Hitler, Kim Jong Un, Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi.

What do all these people have in

common? In my opinion these are people who have abused their power. In 1984 the
government is totalitarian and is oppressive to the people it rules. Odysseus in the
Odyssey is very different. He communicates with and understands his men and is more
of a friend than a boss. The text The Odyssey demonstrates a more positive view of
leadership than 1984 in how the leader communicates with its people and how much
power the leader has.

The most important responsibility is communicating with those under you. In the
Odyssey you can see that communication is essential. We see this when the Odyssey
states

As soon as I got down to the shore I rebuked each of my men separately.

(Homer) This means Odysseus was angry with his men but not unreasonably so and
he told them he was angry about them killing the cattle. This is important because it
means that Odysseus is a good communicator and this is probably why his men follow
him without being forced to. The text 1984 states War is Peace (Orwell ) This is an
attempt by the government at confusing the people with a paradox and discouraging
free thought. This is important because it means the government is cruel and doesnt
allow people to be free because there is no power above them to protect the people.
The people have no power in 1984 only the government does.

Power is the most important part of leadership and what a leader does with his
power is what makes a good or bad leader. The text 1984 states BIG BROTHER IS
WATCHING, the caption beneath it ran.(Homer) This means the government is always

watching and invading peoples privacy. This matters because it means the government
has no moral standards and abuses their power to mistreat citizens. The text The
Odyssey states I will shiver their ship to pieces with a bolt of white lightning.(Homer)
This means the only thing Jove will do is destroy Odysseuss men and ship even though
it was the gods fault. This is important because you can infer that the gods dont take
responsibility for their actions like sending Odysseus to sleep. The control the gods
have is a lot like the control of the government in 1984.

The government in 1984 and the gods in the odyssey are very similar. In 1984
the government has total control and much like the gods demands their rules be
followed. The gods and the government also were both oppressive and did not allow
much freedom and didnt communicate. The government today in America is a
democracy which means the people decide who gets power and how much they get
which is much better than the government in 1984 or the gods in the Odyssey who had
all the power and didnt communicate.

Today there are still people who abuse power. There are many ways people
abuse power and everyone has at some time. I believe that having power does not
make someone evil but what they do with their power can. Hopefully you have learned
about the uses and abuses of power and will not abuse the power you are given.