A man’s lust for power was depicted wonderfully in the Star Trek: The Original Series episode “Where No Man Has Gone Before”. In the episode, the Enterprise exited the galaxy. The Enterprise soon travels through a ring of particles causing a few deaths among the crew. However, one crewman, Gary Mitchell, was given Extrasensory Perception (ESP). Gary gained the ability to read minds, to read and retain entire pages of information in seconds, to control objects just by thinking about them and to shoot lightning from his hands. Spock and Captain Kirk realized that Gary’s powers would continue to grow exponentially, and soon he would become bored with the crew and kill them all.
This yearning for power is not an isolated incident. In fact, it is the reason we all live. Most people strive to be the best they can be. Very few people have no desire to better themselves in any way, shape or form. This drive is why people set goals and strive for perfection. For some people, being in good shape makes them what to be in great shape. For others, having 100 friends makes them want 200 friends. When goals are seen as constructive, the lust for power is commonly referred to as a drive or a will to succeed. When individuals have less than constructive goals, the person is seen as obsessive and power-hungry. Most dictators and tyrants are perfect examples of negative obsessions.
It is important for some goals to be unattainable, and maybe even more importantly, people should realize that some goals (like having absolute power) are not possible to achieve. Perfection would lead to complacency and eventually to boredom and anger. Also, trying to obtain absolute control can drive people mad.
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