Power!

“People of Earth, please lend me your energy!” Goku shouted while preparing his Spirit Bomb. By harnessing the power of all mankind, Goku successfully created his spirit bomb and defeated the evil Kid Buu—thus saving the Earth. And while this story comes from the fictional world of Dragon Ball Z, it helps in answering the question of “what exactly is power” and “what does it mean to be powerful”. It helps in that it displays how cheering can increase someone’s abilities, the same occurrence that happens with athletes and actors. While this may only be one view of power, all views of power are important. Power’s importance can be summed up as being something that every human inherently desires. Whether that power may be the ability to survive, the ability to live life as one pleases, or the ability to be above all others, every person wants power.

Power is something seen throughout all aspects of life. Every culture, every religion, every area, has an idea of what power is. Tibetan monks may believe that power relates to inner spirituality and oneness with your environment while warring tribes in Africa may argue that power is in whoever is physically strong. The broadness of power allows it to be interpreted as the viewer sees fit.

Power’s malleability has been the subject of past research. Two social psychologists, John R. P. French and Bertram Raven researched different types of powers and classified them. They simplified power down to six fundamental types: coercive power, reward power, legitimate power, referent power, expert power, and informational power. Coercive power is the ability to get someone to do something against their will. Coercion is often done through violence but it can also be done with threats, blackmail, ...

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...nal power is not an absolute. An unruly mob is nothing to a god who has legitimate power. That same king who seems powerful to the mob is nothing in the eyes of a god whose omnipotence prevails over the trivial matters of a king. And even a god will have no power if their target does not believe in their existence.

Power is a very strong tool that can either be used for the better of mankind or the destruction of it. Theodore Roosevelt stated “speak softly and carry a big stick”, claiming that power of negotiation needs to be backed up with actually military strength. Power is something that is endearing and ambiguous. One’s perceived view of power may be entirely different from another’s but that does not mean that either is wrong. The time, the place, and the situation will all affect the effectiveness of a power. Power is whatever you perceive it to be and more.