Many historians can safely say that all men are the same when it comes to their crave in power. Many will go to great lengths, such as to back stab an ally, to obtain such power. However, even though it’s evident all men want power, their use of power is what makes them different from each other. Through the use of propaganda, power is effectively used by leaders to achieve their own selfish gains by manipulating their citizen’s fear, ignorance, and pride.
By manipulating and toying their devotee’s fear using propaganda, leaders are able to set aside their follower’s needs and prioritize their own life. In corrupted and tainted societies such Soviet Union, there are no shortage of propaganda by communist leaders to control. For example, Squealer, who represents propaganda in Animal farm, deceives the inhabitants of animal farm when he claims,”Do you know what would happen if we pigs failed in our duty? Jones would come back! Yes, Jones would come back! Surely, comrades”( Orwell 14). Squealer reasons that apples should be personally reserved for pigs, if not, Jones would make his return to reclaim the farm. By bringing up the idea of Jones’ return, Squealer was able to use it to justify why the pigs,, should receive special privileges using fear and faulty cause and effect. Leaders will drive fear through the hearts of their followers to obtain their selfish desires. In addition, many power craving leaders will even keep their whole country in constant fear to keep themselves in power.
Not only do dictators fulfill their own needs by utilizing propaganda to control their follower's fears, but also their ignorance. Historically, leaders were able to abuse their lack of knowledge to their own advantage. Communist countries with power hungry leaders such as Mao Zedong and Lenin have effectively use this scheme against their citizens. A case of this machination is exemplified in. By not including the fact that there were many crop failures during this era, Russian dictators were able to deceive many unsuspecting agricultural workers to do their biddings. Additionally, by keeping their followers ignorant, leaders were able to herd them around like a mass of thoughtless sheep.
Along with using their ignorance, leaders will also use their citizen’s pride to obtain their narcissist gains. Keeping their followers prideful is a common method is used by totalitarian rulers, seeking only to fulfill their own necessities. Before the destruction of the windmill in the hand’s of Frederick's men, Napoleon to filled his people with pride when he exclaimed “Impossible!’ ... ‘We have built the walls far too thick for that. They could not knock it down in a week. Courage, comrades!” (Orwell 39). Napoleon, being a dictator, encourages his people to take faith in their construction. However, this thrill of pride ends up backfiring on the animals, as the windmill ends up in oblivion moments later. A common technique used by dictators, rulers will use propaganda to fill their followers with undying pride. Although this may seem positive on the surface, leaders were able to escape the hammer of justice while citizens are diverted with pride. Moreover, pride can also be used in propaganda to hoodwink citizens to do their master's bidding. For instance, Napoleon encourages his workers to press forward and continue the construction of the windmill when he remarked, “ ‘There is work to be done. This very morning we begin rebuilding the windmill, and we will build all through the winter, rain or shine... Remember, comrades, there must be no alteration in our plans: they shall be carried out to the day. Forward, comrades! Long live the windmill! Long live Animal Farm!’ (Orwell 28). Napoleon uses the sense of pride to lure the unwary animals to continue the construct of the windmill. Utilizing pride as a tool, dictators deceive their devotee into accomplishing difficult task, and all the while, dictators obtain their needs without getting their hands dirty. Even though pride has been used for possitivity, it can also be used by power corrupted dictators to dominate other people.
If rulers are the puppeteers controlling all their devotee like puppets, then propaganda must be the strings holding the bonds between the malicious puppeteer and the puppet. Evidently, true and ruthless dictators have effectively use propaganda to instill fear, ignorance, and pride in their followers, thus resulting in only the ruler's necessities being fulfilled. It is vital for citizens to comprehend that listening to false propaganda isn’t watering the tree of prosperity and self preservation, but rather planting the seed of self destruction.
Ti Oui
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