Power Within Doubt

What is power? Is it something anyone can obtain? As I delve deeper into the meaning of power, I will discuss how this idea both positively and negatively affects adolescents, focusing specifically on this notion through Susanna Rowson’s Charlotte Temple.

There are many definitions of the word power, however, for our purposes, I feel that this is the definition to best describe Charlotte Temple’s sense of power: the ability to make certain choices and decisions without considering outside opinions. Yes, that may sound like a weird way to put it, but as Charlotte was composed as an adolescent, even more so a girl, there were many people and things that impacted the way she decided to choose her path.

To start, girls who were adolescents did not have much authority in their lives; they were seen—and still are—as people who are too emotionally unstable to deal with everyday conflicts and problems presented to them. Often times, the actions they choose to pursue in that time are not solely their decision. As I said before, there are so many outside forces pushing and pulling them in various directions, causing their minds to scramble and result in more confusion. One way Charlotte Temple presented this issue was when she was faced with choosing a lover, Montraville, or her beloved parents. Where does power insert itself in this situation, you ask? Everywhere. Charlotte, forced to pick, is ultimately looking for a way to show that she has the ability to choose. The catch? She does not know which decision is the right one. That’s where my title comes into play; it is usually the case that when we are doubtful about a choice we need to make, we adore the feeling of power we get when we make that decision, even if it is influenced by others. Charlotte was seeking the end result of feeling as if she had authority over her life. As most of us have experienced this feeling before, we know how pleasant it is and we desire to have this emotion repeated because it lifts our spirits and makes us feel good. I think that this was a recurring motif for Charlotte, as she was faced with a multitude of things which needed to be resolved by her own person.

Another instance where Charlotte was faced with decision was when Montraville admitted that he was leaving her for another woman, her choices? Fight for him or do nothing… she chose the latter. Her decision to leave Montraville to his own desires left her alone with nothing in a new country in which she knew no one or nothing, except those who had abandoned her. However, the settlement she chose contributed to her sense of self, as she believed she was the one who was ultimately allowing herself this fate. She was giving herself control, jurisdiction, etc. and there was no one who could take that away from her.

Adolescents have so little rule over their own lives; it is almost always their parents or guardians who are deciding what is best and what is worse for them, they often are not allowed a say in regards to their well-being. We feel helpless, upset, enraged with the fact that even though we are our own person, our authority is taken away from us. We are not seen as adults nor are we seen as children, so what are we? Yes, adolescents, but the only implication that comes from that is the constant spewing of the phrases you’re not old enough or you’re too old to be doing/acting like that. So what are we supposed to do, let our lives be taken over? Yes. That is the answer that has been told and is still being told to this day. Until we figure out a way to prove that people from the ages of 13-19 are capable of doing some things for themselves, adolescents will be losing crucial experiences that will assist them in the future when faced with difficult decision making. I think that the loss of being able to decipher through these events has impacted and will impact the way that each and every person chooses to deal with situations they are put in. They will not know what to do, but I guess that is just the way of life, hence the reason you can find power within doubt.

Jessica Ruberti