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Now and then character analysis
Now and then character analysis
Now and then character analysis
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American author Edward Abbey concludes “Power is always dangerous. Power attracts the worst and corrupts the best.” This quote means that with power comes corruption. Many people are trusted with power, and we don’t know what they will do with it. Many of the respected people in our nation and world have some amount of power. However many of the respected people lose their popularity and respect, because they abuse their power, as sheriff hadley does in, A Ranger Rides to Town, by Louis L’Amour. People use their power to gain respect of others and when they abuse their power they are punished for it. Not only do people abuse their power and don’t do their jobs properly, but also these people are punished. In the short story A Ranger Rides to Town by Louis L’Amour Sheriff Hadley abuses his power and doesn’t properly do his job. Sheriff Hadley explains to Bowdrie “I didn’t know there were any rangers in these parts.” Bowdrie scenes that something is wrong, because Captain McNelly always …show more content…
Bowdrie confronts Hadley with the evidence convicting him of bank robbery and murder in the process. Hadley explains to Bowdrie “You’ve got no proof Bowdrie, all you got is speculation.” This tells Bowdrie that his speculations were correct. Hadley goes and gets the loot. Hadley was planning to ride right out of town and leave his job, his trust, and his respect of the citizens behind him. When Hadley realizes that his horse was gone he comes out into the street where Bowdrie catches him red handed with the loot, incriminating him. Bowdrie stops Hadley, but he goes for his gun, Bowdrie instantly replies, and shoots Hadley twice in the chest. Although Hadley is killed after he shattered his trust and respect, not all people who destroy their trust are punished in this
Power. It is defined as the capacity or ability to direct or influence the behavior of others or the course of events. Throughout time, certain individuals have acquired power in their society as a way to govern and keep order among their community. Power is not a new concept; it was used in the past by many emperors, kings, and queens, and is still being used by presidents, prime ministers, and dictators. Although, it has been used to further progress societies into what the world is like today, not all power has been used for the best of mankind. But what goes awry to make power turn corrupt? In William Shakespeare's Hamlet, it is illustrated how power can turn corrupt, when authoritative figures, who possess power, abuse it for their personal gain, rather than for the common good of the society.
As American history has shown us, with great power also comes great responsibility. The great power part has not been as much of a problem as the great responsibility has. And as history have shown us, many of those officers show great control and responsibility, but there are a small percentage of those officers who are corrupt.
When a person is in power, situations arouse where they can acquire anything by lying, bribing, conning, or stealing. With these in mind anybody in power could easily become a powerful foe.
Power is earned, not given. There are many different types of power that people can earn. Power becomes a problem when it is not questioned or tested. Therefore, the one with the power would have total control over anything or anyone they wanted, or they would feel that way. People with power feel invincible when it is not questioned. Throughout history it has been proven that this creates a problem. For example, Richard Nixon and the Watergate scandal is similar to the scandal with Father Flynn in Doubt. Doubt, by John Patrick Shanley, exemplifies an underlying message that unquestioned faith leads to abuse of power. Specifically, shown in Father Flynn’s reputation, cover up, and resignation, which all correlate to Richard Nixon’s Watergate Scandal.
Hadley beats bogs because bogs and the girls had been beating Andy up but now that the officers need Andy to launder money for them and do their taxes they wanted to protect Andy for their own advantages.
Later, Spade decides to have a meeting ith O'Shbaughnessy and Cairo together. Befor ethe meeting, Spade notices a youngman shadowing him. HE temporarily forgets about it and goes to the meeting in his apartment. At the meeting Cairo and O'Shaughnesy briefly speak of a falcon, but the doorbell interrupts them. Sam goes to the door greets two police detectives that are investigating the deaths of Thursby and Archer. The officers demand entry when they hear a scream and a shout from within,. When they reach the room of the scream, they find Cairo with a bloody face, holding a gun at O'Shaughnessy. In an attempt to allay suspiciion, Spade says that it is a deliberate joke. The police leave Spade alone, but they take Cairo to the station for questioning.
Power is the source of all corruption as supported by Dickens’s novel A Tale of Two Cities. The characters Monseigneur, Marquis of Evermonde, and the revolutionaries all become corrupt in the end because of the power they possessed. If they did not possess power, they would not have been able to complete the actions they had planned to. Then, if they’re actions did not occur, the corruption they caused would cease to exist
*Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, by Mildred D. Taylor, shows that power doesn’t always go to those who will uses it correctly. They misuse the power they were gifted and use it for their own benefit. Examples of people who abuse their power would be the Simms, the Wallace’s, and Mr. Granger.*
When you’re in a position of high authority, it comes with a great sum of power. Having a great deal of control can corrupt and can lead to the abuse of it. Abuse of power is using their power for their own benefit even if it may harm others. In the book Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, the effects of the abuse shown by Curley and Curley’s wife to the other characters will ultimately lead to a tragic end.
When somebody abuses a great amount of power, that individual can lose all their power. The struggle against someone who abuses power is perfectly depicted in the novel, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, by Ken Kesey. When someone abuses their power, they can impose certain feelings and actions onto others. If someone tries to conceal their personality, . Finally, if someone abuses power and is constantly challenged by another individual who is trying to take the power abuser’s power away from them, the power abuser will always be frightened of his or her challenger. When someone abuses power and takes full control, they can lose all their power and respect quickly.
People of authority gain this authority by society's approval. The abuse of power can lead to difficult situations for those who do not have power or authority. In the town
As shown in literature, corruption and the abuse of power is an ongoing discussion. When it comes down to the point where people are being used and abused physically and psychologically, it creates a hostile environment for both the subjects and the abuser. As represented in the two similar texts Lord Of the Flies and “I Only Came to use the Phone”, corrupted authority and abuse of power usually end up leading to the collapse of a society or a world of chaos and violence.
It is often said that power brings corruption, but in reality it is an individual’s lack of character, self-discipline, and integrity that leads to corruption. Law enforcement can bring many temptations on the job, and maintaining an up most level of personal integrity can often times be very difficult. The very nature of the job surrounds officers with all of the bad things that society, produces. There can be an endless amount of training and rules put into place to try and deter officers from committing unethical acts, but in the end it really just comes down to the specific individual and their willingness to do the right thing.
Using her fabricated fable, vulnerable position, and food and drink, she attempts to bring the officers to take her word for it- and succeeds. According to one of the detectives, she “... acted quite normal… very cheerful… wanted to give him a good supper… peas… cheesecake… impossible that she…” (16). Not to gloat, but women are just as capable of committing a murder as men are; the detectives had their proof, and doubts, as the murder scene seemed too perfect (as well as the hit) and they almost discovered the murder weapon, but again, the stereotypes of women being “quiet and harmless” came into play. Even after bringing in detective after detective (who are all men) and a crowd of officers, and after inspecting her home for possible weapons, they did not find anything, but still realize something is off. They almost discover the murder weapon cooking in the oven, but conniving Ms. Maloney coaxes the officers into eating the murder weapon; the very thing that killed their
"Unlimited power is apt to corrupt the minds of those who possess it" [Lord Acton, British Historian]. It is human nature that the more power one desires, the more corrupt actions they have to commit to attain power. Power is the ability to have control over people and/or things. People who are powerful can, and in most cases will, create an illusion of anything they want you to see about them. This illusion can make people blind to their true intentions.