influenced by their ambition for power.
Often, too much power can go to that particular person’s head, and he/she can become corrupt. As readers have seen in literature, abuses of power are often harmful to the abuser and their subjects. Corrupted authority and abuses of power eventually lead to the collapse of society. This concept is shown many times throughout the novel Lord Of the Flies and the short story “I Only Came to Use the Phone”. Displayed through characters and actions, abusive power has dominated what should be morally correct in literature.
Power is apparent in every society all across the world whether it be the teacher in your classroom or the head of your country. Many political figureheads abuse their power by through their authority and social status. A fictional example of an abuser with high political authority would be King Creon from “Antigone”, a play written by Sophocles. A modern example would be the dictator Kim Jong Un of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
To become powerful, is to become corrupt, and The Tragedy of Macbeth is a prime example. In William Shakespeare's tragic tale, a young nobleman soon becomes corrupt when he is given the opportunity to become king. His need for power and safety drives him to corruption, ultimately killing off anyone who stands in his path: innocent or not. Throughout the play, many characters portray the impact power has on a relationship: Lady Macbeth and Macbeth, Banquo and Macbeth, Macduff and Macbeth and many more. While all these characters were affected by power in the play, Banquo and Macbeth's relationship best demonstrates the effect of 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,