The Concept of Tyranny in Literature Essay - 1329 Words

The Concept of Tyranny in Literature All social contract theorists and classical thinkers understand tyranny to be someone (or government) with unrestrained power that is unjust or unfair to the body, it governs. They each share some views about the effects of tyranny but they have different views on the preventions and the circumstances that give rise to tyranny. In the end, Locke has the most effective ideas as opposed to Plato and Hobbes. Although, they are all equally great minds, based on the democracy that Americans hold true, Locke’s analysis can be the only logical means of proposed prevention. The first author, who takes particular concern with the concept of tyranny, is Plato in his work the The Republic. He†¦show more content†¦A state of constant war and taxes is the effect tyranny would have on the people, but the people place themselves in this position. The best prevention of tyranny is the idea of just citizens equals a just society and the balance between the civic virtues: â€Å"wise, brave, moderate, and just† (Porter 38). He suggests that the â€Å"reasonable part should rule† (Porter 51) those he would call guardians because they are wise and will look to the well being of the people and not their own benefit. The basic principals of society harmony, hierarchy, and mutual obligation are what control the idea of tyranny. Requiring that everyone in society occupy a position within the city and no one should strive to rise above it or want another and that the upper classes, based on merit, protect the lower classes and lower classes a re obligated to be loyal to the upper classes. He also implies that guardians have certain limits. First, they live on the public payroll to abolish the use of public office for private gain. Second, they are under the public scrutiny with no privacy and lastly, they are not to raise their own children because the child is born of the city this aids in the elimination of inherent rights that might result in a dynasty and thus tyranny. The second author is Thomas Hobbes and his work The Leviathan. In his belief of tyranny he sees it as the natural state of man to â€Å"desire power after power† (Porter 279) and that he must acquire power toShow MoreRelatedJohn Locke And John Stuart Mill s On Liberty Essay1748 Words   |  7 Pageshave developed a more modernized conception of liberty and the role of the individual to the state and society. Plato’s work the Republic, and Aristotle’s works of literature Nicomachean Ethics, and Politics will be contrasted against Thomas Hobbes’ Leviathan, John Locke’s Second Treatise, and John Stuart Mill’s On Liberty. The literature works of the political philosophers mentioned previously will help convey the differences and similarities of liberty and the role of the individual to society. Read MoreThe Effects of Oppression on the Innocent Mind: A Comparative Analysis795 Words   |  4 Pages where fear’s dominion over the populac e is evident. The respective masters of that fear, Francisco Franco and Captain Vidal, along with their respective victims (Ofelia and the Spanish population), demonstrate the lasting effect of conflict and tyranny on the human mind. Both settings suggest a dark, cruel vision of the world in which Spain and Ofelia are oppressed and straddle the line between sanity and insanity. For these people to maintain physical and mental well-being in these environmentsRead MoreThe Notions of Justice in The Republic and Antigone1707 Words   |  7 PagesWithin two classical works of philosophical literature, notions of justice are presented plainly. Plato’s The Republic and Sophocles’ Antigone both address elements of death, tyranny and immorality, morality, and societal roles. These topics are important elements when addressing justice, whether in the societal representation or personal representation. Antigone uses the concept of death in many ways when unfolding the tragic story of Antigone and her rebellion. The most obvious way is how deathRead MoreEssay What Does Violence Mean to the Greek?1142 Words   |  5 Pagespositive thing, it was an intrinsic part of their society. In this essay, I define violence as a way to express oneself in an aggressive manner while causing misfortune to an individual. I will discuss the role of violence in athletics, politics, literature, art, religion and refer to Spartan norms to prove my thesis. By far the greatest and the most severe legitimate violence was found in Ancient Sparta. Lacedaemon had institutionalized violence where training and education under Spartan laws wereRead More True Heroes of Literature: Atticus Finch, Macduff, and the Speaker in Porphyria’s Lover664 Words   |  3 Pagesadmirable, and even heroic traits, the distinguishing quality of a genuine hero is his/her selflessness. A hero is a person who does the right thing when no one is looking. In literature, there are the heros that are identified for obvious reasons and those that are overlooked because they do not fit a specific criteria. All good literature features a â€Å"backstage† hero, whose actions are not meant to reap personal gain. Possessing moral courage, a true hero does the right thing in the face of adversity. ThroughRead MoreDifferent Historical And Cultural Barriers Affect The Way Literature And Other Forms Of Art Are Depicted930 Words   |  4 PagesDifferent historic al and cultural barriers affect the way literature and other forms of art are depicted. Maggie Nelson, Azar Nafisi, and Tim O’Brien explore the effect of political and ideological contexts on various forms of art and the way they are created or viewed. In â€Å"Great to Watch,† Nelson criticizes the media for not considering the barrier that exists between those who are educated in understanding art and and those who are not because she finds that the people who are not well informedRead MoreOrwell s Animal Farm As A Critique Of Bourgeoisie- Proletariat Relation And How Tyranny Operates1475 Words   |  6 PagesDystopian Fiction and Marxist Connection: George Orwell’s Animal Farm as a critique of Bourgeoisie- Proletariat Relation and How Tyranny Operates Literature is said to be the mirror of a society and one of the major functions of it has been to make people aware of their surroundings as well as themselves. While many writers of today might digress from the true purpose of writing, the classics have always held a special place in what may be called as the awakening of the individuals. In this contextRead MoreThe French Revolution Essay examples1018 Words   |  5 Pagessimilarity between the French Revolution and the age of antiquity, more specific Ancient Greece. We shall compare dominant figures of both the French Revolution and Ancient Greece by using examples from writings from both ancient literature and contemporary and giving direct examples to support the ideas in this essay. Furthermore, this essay will discuss how similar the emergence of democracy in Ancient Greece is to the emergence of it in the French Revolution. TheRead More tempcolon Comparing Language in Shakespeares Tempest and Aime Cesaires A Tempest892 Words   |  4 PagesColonial Language in Shakespeares The Tempest and Aime Cesaires A Tempest      Ã‚  Ã‚   Language and literature are the most subtle and seductive tools of domination. They gradually shape thoughts and attitudes on an almost subconscious level. Perhaps Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak states this condition most succinctly in her essay The Burden of English when she writes, Literature buys your assent in an almost clandestine way...for good or ill, as medicine or poison, perhaps always a bit of both(137)Read MoreJacques Derrida was a french philosopher, best known for his semiotic theory of Deconstruction.600 Words   |  3 Pagesin the mid-1980s, questioning the place of modern design in the theory of deconstruction. Derrida introduced the concept of deconstruction in the Book of Grammatology, published in France in 1967. In this theory, deconstruction questions how representation inhibiits reality. How does the surface get under the skin? In the Western fields of science, art, philosophy and literature, oppostions such as- Inside/outisde, reality/representation and mind/body are often used. Normally, one side of these