I was assigned to write a piece about an authority figure when I was in a Senior Level Writer's Craft course. It was mainly undirected by our teacher so we were allowed to do it any way we pleased so long as it fit the theme of authority, obedience, etc. This was many years ago for me, perhaps 7 or 8, so I decided to take what I had written then, and re-interpret it from my new perspective. I think I will try doing this with a number of the pieces I wrote for that class as a way of getting practice writing about other things that at one time had inspired me. Anyhow, here is the first of that series entitled, "A Matter of Principal."
In a world consumed by CEOs, presidents, police officers, administrators, kings and millionaires, one wouldn’t think that there would be enough space for another rule-making, power-driven ego-maniac. But there is. There always is, especially at school. Especially when your sense of self is just forming and your awareness of freewill and responsibility make the ideal of an authentic existence seem like a lot of work and struggle. This angst associated with this epoch of human development can sometimes make it seem that teenagers are evil and must be stopped before they have everyone around you wearing 1.5 million earrings covering their body and in-between that mess an entire truck load of inky tattoos. And some of these teenagers might be prone to wearing their pants in such a way that their backside is acutely visible. Imagine this atrocity of human flesh! The only person capable of dealing with this type of controversy, such fiendish horrors is the revered and respected principal. Principal McTaggart was the one who took self-directed and self-serving actions and took orders from no one.
He was the totalitarian leader of the institution that prides itself as being one of the few truly free worlds: the schools that educate the children. But the idea of a totalitarian existence protecting a free and open society just does not compute – it’s an absurdity to try and reconcile these claims. And indeed some may think it odd that a place that preaches and teaches democracy should not take steps to apply the very democratic processes they promote. Principal McTaggart, however, never considered these rules as rules meant for him. He had a position of ultimate power. After all, school boards often struggle to get things done at an effective and reasonable pace; whereas, McTaggart, with his tyrannical style, made sure that things happened quickly and that his influence was seen in every project put forth by the staff, students, and administrative underlings. Schools need to get things done quickly sometimes and without any questions asked. The solution had to be arbitration.
McTaggart was aware that his power was nearly unrestrained. In what other institution could the person in charge believe so strongly in freedom of speech and expression, reside over the teaching of these values to his students, and then penalize those who take the opportunity to use their freedom. McTaggart’s administrative might put him in a place where he could rule over free expression and open thought.
On a normal day, McTaggart would walk into the school with his briefcase under his arm, ready to begin issuing orders and scorning those in opposition to them. He would walk into the school and see a fifteen-year-old laughing with some friends, dancing about like an idiot. With one effortless extension of mental prowess he whipped the boy with his position of power. Crack. “Hey, you either cut out that racket or we’re going to have a meeting in my office about disruptive behavior. Indoor voices, gentlemen.”
He’d wipe his brow with a handkerchief, wait for one awkward moment and let his sincerity sink in. Looking at the young man menacingly, he could turn and walk away with the satisfaction that the intimidation of the young man had been complete and effective. His power had been proven yet again, and it wouldn’t be the last time…or so he thought.
McTaggart would have been rightly shocked, perhaps even jumping into action, upon seeing a girl with hear baseball cap on. This was the ideal opportunity to reveal his strength once more – a teachable moment. Again he aims himself at the victim and cracks the whip for a second time, “Hat off, Miss. You know the rules as well as everyone else. I don’t want to have this conversation with you again or there’ll be consequences.”
But of course, this was undoing of McTaggart’s power. Of course she had known the rules about hats, and of course everyone else did, but they began to not care about the fanatical enforcer, the despot school administrator. The tighter he gripped the students, the more they slipped through his grasp. It was not the case that this happened quickly, but it was an evitable conclusion to his frantic greed for power. If reminding that girl of the rules was what he must do to constantly remind her of his control over her, then it was clear he had already begun to lose them.
Slowly, but surely, this power recedes as students grow older and the power imbalance lessens. The phenomenon is like a puppy that is never allowed on the furniture because it is an unworthy underling of its human master, and then as it ages and becomes an old wily creature, the dog manages never to leave the couch. The master gives in over time and allows his subordinate to have some equal comforts. And despite McTaggart’s best effort to ride in opposition to the maturing and, increasingly empowered, student body, the students had become desensitized to his whip; they had developed an emotional callus that protected from its sting.
He did not, at first, realize his power and influence was dwindling. He thought he had fought through the tough times and had created obedient pawns to act as means to his ends. However, by the time the girl he once scolded become an 18-year-old, she would always be wearing her hat, and snickering at the up-tight principal as he walked by. The boy who had violated the unofficial indoor voice policy was now being recognized for his Rock Star potential as a singer and guitarist, while continuing to constantly entertain his cohorts up and down the hallways. They had been alienated by McTaggart, and hence become rebels. People who wished to do exactly those things that would cause a stir, McTaggart’s pressures had pushed them to the brink and now they thrived on the attention they received for their cultural norm-bending behavior. They were anarchists now who loathed administrators because they all had the stench of the heartless, uncompromising McTaggart.
