ipl-logo

Power Corruption In Animal Farm, Lord Of The Flies, And Julius Caesar

2117 Words9 Pages

Power Causing Corruption Power can sometimes turn a society upside down. Someone who doesn’t know how to use power or uses power for evil can cause terrible events and destruction. In each of the three books, Animal Farm, Lord of the Flies, and The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, there was a change in power and leaders who held that power. In each book, when the person of power changed, so did the society and the people in it. They all showed how a person of great power, who is violent, can cause a society and the people in it, to become violent. There is more conflict and violence when an evil person has power. People who have no real power tend to follow the person who is powerful. This causes destruction and chaos when a leader has bad intentions. …show more content…

They might change because they were leading people on at first and pretending to be a really good person when deep down they aren’t. If they aren’t pretending, they may just realize they can do whatever they want because they have all the power. They can make anything happen which sometimes is not good because they can cause conflicts and corruption in a society. If a person is not careful of what they do with their power, they can change a society in a very drastic or terrible way. In Animal Farm, at first, Napoleon seemed quiet and less competitive for the lead. “Napoleon produced no schemes of his own, but said quietly that Snowball's would come to nothing, and seemed to be biding his time” (Orwell 48). After this, Napoleon showed his vicious dogs to the others, he became evil with the power he gained from his dogs. In The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, Cassius changes Brutus and convinces him to kill Caesar. Brutus would normally not be so evil but power changed him and so did Cassius. “Since Cassius first did whet me against Caesar, I have not slept. Between the acting of a dreadful thing and the first motion, all the interims is like a phantasma or a hideous dream. The genius and the mortal instruments are then in count and the state of men, like to a little kingdom suffers then the nature of an insurrection” (Shakespeare 1.2.63-71). By Brutus gaining power he does things he usually wouldn’t do. He becomes a murderer. In Lord of the Flies, both Jack and Roger changed. Roger helped Jack lead, and they both became very violent. They weren’t like that in the beginning. They seemed angry but never really evil. Power changed them. They started to hurt the boys and cause destruction. “Yet no one made a sound; and as the minutes passed, in the green shade, his feeling of triumph faded. At last he heard a voice--Jack's voice, but hushed. ‘Are you certain?’ The

Show More
Related
959 Words | 4 Pages

With absolute power comes absolute corruption, but with limited power comes limited corruption. In the novel Lord of the Flies, the arbitrary need for a leader brings forward strife and competition between characters that desire power. Ralph with his old democratic leadership style clashes with Jack’s unethical style to rule. In the book Lord of the Flies, we learn that eagerness for power is strong enough to break the boys’ fragile civilization, which is demonstrated by the characters Ralph, Piggy and Jack.

Read More
1511 Words | 7 Pages

How Absolutely does Absolute Power Corrupt? Stranded, alone, no adults in sight. The boys in Lord of the Flies by William Golding were being evacuated from their school during the war, when their plane crashed on a small, uninhabited island. All adults were lost in the crash, only boys of various ages between twelve and six survived. Someone needs to be in charge, right?

Read More
856 Words | 4 Pages

His corrupt nature causes the boys to fear disobeying him and shows them that disobedience is answered with physical pain. Robert tells Roger of what Jack will do when he's angry: "'He [Jack] is going to beat Wilfred'" (159), and when Roger asks Robert why Jack will beat Wilfred, Robert says, "'I don't know... He got angry and made us tie Wilfred up'" (159). This shows that if someone manages to anger Jack he will not take to it kindly, and will use force to show that he is in control. Disobeying Jack makes him angry as well, shown when he tries to kill Ralph who is not with the idea of him leading during the entire time they are on the island.

Read More
276 Words | 2 Pages

If you are reading your history book, a play, or even watching the news today, you will see how people abuse the power that they have over somethings. There have been many leaders and people who abuse their power over civilization and places. Even the littlest taste of power often leads them to corruption. Many times, citizens and adversaries riot over some of the things that they disagree on and, in some cases, murder comes in to play.

