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Power and Authority
Power and authority are recurring themes that manifest in different forms across the
sources. Power is the ability to influence or control others' actions, decisions, or circumstances.
In "Brave New World," the World State exerts absolute power and control over its citizens
through technological and social manipulation (Huxley 163). In "Free Guy," power and authority
are exhibited through the game developers and the structure of the virtual world. Similarly, in
"The End of History," power and authority are examined within the context of political
ideologies and global governance. According to Fukuyama, liberal democracy is a type of
political authority that has triumphed over rival ideologies like fascism and communism
(Fukuyama 3). Mikhail Bulgakov's "Heart of a Dog" portrays authority and power in the
framework of Soviet society in the early years of the Bolshevik dictatorship (Bulgakov 25). The
prominent physician and scientist Professor Preobrazhensky is one of the novella's main
examples of power and authority in action. Preobrazhensky represents the intellectual elite and
has tremendous power in the medical community. In "R.U.R.," Čapek examines the relationship
between power, authority, and technology. He emphasizes the risks of unrestrained ambition and
the need for ethical stewardship in the face of technological advancement. The drama, seen
through the perspective of artificial intelligence and automation, warns of the dangers of
exercising authority over beings capable of autonomous thinking and action (Capek). In George
Orwell's novel 1984, power and authority are manifested via Oceania's totalitarian state, which
regulates every aspect of its residents' lives. This paper seeks to address the recurring theme of
power and authority.
In Brave New World, the government and leaders such as Mustapha Mond create a
civilization that runs smoothly and seamlessly by carefully brainwashing its population into
wholeheartedly believing in their system. The World State employs hypnopedia (sleep
education) to train its population to believe particular ideas. For example, children from the Beta
caste hear this while they sleep at night: "Oh no, I don't want to play with Delta youngsters. And
epsilons are still worse. They lack reading and writing skills. "I'm glad I'm a Beta" (Huxley 27).
This is only one strategy that the government employs to keep its citizens from examining the
things around them. Because these views are implanted in children from a young age, no one
bothers to challenge them. As a result, there are no reflections or analyses. People do not
consider the arbitrary and unequal nature of their class structure, let alone the harshness of its
planned and enforced divides. They also do not question its veracity. No member of the beta
class, for example, stops to wonder, "Why are epsilons so bad?" "Why is it good that I am a
beta?" These individuals are brainwashed to believe without questioning. Their incapacity to
assess their circumstances (induced by years of mindless brainwashing) enables the government
to continue its subtle and discreet persecution.
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Further, if individuals experience any discomfort (other than enjoyment), they are urged
to use "soma," a hallucinogenic medication. Soma further impairs their capacity to assess
knowledge, ignorance, and representation. It just sends them to another dimension where they
don't have to worry about their troubles or any unpleasant feelings they may be experiencing.
These folks don't focus on anything negative, so they've learned to avoid thinking seriously about
anything.
In 1984, the Party also dehumanized its forefathers. Winston recalls a portion of his
childhood textbook that criticized capitalism by demonizing capitalists. Winston recalls his
textbook's thesis about capitalists: "Everything existed for their benefit." Ordinary laborers were
treated as enslaved people and might be sent to Canada like livestock. "They could sleep with
your daughters if they wanted" (Orwell 90). The Party depicts capitalists as bad, instilling this
belief in people from a young age. By fostering fear and disgust among citizens about "bad"
capitalists, the Party ensures that it will continue to get their support. Such ideologies blame the
people, meaning that if capitalism is allowed to reign supreme again, they would be enslaved or
murdered. This is another example of the World State using subtler and less severe techniques to
dominate its inhabitants. The World State wants its citizens to feel sickened with their
forefathers, even laughing at and mocking them (Orwell 80). The Party wants its followers to
dread their forefathers. The World State reveals its monsters to explain why life is better now.
The Party employs monsters to terrify its citizens, informing them that capitalism endangers
them all. In Brave New World, the creatures are an absurd comedy.
In 1984, the Party wanted its members to understand that the monsters were very real and
serious and that if they did not follow society's laws, they would come back to haunt them. It
appears to me that the World State's way of monetarizing its forebears is significantly more
effective than the Party's. A government's greatest way to maintain control over its citizens is to
make them pleased rather than terrify them. The World State can explain to its citizens why their
forefathers were monsters, but only in a way that paints them as clowns and mocks them. These
individuals take an active role in celebrating their forefathers' folly and idiocy. They like
thinking about how courteous and clever they are now and consider their predecessors to be an
extinct breed from a distant past. In contrast, the Party wants to terrify its citizens into subjection.
It strives to ensure that no one ever chooses capitalism over the Party's politics. These folks are
terrified when they think of the monsters hiding in their country's closet. They don't like
reflecting on the past in the same way that people of the World State do since these creatures
aren't as detached from life anymore. The inhabitants of the World State appear to be happier
than they were in 1984.
In "Heart of a Dog," by Mikhail Bulgakov, the metamorphosis of Sharik, the stray dog,
into a human-like entity and the reactions of society to this transition are examples of power and
control in action. Sharik first experiences a bodily and psychological metamorphosis as a result
of an experiment conducted by Professor Preobrazhensky, a figurehead for authority and
knowledge in the medical domain. The professor's capacity to change Sharik's identification
without getting his permission is a reflection of his control over the dog's existence. Sharik
notices a change in the balance of power in society as he starts to acclimate to his new human
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form. He highlights the ways in which societal norms and hierarchies perpetuate power
structures as he battles to negotiate the expectations and biases of those around him. Sharik's
transformation sparks debates about identity, consciousness, and the nature of humanity, with
different characters asserting their interpretations of these concepts. Sharik's reflection on his
changed status after transforming into a human is one exact quotation that exemplifies this
theme: "I don't know what I am." Furthermore, I must admit that I am not happy with who I am"
(Bulgakov, 30). This quotation highlights Sharik's sense of helplessness as he adjusts to his new
identity and conveys his perplexity and uneasiness with it. Another passage in the novella that
highlights dominance and control is when Professor Preobrazhensky commands Sharik to do as
he pleases: "You forget that you're dealing with a person who, with one telephone call, can have
you in a police cell under investigation for illegal possession of a revolver" (Bulgakov, 51). This
declaration emphasizes the professor's supremacy over Sharik and his capacity to use coercion
and threats as tools of power. Overall, "Heart of a Dog" shows how people and organizations
impose their authority over others in order to further their own goals by examining the issue of
power and control through the lenses of change and societal norms.
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Work Cited
Bulgakov, Mikhail. Heart of a Dog. Grove P, 1987.
Capek, Karel. Rossum Universal Robots. Createspace Independent Pub, 2013.
Fukuyama, Francis. The End of History and the Last Man. Simon & Schuster, 2006.
Huxley, Aldous. Brave New World. HarperCollins Publishers, 1969.
Orwell, George. 1984 (Signet Classics). Createspace Independent Publishing Platform, 2017.
Free Guy. Directed by Shawn Levy, performances by Ryan Reynolds, Jodie Comer, Joe
Kerry. 2021. 20th Century Studios, Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, 2021.