When one is in charge they tend to take much for granite. One minute they are on top of the world and the next they are at rock bottom. When a king or an important person in society gets to much power it can go to their head.In “Viva la Vida” and “Ozymandias” the authors use both imagery and diction to convey the idea that power can be taken away as quick as it's given. Viva la Vida is a very famous song written by Coldplay. Viva la Vida means “long live life” in this case long live the king. The king in this song was considered a great one. “I use to roll the dice Feel the fear in my enemy's eyes Listen as the crowd would sing Now the old king is dead Long live the king”(Coldplay line 5-10). At this time Coldplay uses diction to demonstrate that the king showed no mercy with his many enemies, and because he did this he got the people to look up to him; but what the king didn’t realize was the many responsibilities a king can have and it’s not all fun and games. “One minute I held the key Next the walls were closed down on me”(Coldplay line …show more content…
11-12). These words illustrates imagery, one might imagine the king holding the key feeling like he is on top of the world, than the walls closing down on him would show how he was struggling with his responsibilities. Ozymandias was a very powerful king that many people liked.
For centuries he was known as one of Egypts greatests. “My name is Ozymandias, king of kings; look on my work, ye mighty, and despair”(Laying 6). Shelley uses diction to show that Ozymandias wanted his enemies to fear him. He wants to always be known as “the great one” and to be remembered he had a monstrous statue of himself be made. It was to show his power and how godly he was; but soon enough his statue fell and he was no longer king. “Two vast and trunkless legs of stone Stand in the desert...Near them, on the sand, Half-sunk a shattered visage lies”(Laying 2-4). These words create imagery. One will imagine tall stone legs up right in the sand broken at the top. A long shattered touro laying down almost buried in the hot desert sand. This shows how great he thought he was and how Ozymandias’ statue was so strong yet somehow he lays broken in the
dessert. Although “Viva la vida” is a song and “Ozymandias” is a poem, and they all establish that having power is not always easy and sometimes one will take advantage of his or her power and it will get taken away from them. Each of these pieces of literature have a powerful person that thinks they are very godly and nothing can tear them down, but all in all they aren’t and they make mistakes like any other human and lose everything as fast as it was given.
What is power to a human? As time has gone by, there have been many forms of control and influence in the world. Many strive to achieve total rule over a society or group of individuals. Yet the question still presents itself to the average man. Why does man desire power so greatly even though there is visible trouble that follows? Shelley’s Frankenstein, Vonnegut’s “Harrison Bergeron”, and Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, whether through the situation or the character themselves, depict the evils and hardships due to an imbalance and poor management of power.
In the Count of Monte Cristo and Viva la Vida, both the author and songwriter use imagery and metaphors to establish and portray the ideas that power blinds one from the reality of the world and power gives the semblance that every nuisance can be solved with it.
We can gather from his warning that Ozymandias, as a man, was controlled by his Id. His cockiness is evident. The statue reads "Look upon my works and despair." Despair at the fact that you cannot be as great as him. "I am king of kings." He proclaims a bold statement. A statement that defies God himself.
Both poems ‘the last Duchess’ and ‘Ozymandias’, present power as having a negative effect on people. In the last Duchess, power is presented as something that can corrupt a mind of a person, which can lead to the person dominating other people in his life. However in Ozymandias, the poem shows the futility of power as it describes the transient nature of power.
While he does succeed, his plans go awry, and his life ends in ruin, due only to his hubris. Similarly, Ozymandias succeeds at what he sets out to do, but cannot foresee that his power will not be eternal due to his hubris. In both works, the main character tries and fails at defying nature, something which should never be attempted. Both authors, being Romantics, strongly believed in the sanctity of nature, and this showed through in their works. Through the fates of their characters, they show that the defiance of nature is futile, and that one should never attempt to be above
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.
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.
The poem "La Migra" by Pat Mora carries the main idea of how power can lead to abuse. Mora shows how abuse is represented in the treatment of the Mexican woman by a border patrol agent in her poem and how this picture resembles how mankind treats animals. With the bilingual addition to Mora's poem, when the Mexican woman says, "Agua dulce, brota aqui, aqui, aqui" (lines 33-34), she is presenting the conflict of a language barrier, just like the one between animals and humans, where it is not communicated what is needed and what is unfair. Mora uses the power of language to bring her characters to life. When something is taken to the point of abuse, the actions are identical, like when the border patrol agent says, "I can touch you whenever I want but do not complain too much because I've got boots and kick" (lines 12-14). The table turns at the end, when the Mexican woman takes control of the situation with power. It does not matter how the abuse started; in the end, it is always the same---someone taking control over someone else. Abuse of power is demonstrated through "La Migr...
From the displays of power that have been shown through out this essay, we see that this story is a story about power. Power is the story is primarily about peoples need for some small amount of power to survive in life and to feel that hey have a purpose within their society which every society it may be whether its is Gilead or Nazi Germany or modern day Britain.
Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power. After Edmond escapes from prison, he increases his power from the money he gains from the Isle of Monte Cristo to be able to eradicate his enemies. In The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas the author uses imagery and details to portray the theme of power.
...conveys how authority and the ability to obey its power can enable the characters rise above internal and external forces.
...shown during the Russian Revolution as a result of a power struggle. They struggle results in the exploitation of the other subjects and the taking of independence in which they fought to obtain to begin with. This is also shown in today’s society with people with high power who used this power for the wrong purposes. When a ruler takes over from an oppressive dictator the power the former ruler had does not go away and the new ruler becomes overwhelmed and becomes the same thing.
Although the stories are based on tyrants and their ability to gain power and pride through the scarification of others, I believe that the authors also attempted to describe the tyrants need to feel praised and express passion and anger. Their determination of reaching what is most important to them, is the reason the two tyrants were able to reach absolute power, at different points in their command.
Often, too much power can go to that particular person’s head, and he/she can become corrupt. As readers have seen in literature, abuses of power are often harmful to the abuser and their subjects. Corrupted authority and abuses of power eventually lead to the collapse of society. This concept is shown many times throughout the novel Lord Of the Flies and the short story “I Only Came to Use the Phone”. Displayed through characters and actions, abusive power has dominated what should be morally correct in literature.
All different social classes have their own positive and negative effects. Whether it be the lower, middle, or upper class, money and power depict the major issues. Originating from a lower and middle class, requires many to make financial sacrifices and numerous times have an unpleasant view on those attaining more money. Obtaining a higher class standing is the epitome of having power and overall ensures little financial problems. In reality, money and power affects the lower and upper class equally. In the novel The House of the Spirits while describing the class struggles between Esteban Trueba and Pedro Tercero, Allende uses symbolism and irony to prove the negative effects of class struggles on one’s happiness and perspective.