Comparing Power and Desire

Julie Zook

Mrs. Burnett

12 AP English

27 November 2011

Comparing Power and Desire

            Power and desire are usually the qualities that a person needs in order to become a great leader.  However, that is always not the case because normal people can use it to their own advantage.  The way people use power and desire usually has a positive effect on the world.  However, some people can use it in a negative way and not even realize it.  I think that as long as a person uses power and desire to help others they should be allowed to use it to their advantage to change the world.  A good Socratic Seminar question that is about these two qualities is number twenty-nine for Wuthering Heights.  Desire and power are separated among the characters.  None of them have both characteristics at the same time and they cannot be satisfied with both.  Heathcliff’s desire is being used when he is with Catherine at childhood.  However, Heathcliff loses it when he gains power from money and owning the estate.  Edgar does the same thing by using his desire to marry Catherine and losing his power because Catherine thinks for herself.  In the real world, power and desire are being used together so people can achieve their goals.  From workers to leaders, both of these qualities are needed to be successful in what people want.  Some families do not have any members that get a higher education by completing high school and attending college.  The first person in their family that achieves this has the desire to get good grades and finish school.  By spending their time wisely, they can work to make enough money to go to college.  They can use the desire to achieve their goals and have power when they are finished.  Their family is going to look up to them for being the first one to achieve this goal.  Also, desire and power can create big differences in the world.  Wars have made a great impact on everyone and the United States would not have the freedom it has without the veterans who risked their lives to fight for it.  The troops are just normal people that have the desire to help others and the power to complete all of the training that is required.  Without the relationship between desire and power, the United States would not be the way it is today.  As you can see, the above examples use power and desire in a positive way but it is not good all of the time.  Dictators pretend that they are very nice and likable by using propaganda to influence others to vote for them.  They can gain power over their own people and force others to like them by taking away the people’s wants and needs.  When the people have their desires taken away, the dictator receives more power by being needed to fix everything when they are really making it worse.  Therefore, being responsible and using these qualities to the advantage of others can help make the world a better place but using them incorrectly can make everything go wrong.