Power always corrupts the one who holds it

      Lord Acton once said, “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” This famous quote clearly expresses the idea that power corrupts the one who holds it, but does it ALWAYS corrupt? I think the answer certainly isn’t a simple yes or no since there are always exceptions. Throughout history, we’ve seen many rulers attempting to become a dictator which definitely isn’t the best way to govern a country. Of course, some monarchs have understood the needs of the citizens and have used their power to build a secure country where everyone is happy. Therefore, power can corrupt quite easily if being abused.
     
     Power has a great possibility to corrupt someone. It is a lure for people since absolute power can mean doing anything by their wish. Many greedy people, especially those who have a high chance of becoming a leader or president, yearn for power and they are willing to do absolutely everything in order to gain that power. This results in illegal actions, such as assassination towards the rulers. In addition, when they’re in position of that power, the rulers tend to forget their original goals of helping others and building a better country for the citizens. They become too conceited because the citizens often admire and respect them.

     Henry VI was one of the worst rulers of England. He abused his power as a monarch by choosing favourites to help him rule the country. Even worse was the fact that he wasn’t interested in his duties as a king. Under his rule, the citizens’ lives were not secured since he wasn’t interested in war either. Soon, he was defeated and captured. This is a common ending for monarchs who only want the absolute power as a ruler instead of taking on the role as a ruler seriously.

     In contrast, Steve Jobs has successfully done his job as the director of a company. Even though, he has been a dictator in some ways, he led the company to a great success and created popular inventions, such as iphone. He had total power over the whole company, but he used his power correctly by choosing the talented people to work with him and working as hard as anyone else even though he was the director.

     In summary, don’t forget your reason for being in the position where you have absolute power. Power can lead to corruption when one abuses it and uses it for illegal activities, such as using the tax money to buy personal possessions. It could also lead to success when being used accurately. Whether or not power corrupts, it all depends on the person who holds it.