Power and Authority.

A simple definition of power could be the ability both to demand that people do something, and to say how a thing should be done or organised. Authority, however, is where power is granted by consent; and when an individual or committee is said to have authority, the reason that justifies this authority is known as legitimacy. In general, the government has authority because it has legitimacy through: tradition, as Parliament has existed for hundreds …

…a conflict of interests, such the conflict between working class interests and middle/upper class interests. Despite these three definitions, Lukes himself agrees that it is ultimately a matter of opinion on what is in a person's interests or what is good for them. Overall, the concept of authority by Weber has been accepted by many sociologists, and although Lukes' alternative definition of power is radical, they both provide understandable theories to discuss the concepts.