Power turns abusive because of human’s innate relationship with this mixed blessing. Throughout time, humans have had uniform ways in their desire for power and the way that they follow those who are in a position of power. The consistency prevalent throughout all regions of the world over the course of history is reflective of how all humans share a natural response when called to follow power and similarly in their aspiration for it.
A human’s desire for power is a characteristic that remains universal. This is evident through The Stanford Prison Experiment, conducted by Phil Zimbardo in the basement of the psychology building at Stanford University in 1971. For the experiment, twelve individuals, in the role of a guard, were instructed …show more content…
Another example of how power is a natural desire for humans comes from the Korean novel, Our Twisted Hero, by Yi Munyol. In this story of power struggle and childhood dilemmas, a young boy, Han Pyongtae, moves to a new school and quickly discovers that things are different from his old school. He realizes that the class monitor, Om Sokdae, doubles as a bully and at times borders on dictator. Within the first few weeks at Han’s new school, he notices how differently he is treated by his class monitor, in comparison to the ones at his past school. Om is manipulative, abusive and takes advantage of his classmates. As much as Han tries to avoid the temptation of Om’s manipulative ways, Han, over time, collapses under Om’s promises for a better stature in the classroom as he lures Han to a taste of what his new level of power could feel like, “he treated me as if I ranked differently than the others, and he directed the entertainment of the day almost as if it were a banquet for me. Actually, you could say that for that day he had raised my ranking to the level of his own” (Munyol 84). Although at first hesitant to succumb to Om’s rule, …show more content…
One example comes from a study done on teens analyzing how their idolization of celebrities affects their lives. When asked the blunt question of if they thought that their favorite celebrities caused them to change their lives in any way, and the teens admitted that “despite strong attractions to their idols, they were not inspired to change their own behavior based on these celebrities’ lives or accomplishments” (Bennett). However, when asked specific questions about how their idols inspired them, it was clear that 60% of the teens were unconsciously developing their identities around these idols that they look up to. This shows how we naturally follow the actions of those who are glorified, and constantly flashed in the public eye, without realizing the extent that we are letting them affect our lives. Another example of people being “brainwashed” into giving their undivided submission to their leader, occurs in the FLDS (Fundamental Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints) religion. A documentary, Colorado City and the Underground Railroad, records the journey of individuals and families attempting to escape the never ending, nightmarish cycle of the religious cult. The leader of the group, Warren Jeffs, takes control of his members from birth. He convinces the
A human’s desire for power is a characteristic that remains universal. This is evident through The Stanford Prison Experiment, conducted by Phil Zimbardo in the basement of the psychology building at Stanford University in 1971. For the experiment, twelve individuals, in the role of a guard, were instructed …show more content…
Another example of how power is a natural desire for humans comes from the Korean novel, Our Twisted Hero, by Yi Munyol. In this story of power struggle and childhood dilemmas, a young boy, Han Pyongtae, moves to a new school and quickly discovers that things are different from his old school. He realizes that the class monitor, Om Sokdae, doubles as a bully and at times borders on dictator. Within the first few weeks at Han’s new school, he notices how differently he is treated by his class monitor, in comparison to the ones at his past school. Om is manipulative, abusive and takes advantage of his classmates. As much as Han tries to avoid the temptation of Om’s manipulative ways, Han, over time, collapses under Om’s promises for a better stature in the classroom as he lures Han to a taste of what his new level of power could feel like, “he treated me as if I ranked differently than the others, and he directed the entertainment of the day almost as if it were a banquet for me. Actually, you could say that for that day he had raised my ranking to the level of his own” (Munyol 84). Although at first hesitant to succumb to Om’s rule, …show more content…
One example comes from a study done on teens analyzing how their idolization of celebrities affects their lives. When asked the blunt question of if they thought that their favorite celebrities caused them to change their lives in any way, and the teens admitted that “despite strong attractions to their idols, they were not inspired to change their own behavior based on these celebrities’ lives or accomplishments” (Bennett). However, when asked specific questions about how their idols inspired them, it was clear that 60% of the teens were unconsciously developing their identities around these idols that they look up to. This shows how we naturally follow the actions of those who are glorified, and constantly flashed in the public eye, without realizing the extent that we are letting them affect our lives. Another example of people being “brainwashed” into giving their undivided submission to their leader, occurs in the FLDS (Fundamental Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints) religion. A documentary, Colorado City and the Underground Railroad, records the journey of individuals and families attempting to escape the never ending, nightmarish cycle of the religious cult. The leader of the group, Warren Jeffs, takes control of his members from birth. He convinces the