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The importance of leadership in society 4
The importance of leadership in society 4
Leadership and influence
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INTRO-
What if the biggest life figure you know turned out to be a hoax the whole time you’ve known them? Throughout history, mankind's greatest leaders and role models have defined future generations. Their legacy and impact left on citizens of the world are impeccable. Even today, from our countries leaders to our parents every individual is impacted by who they look up to. But, what if their lives were a facade, and the true characteristics of these individuals were hidden? Chris Hedges argues that one of most essential skills a person can possess is their ability to deceive others. That with artifice, one can be anything no matter the credentials. Hedges is correct in his statement because artifice is an essential skill to everyone because it lets anyone be anything, and assists in reaching your goals.
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One such example is seen in the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling with the devious Professor Snape. Snape throughout the book is seen through the trio’s eyes as a dangerous wizard who sides with the dark arts. But at the end of the book, you see Snape show his true colors of the protecting and wise professor he was. Snape had the skill of artifice and executed it perfectly because it let him seem as the bad guy of the story when in reality he was pretending to be evil to gather information for the heroes without anyone realizing it. Because he had the skill of being artifice he was able to be the person he wanted to be by putting up the fake image to everyone to become the hero he desperately wanted to be. Obtaining this vital skill is important for everyone because it lets individuals become what they want even when they might not be able to otherwise, exactly like what Snape did in Harry
“A good liar uses the truth.” This is a technique used by notorious imposters Frederic Bourdin, and Frank Abagnale. Although Bourdin posed as a child for a second chance at adolescence, Abagnale posed as an adult to gain financial means and respect. Bourdin and Abagnale’s success in deception can be primarily attributed to their careful observation of their surroundings, as well as their ability to detect the emotions of those around them.
The art of artifice compels the idea of false intimacy between a leader and his or her people. This essential skill acts like a play to distract its audience from the reality behind government authority. All a country wants is a leader that can talk the talk and walk the walk, even if they are faking it. In Empire of Illusion by Chris Hedges, the author exemplifies the importance of artifice in political theater and consumer culture since “Those who are best at deception succeed.” Artifice masks the true intentions of political leaders, whether it’s Napoleon’s domination over Europe, Hitler’s rise to power, or Donald Trump’s proposal against illegal immigration.
One example is that Anne was punished for talking in class, so he teacher made her right three stories about talking in class.(pg.8) Her teacher thought that her third one was so good, that he not only let her talk in class, but he shared the story with his other classes as well. Even after Anne was punished, she still found a way to not only be allowed to talk in class, but she outsmarted her teacher as well. An example for Felix is when Felix showed the nazis a picture of Zelda’s german parents to save himself from execution.(pgs. 159-160) Felix has shown several times, such as this one, that he is smart enough to get himself out of tough spots, even when it is a life or death situation.
Many people will argue that honesty will make a person go far in life; however, people who practice artifice succeed substantially. Artifice is a clever or artful skill especially used to trick or deceive others. In the excerpt Empire of Illusion, Chris Hedges states that,” The most essential skill in political theater and a consumer culture is artifice.” I profoundly agree with Hedges’ position on artifice.
It is a given that every piece of work that people read will contain all sorts of characters. Those characters can range from villains, victims, or venerables. Two pieces of work that easily portray those types of characters is in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, and in Arthur Miller’s tragedy, The Crucible. It is revealed to the readers that Mr. Wilson in The Great Gatsby takes the role of the victim because of the how he was lied too and deceived throughout the entirety of the novel, and in the end died from it. Also, in The Great Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan is almost an undercover villain. It is not revealed to most, but by speculating on her actions she does some things that prove her to be a villain. Lastly, in The Crucible Giles Corey comes off as a venerable,
Literature is very interesting when there is a change in the protagonist. They can start out bad but turn out good in the end. Being the protagonist of a novel and changing your ways can affect the story and give it a great plot twist. There is a story in literature that contains a person that made a bad decision. A victim of sin, Hester Prynne, emerges as a determined, loving, and strong heroine, living her own life in The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne.
A scuffle for strength can be sparked by several of man’s worldly faults. For the want of wealth is fueled by greed. The pursuit of power is driven by pride. And the desire of it all for one’s self is vanity’s only wish. All these elements can be achieved by means of true authority granted by deceitful appearance. For it is what you are viewed as, not how you got there that is feared and respected. Such qualities are prevalent in leaders both of valor and treachery.
Artifice can be an artform, but also a way of covering up the truth and taking on a fake personality and life. Even the chapter one beginning photo says, “Old father, Old Artificer.” This shows the differences between the two, and that art allows you to be free and artifice keeps people enclosed, not telling is still
If you have the Harry Potter series, or almost any other story you have been introduced to this literary device that instantly makes your story attention-grabbing, and page-turning. This writing tool is known as a character foil. A character foil is a character that displays contrary, or opposite character traits. An example of a character foil is Draco Malfoy, and Harry Potter. Their rival relationship and other conflicts are the perfect example to showcase foils at work. To continue, in the iconic “Romeo and Juliet” written by William Shakespeare, there are two known character foils in the first Act: Benvolio and Tybalt, and the Nurse and Lady Capulet.
For example, when Don John lies to Claudio and Don Pedro about Hero’s disloyalty. “For she has been too long a-taking of-the lady is disloyal”(Shakespeare 89-90). This shows how easily conflict could have been avoided because all Claudio and Don Pedro have to do is ask anyone and they would find out that Don John’s accusations were false. This is brought out by the character foil of Don Pedro and Don John because it is Don John’s deceit that is highlighted by Don Pedro’s honesty that creates this conflict that truly makes this meaning clear. Also, Don Pedro’s honesty could have also solved the situation. If he was immediately honest with Leonato and told him of Don John’s accusation, Leonato could have dug deeper and found out that it was untrue. This brings out even more the ease at which the problem could have been avoided. Without this character foil, the meaning would not be as clear as it
To begin with, artifice can work so easily as long as the people can be manipulated. If they’re told what they want to hear, the population eventually fights for that person with all of their being. No one’s ever absolutely sure whether the politician’s words are truthful or not, but they take the chance anyway. At the beginning of Hedges’ excerpt, he explains that political leaders are some of the countless individuals who use
What makes artifice such an essential skill? In the excerpt from Empire of Illusion by Chris Hedges, it is argued that “the most essential skill… is artifice.” Artifice, the act of deceiving people, can be very useful when you want more power or popularity in the world. Many widely known people use artifice to stay rich, popular, and in power. However, artifice isn’t so essential that everybody needs to be a faker in order to succeed.
While working or while looking for work there are certain skills sets that are universally important. No matter what job or career path you have chosen these skills make it easier to obtain your goals, whatever they may be.
For a time, the main characters in a story, poem, or narrative were easily classified as either being a hero or a villain. A hero would be easy to identify by the traits he'd possess, such as bravery, honesty, selflessness, trustworthiness, courage, leadership, and more. The villain would be easy to identify as well, possessing traits such as maliciousness, deceitfulness, immorality, dark, wishing harm upon others, and more. But what if the character lacked the natural heroic qualities but wasn't a villain either? What if the person displayed personality flaws that would traditionally be associated with a villain, but has heroic intentions? These questions were finally answered with the emergence of the anti-hero in literature.
supported by their words, by being honest. In Othello, Shakespeare exhibits how dishonesty can be used as a form of manipulation on honest people, but also leads to self-destruction on the person using it.