While some people can be right-minded and powerful, power is a corrupting force because power causes greed and selfishness. Power can easily be abused, and power amplifies any personality traits you may have, good or bad. In the play Macbeth written by William Shakespeare, this is a key point. Power can be abused in many different ways. Whether it’s an autocracy with one person having absolute power, or even a democracy where the person in power is limited by their own branches of government, people have always wanted power. When an individual gains power, they are usually not content with the amount they have, and they always want more. Like in Macbeth, when Macbeth was so ambitious and greedy for his throne of power. He does anything to
Jacalyn Doerwald Shugrue/Stins Humanities 6+7 The Power-Hungry Macbeth Macbeth is praised a hero at the beginning of the story, and by the end, he’s considered a villain. Macbeth had his rise of power, and then his plunge to less than nothing. It’s actually quite interesting to see how Macbeth is affected by outside influences. All beginning with the witches, then to Lady Macbeth, he is heavily influenced.
Power is the source of all evil in the world which makes it more dangerous than everything else. Particularly, all of the most horrendous people in history all wanted this one thing called power. Power changes people by corrupting them, making them greedy, and bring out the darkness in people. Corruption only helps a society by trying to gain more power for that one ruler in the region.
Most people will never get the chance to feel the rush that comes with this much power, but many leaders who were given that chance were swayed by the lust for dominance. Rare is that the quality of selflessness in a leader. Power is too strong of a seducer for people not to gain at least somewhat of a hunger for control. And this obviously doesn’t just affect those in power. The people who are at the mercy of a ruler will always react negatively, whether they have a good ruler or a bad one.
Humans have an innate desire for power. Most often, they look for it in relationships and social position. Like all things, having authority offers temporary pleasure. The amount of power one might possess usually parallels their own self-perception and how they interact with others. People usually look to gain power when they lack control in their own lives.
Throughout history, there have been countless examples of individuals who have been consumed by their lust for power, leading to a loss of their humanity. The desire for power can be intoxicating, and it can cause people to do things that they would never have considered before. They focus too much on achieving power at any cost which drives them essentially insane. A great example of this is William Shakespeare's “Macbeth.” There are hundreds of great examples of these characters losing sight of what makes them human, such as empathy, compassion, and death.
The Deception Behind Power Machiavellian Villains will go to drastic extents to maintain power, it can be used for selfish acts. Power can be dangerous, this is evident in the characters of William Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Polonius, Hamlet, and Claudius use their influence for evil in hopes of it benefiting themselves despite other lives being put at risk. Polonius had power in his role with the royals as well as power over his children as their father. He used this power to control and spy in a deceptive manner.
People crave power because they believe that it will benefit them in the long run, but it does not. Too much power and authority will lead to crookedness. People with power never stop striving for more. That can be a dreadful thing because people with that mentality will hurt anyone that comes in between their goal. There can be different reasons why people try to gain more power, either for riches or for popularity.
When power is given to a person, it can change them negatively by creating an selfish and ungrateful ego. Many people who obtain authority and dominance become pompous and their superiority begins to feed their self-esteem. The lesson of power changing people is proven throughout history and is displayed in many novels and movies where the majority of citizens see power as money, and money as success. Having the mindset that being powerful leads to success causes them to under appreciate their lives and not see the goals they’ve accomplished as successes.
Power in many cases, blinds the person from seeing both sides of a problem or not thinking something through. In my knowledge, people in history with absolute power tend to make huge mistakes because they didn 't think an idea through or were only focused on what they want. Ivan the terrible was a young, absolute leader of Russia. He made good decisions at first, but then started making mistakes. Ivan only trusted the head of the church, and no one else.
The answer is complicated and worthwhile consideration. Power is good for achieving ideas, reaching people, making money, influencing or controlling others. Leaders strive for power, but many maybe haven’t thought of the reason behind their ambitions. “Power by itself is nothing if one doesn’t know how to use it properly. Leaders can also become “intoxicated” by power – engaging in wrong behaviour simply because they can get away with it” (Riggio, 2009).
Everyone, at one point in their lives has wanted power more than anything. Those who do get it have to make the decision whether they want to use it for good or evil. Power can turn a person into something they never dreamed they would become because it starts to take over their lives and people do not know what to do with so much power. There are many examples of power in the play Macbeth and every person that got it used it in very different ways. This caused many changes in people from turning from good to evil or evil to good.
Becoming ambitious for more as well as being a megalomaniac and sanctimonious are characteristics resulting in having too much power over people. Although power can be used acceptably, when given ability over others, humans tend to get carried away and strive for more. Having too much authority over others causes innocent lives to be manipulated, the guiltless to suffer from being abused, and individuals to act egotistical. When presented with too much power, it can cause individuals to wield it in incorrect ways, hurting blameless beings. Although some may believe that power is a good trait to have, it may harm faultless people and cause them to be maneuvered against their own will.
People have many different reactions when given power. The reaction is usually either one where they use power for a greater good and to guide others in a better situation, or they can misuse the power given and take advantage of the circumstances or others to make themselves feel even more dominant and in command. In the play, Antigone by Sophocles one of the main characters , King Creon, abuses his power to take superiority of others and in an attempt to gain control. The misuse of power is more frequent than the use of power for the favorable, even in many current events.
Power can have the persuasive action in undoing the moral ethics of one’s character. This can be seen throughout history, such as World War II and proven by the actions of Napoleon in the allegory, Animal Farm, by George Orwell. As Lord Acton said “Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” In history what was viewed as a villain, is never the same as the perception. A leader does not begin wanting to do wrong, they start with the best intentions, but power is a tricky thing.
There are many things that can bring someone to a powerful position, such as money or fame. If power is abused it can lead someone to be greedy, self-centered, or less sensitive. Power can be used to influence others, but it can affect the person in authority much more. Mr. Keltner states, “when you give people power, they basically start acting like fools.” In other words, people will do whatever they can to get to the powerful position but once they are there