Daniel Alvizo, Week 10 What is Power? 2/2
What is power? And who has it? These are age old questions that no one has really had any answers to. In this blog I will at least try to answer these questions. To start, I believe that there are three different kinds of power; physical, influential, and intellectual. Yes there is also magical power I guess, but since that doesn’t really exist I don’t have to go into that. Anyway, physical power is easiest to define, it is exactly what it says; physical strength, the amount of force any object (or person) can exert on another. Influential power is probably what most people think when they think of the word “power”. Influential power is the ability someone has to get others to do what they want. Someone can get influential power in many ways; respect, loyalty, blackmail, or even the use of physical force. A king has a lot of influential power because his subjects have to do what he says or face his army. Ms. Benedetti has a lot of influential power because we have to do what she says or face those failing grades. Mr. Wong has influential power because he can literally play a full major scale on his mouthpiece alone, and I would follow him into any band competition out of sheer respect for his skill. Intellectual power is the hardest to define, because intellect is so subjective. Intellectual power basically refers to the amount of knowledge you have in any subject, about your surroundings or the people around you. The more knowledge you have, the more capable you are to adapt and thrive in any environment. This may not seem like power, but if you think about it, power really is just your ability to survive in this world. In this day and age, knowledge of navigating social interactions is essential to survival. Now aside from physical power, most power is actually psychological. If you are confident in yourself and your abilities, people will follow you. If you believe in your skills and knowledge, you will have no trouble using them in stressful situations. You truly have as much power as you believe yourself to have. At the same time others have as much power over you as you give them. You can choose who you want to have power over you simply by deciding who you need. It is the reason we don’t have a king, but do have a Ms Benedetti. Of course all of this is my own opinion, but I hope you can use it to realize your own power in your own life. Everyone has the potential to be powerful. Don’t waste it.
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Hi Daniel, I read your blog, and I found your take on the different types of power to be very interesting. Power can be defined in many different ways; it can be interpreted as influence, confidence, and determination. The varying forms of power can affect individuals or groups of people at different magnitudes. Power can be willed; as long as you believe in yourself, you can give yourself the power you need to succeed.
ReplyDeleteHi Daniel, you bring up some points that I totally agree with, such as there being three different kinds of power which is used in different ways. I also love the later parts of your blog, as it reminded me that using power gives us direction and meaning in everything we do. Imagine if police officers and laws just didn't exist; our world would be a chaotic, corrupt and unimaginable place. The power that authorities have implemented help ensure everyone's safety and well being, and therefore it is crucial.
ReplyDeleteHi Daniel, I like your take on how there are three different types of power. The different forms of power mentioned in your blog can have various effects on many different types of people. It can also have various effects of different magnitudes. I also found the phrase that you mentioned that "You truly have as much power as you believe yourself to have," very interesting because ultimately, it is up to that individual to decide how to use their power.
ReplyDeleteYour post reminds me of Jerome’s, except Jerome approaches that question from a literal perspective and you take a more philosophical one. I wholeheartedly agree that power is a bit of a construct--we can both create our own power and give more to others. I have not thought about this until now, but our teachers have power simply because other people at some point decided they should. That is really interesting to think about!
ReplyDeleteHi Daniel,
ReplyDeleteWhich source that you explained do you think is the most powerful? I believe that the psychological power is most important. The mind is a crazy concept and I believe you touched base on that in your previous blog as well. Confident people, who know what they want are usually the most successful people. Leading into other people's ideas and influencing your entire life based upon others can be extremely destructive.
Hi Daniel, this was a very deep blog and I feel like it was all really true. However for me I believe personally that the most notable power is the power that people hold over each other like you had connected to Ms. Benedetti and Mr. Wong. They hold the most power because they have control over fundamental things that we care about. To me it is this power that is the true meaning/form of power in my perspective.
ReplyDeleteHi Daniel, I found your post really interesting since you were able to categorize power into broad categories. I thought that your discussion of influential power was most interesting, because it reveals how transient influential power can be. Unlike the other powers which are perhaps more "innate," influential power can be swept away from under your feet.
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