Edmund Burke once said, “The greater the power, the more dangerous the abuse.” » In today's society, power is taken and used in a manipulative way by people who are prominent in the public eye. We see celebrities paying to escape punishment all the time. Julian Hayden is a powerful authoritarian character in Larry Watson's novel Montana 1948. He was sheriff in Bentrock and passed his job on to his son, Wesley, who is David's father. His actions show how he abuses his power, using his authority over his family to control them and attempt to cover up the crimes of his son, Frank. Say no to plagiarism. Get a custom essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get the original essayWesley Hayden is torn between his wife's desire for him to become a lawyer and his father's need for him to be the sheriff of Mercer County, adopted down from him. He went to law school, but ended up becoming sheriff. “For a while, she hoped that I would follow in my father's footsteps and pursue a career in law. 'Wouldn't that be something,' she once said hopefully to me when I was a teenager, 'Hayden and Son, Law Partners?' » (Watson 176). Near the beginning of the book, he introduces his father, saying, “Mercer County Sheriff was elected, but such was the influence of my grandfather – and the weight of the Hayden name. [...] It would never have occurred to my father to refuse.” Wes had no choice but to be the sheriff – or so he thinks. He was controlled by his father all his life, he wouldn't have thought to make his own decisions. Once again, we see Julian's influence on Wesley by seeing how his prejudices are "like father, like son." Both Wesley and Julian show their prejudices by saying racist things throughout the book and trying to cover up Frank's crimes. After the crimes, Len McAuley said to David, "You know what your grandfather said it means to be a peace officer in Montana?" He said it means knowing when to look and when to look away” (Watson 84). Julian is clearly biased about the type of crimes he was willing to report, as is Wesley. At first he doesn't want to report it, because Frank is his family. “That’s not how it works. You know it. Sins, crimes, are not supposed to remain unpublished.” Gail persists about Wesley reporting him, and he eventually turns on his father, locking Frank in his own basement. Grandpa and Grandma Hayden head to Wes and Gail's house and demand that they know where Frank is. David watches all this happen and thinks, “I suddenly felt sorry for my father – not as he stood before me at that moment, but as a boy. What must it have been like to have a father who could talk to you like that? David sees how aggressively his father is treated by his grandfather. He assumes Grandpa Hayden treated him that way when he was a child. "You... were investigating?" "In these two words, I understood how little respect my grandfather had for my father and for everything he did." Again, Julian's words reveal that they have clearly been damning about Wes his whole life and how disrespectful he is to Wes. He thinks Wesley should live the way he wants. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized article from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay Power can be used in all good and bad ways. In Montana 1948, the character Julian plays a role in this story that illustrates how power can be harnessed, and even family can..