Read More
813 Words | 4 Pages

Leadership Abuse in Lord of the Flies The famous 17th century poet Jean de la Fontaine once said “Anyone entrusted with power will abuse it if not also animated with the love of truth and virtue, no matter whether he be a prince, or one of the people.” When the children in Lord of the Flies find themselves stranded on a distant island with no adults to be found, they encounter many forms of power, hence encountering many forms of abuse of power as well. This power abuse can be organized by the two leaders who each ruled the island during their own periods. In Lord of the Flies, William Golding utilizes these leaders, Ralph and Jack, to illustrate how people in positions of power will abuse their power for personal gain when given the opportunity.

Read More
880 Words | 4 Pages

Corruption’s Rise to Power Combined Joseph Stalin and Adolf Hitler killed 54 million people. This begs the question, why do people who are clearly corrupted and even murderous followed by many? William Golding in his novel The Lord of the Flies attempts to answer that question through his portrayal of the character, Jack. In the novel, a group of boys get stranded on an island and attempt to create a proper government.

Read More
1059 Words | 5 Pages

There are many instances in media such as movies, books, and TV shows where a good character is turned evil either by their actions or the influences of another. This polarizing action also occurs in the real world and can be witnessed through looking at history, or looking at our world today. In the case of The Tragedy of Julius Caesar there are several characters who go mad with power, most noticeably Marcus Brutus, often referred to as ‘Brutus’. Another instance of a person of significance being corrupted by power is Henry VIII of England. Both men in a like manner started out innocent, were given a taste of power, and then took advantage of that power and became corrupt.

Read More
974 Words | 4 Pages

Corruption is defined as dishonest or illegal behavior, especially by powerful people, and just like its definition, corruption and power go hand in hand. The more power a person has, generally, the easier it is for them to be corrupted. Just like in Julius Caesar where power and corruption are very prevalent, and most of the leaders in Julius Caesar became corrupted by their power, but in some rare cases leaders have avoided corruption, these people are very valuable in society, and must not be taken for granted. Just like many other leaders in Julius Caesar, Caesar was corrupted by his power. He wasn’t corrupt in the normal sense, he was socially corrupt in the fact that he didn’t stick to the social norms of respecting fellow senators in

Read More
896 Words | 4 Pages

From a family that was not politically influential, he would become dictator

Read More
945 Words | 4 Pages

It is seen that the power rid of Napoleon’s conscience, and created a ruthless dictator.

Read More
607 Words | 3 Pages

The fear that the conspirator had against tyranny was so commanding that it pushed them to murder their emperor. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare. Julius Caesar was an emperor of Rome, a renowned military leader, and a beloved friend to all of his subjects. Cassius created a conspiracy that feared tyranny and what Caesar would become if he gained more power. Cassius corrupted Brutus, who was a long-time friend of Caesar 's, to betray him and join the conspiracy.

Read More
975 Words | 4 Pages

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.

Read More
1587 Words | 7 Pages

“Power doesn’t corrupt people, people corrupt power.”- William Gaddis. People take advantage of power when it is entrusted to them because of their own greed, which as a result lead to societal deterioration. In the story, “The Handmaid’s Tale,” by Margaret Atwood, the higher-ups from Gilead abuse the power that is given to them, ruining the life of the citizens in the society. This was the cause for the need of higher birth rates and fixing conflicts in the world, but this was handled immorally.

Read More
448 Words | 2 Pages

When somebody receives incredible power, they also receive a large burden of responsibility. Some people, such as Napoleon, disregard these responsibilities and become corrupt. In reality, we have seen this in leaders such as Stalin, who became corrupt once into power. In “Animal Farm”, Napoleon, a totalitarian pig, is a great example of how too much power is equal to corruption.

Read More
679 Words | 3 Pages

Most people question, “ How does the quest of power cause people to act? ”. Over the years the question has been proved to cause people to act differently. Not just in history but in many movies, plays, books, and even in current events today. The quest of power drives people to do things out of their character.

Read More

More about Power Corruption In Animal Farm, Lord Of The Flies, And Julius Caesar

Related Topics

Open Document