What doea the phrase "power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely" mean?

Question

What doea the phrase "power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely" mean?

Answer 1

power corrups ppl even tho u could be completly nice and then get that power slowly but usually

the ower over welmes u and u have the tendancey to use the power for your own self and only use it for u and not think about the others so u become corrupt wit power

Answer 2

Ladybug is right. To have power means you have control and if you don't have control immediately you will make things happen in order to get it. Most often times it will be really horrible things and other people will be involved who will also do horrible things. It is a snowball effect and harms most everyone around the person in power.  You often hear of people going on a power trip. Their ego has gotten so big it will not fit through the doorway and the are up to no good. To the point of being evil.

Answer 3

It means having power can corrupt someone's judgement and how they treat others. Absolute power, such as a dictator, corrupts absolutely because the leader can do anything they please.

Answer 4

Probably Lord Acton noticed tendencies to be overcome in himself first.

It is easy for a rich or important person to conclude that his (or her) power provides the right to run roughshod over the rights of others, and so they do.

Persons with total power, such as the Roman emperors or Russian tzars, were notorious for their cruelty and indiscriminate behavior.  Caligula's quote, "Let them hate me, provided they fear me," says it nicely.