George Lucas once said, “Power corrupts, and when you're in charge, you start doing things that you think are right, but they're actually not.” This theme is very evident and important in House of the Scorpion as some of the characters are very powerful and cannot properly handle their power. House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer documents the journey of Matt, who is the clone of a powerful drug lord. After being injured, he goes to the Big House and meets this drug lord, who has lived for over 140 years. The Big House is where Matt learns that he was made to provide organs for El Patron, the drug lord. He will then attempt to escape, and become more than just a clone for spare parts. The most important central theme in this story is power
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Matt and El Patron are two characters that prove the importance of the theme of power corrupts.
Matt is the first example of how power corrupts. Matt has been given power at El Patron’s birthday party because he is his clone, and El Patron wants Matt to have the childhood he never experienced himself. When Matt was in “prison”, he was bullied by Tom and has held a grudge against him ever since. Matt has used his newfound power to move Tom to the “baby table”. “It’s my party, and I get to say who sits where.” (103). Since Matt is El Patron’s clone, he feels a sense of entitlement. He uses this against others, punishing those who have crossed him, similar to El Patron. Once again at the party, while Matt is opening his presents, Maria is trying to take Matt’s present for what he did to Tom. “I demand a birthday kiss… It’s my party too, and I can have anything I want.” (109). Along with his sense of entitlement, Matt also feels that his actions do not have …show more content…
Getting power from El Patron turns Matt from being a normal, kind hearted boy to being rude, selfish and greedy. El Patron never had anything as a child, even losing his family. When he finally did get power, he believed those who deprived him of a good childhood should pay. Power corrupts is a very important theme in House of the Scorpion because the Alacrans are a family full of power, and they think very highly of themselves and don’t treat those below them as humans. This shows that power falling into your hands can blur the line between right and
Matt and El Patron are two characters that prove the importance of the theme of power corrupts.
Matt is the first example of how power corrupts. Matt has been given power at El Patron’s birthday party because he is his clone, and El Patron wants Matt to have the childhood he never experienced himself. When Matt was in “prison”, he was bullied by Tom and has held a grudge against him ever since. Matt has used his newfound power to move Tom to the “baby table”. “It’s my party, and I get to say who sits where.” (103). Since Matt is El Patron’s clone, he feels a sense of entitlement. He uses this against others, punishing those who have crossed him, similar to El Patron. Once again at the party, while Matt is opening his presents, Maria is trying to take Matt’s present for what he did to Tom. “I demand a birthday kiss… It’s my party too, and I can have anything I want.” (109). Along with his sense of entitlement, Matt also feels that his actions do not have …show more content…
Getting power from El Patron turns Matt from being a normal, kind hearted boy to being rude, selfish and greedy. El Patron never had anything as a child, even losing his family. When he finally did get power, he believed those who deprived him of a good childhood should pay. Power corrupts is a very important theme in House of the Scorpion because the Alacrans are a family full of power, and they think very highly of themselves and don’t treat those below them as humans. This shows that power falling into your hands can blur the line between right and