Sharp and Burrows: Power

When thinking about the authors Sharp and Burrows, it is difficult for me to decide which side I really take between the two. More specifically, I find their thoughts on the center of gravity in society, or the "societal triangle" quite interesting. Both place the elites at the top of the triangle, with the people or numbers at the bottom. Sharp believes that "eliminating" part of the bottom, or people, will cause the entire triangle, or power, to topple over. Burrows, on the other hand, seems to think that the base of the triangle is not as important as the elite group and its surrounding elites. He claims that elites are reliant on other elites and not on the people power. When trying to apply these strategies or ideas to a personal situation, I would have to say that I agree with Sharp. A good example is a college or university. The elites would be the faculty and staff, and of course the numbers would lie in the students. When looking at a movement or the power on a campus, the students truly would have the power. Although college students are students for a reason, when it comes down to it, their tuition bills pay for the college and it's staff. Most often, students outnumber their professors. There are many situations where merely having the numbers and support show the power over the elites.