Power and Ambition Theme Analysis

Power and ambition drive the plot of John Dryden’s poem “Absalom and Achitophel.” King David of Israel has all the power in theory, but in practice, he has little ambition. According to Achitophel, the King’s deceitful counselor, David is lacking “manly force,” and he gives in too easily to the people. The King is “mild” and hesitant to draw blood, and Achitophel, in his own ambition for increasing power, sees David as weak. “But when should people strive their bonds to break,” Achitophel says to David’s son Absalom, “If not when kings are negligent or weak?” The Jews of Israel “well know their pow’r,” Achitophel maintains, and it is the perfect time to assert that power and overthrow David’s rule. Absalom, too, is ambitious and gains power through war, and, after Achitophel’s influence, Absalom has ambition to ascend his father’s throne. With the portrayal of power and ambition in “Absalom and Achitophel,” Dryden ultimately argues that while some ambition of power is good and even admirable, attempting to take power that rightfully belongs to the King is a deadly sin.

David’s mild nature and his willingness to give the people what they want produces men who are greedy for more and more power, like Achitophel. Dryden describes Achitophel as wise and “bold,” and notes that he is “restless” and “unfixed” in his current office and ethics. “In power,” Achitophel is “unpleased,” and “impatient of disgrace.” Dryden implies that Achitophel is accomplished and has some power in government, but he wants more, and since he thinks David is a “disgrace,” he tries to obtain more power through unscrupulous means. Of Achitophel, Dryden writes: “In friendship false, implacable in hate, / Resolved to ruin or to rule the state.” Achitophel’s ambition for power is so strong, he only pretends to respect the King, when in truth he despises David and plans to strip his power by any means necessary. According to Dryden, Achitophel is tired of “lawful fame and lazy happiness” and hates “the golden fruit to gather free,” so he gives “the crowd his arm to shake the tree.” In other words, Achitophel is no longer interested in the power, or “golden fruit” that is freely available, so he attempts to shake some power loose from higher up the tree. He holds “up the buckler of the people’s cause / Against the crown, and skulked behind the laws.” Achitophel pushes against the King and advocates for the people, disregarding David’s power and amassing his own.

Although Absalom’s ambitions of power are reasonable at first, he, too, grows greedy and eventually sets his sights on overstepping the King through dishonest means. When Dryden first introduces Absalom, he notes, “Early in foreign fields he won renown / With kings and states allied to Israel’s crown.” Initially, Absalom’s ambition is appropriate and loyal, and he makes a name for himself fighting in wars. However, despite this power, Absalom begins to desire more; “My soul disclaims the kindred of her earth / And, made for empire, whispers me within: / ‘Desire of greatness is a godlike sin.’” Absalom knows the power he desires, that of his father’s throne, is not his to have; however, this does not stop him from pursuing it. As Absalom tries to win the favor of the Jews, he employs a brilliant scheme in which he claims he has no power, telling the people that his father has given away all of his power. As he speaks, Absalom wipes a tear from his eye. “’Tis all the aid my present power supplies,” he says of his tears. By claiming to be lowly and powerless, Absalom is effectively able to gather more power from the people through their support and love, and they quickly become his devoted followers and forsake David.

King David’s waning power, however, is true in appearance only, and he soon grows tired of Achitophel’s plotting and Absalom’s rebellion. From David’s “royal throne, by heav’n inspired, he spoke to the people of Israel “with awful fear.” “’Tis time to show I am not good with force,” the King says, “Those heaped affronts that haughty subjects bring / Are burdens for a camel, not a king.” David’s power, David claims, is endowed by God, and thus he cannot be brought down with Absalom and Achitophel’s earthly attempts at power. David claims his power is not to be trifled with. “Must I at length the sword of justice draw?” he asks, “To make examples of another kind.” Up until now, David’s power has been silent and controlled, but he can easily draw his sword and order war. For David, there is power in restraint, but he reminds his subjects that he can just as easily release violence and conflict. David knows that his enemies will one day “fight,” and he is prepared. When they are “breathless” and tired, David will “rise upon ‘em with redoubled might, / For lawful pow’r is still superior found.” David’s enemies will expend their power and tire, but David’s power cannot be diminished.

As David speaks to the Israelites, thunder rips through the sky. God himself confirms that David’s power is absolute, and, Dryden therefore argues, cannot be usurped or threatened by even the most ambitious play to power. As “Absalom and Achitophel” is an allegory for Dryden’s own political climate, Dryden thus implies that King Charles II of England’s power, while often easy-going and merciful, is absolute as well. Like David, Charles’s power is bestowed upon him by God, and it is therefore sinful for Charles’s illegitimate son the 1st Duke of Monmouth, or anyone else, to tread on that power.