About: Authority in Name Only   Sponge Permalink

An Entity of Type : owl:Thing, within Data Space : 134.155.108.49:8890 associated with source dataset(s)

An Authority in Name Only is someone who claims to hold a title, but that title is a sham. Either it is a purely symbolic function with no actual power, or the title itself is made up, and it has no genuine authority over its "subjects". As such, most characters of this trope have no one (except for the occasional Yes-Man or Professional Butt-Kisser) who actually respects their non-existent authority. In terms of the ranks of Authority Tropes, the next steps up are The Caligula, The Good Chancellor, and Evil Chancellor, Standard Royal Court, and Deadly Decadent Court.

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  • Authority in Name Only
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  • An Authority in Name Only is someone who claims to hold a title, but that title is a sham. Either it is a purely symbolic function with no actual power, or the title itself is made up, and it has no genuine authority over its "subjects". As such, most characters of this trope have no one (except for the occasional Yes-Man or Professional Butt-Kisser) who actually respects their non-existent authority. In terms of the ranks of Authority Tropes, the next steps up are The Caligula, The Good Chancellor, and Evil Chancellor, Standard Royal Court, and Deadly Decadent Court.
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  • An Authority in Name Only is someone who claims to hold a title, but that title is a sham. Either it is a purely symbolic function with no actual power, or the title itself is made up, and it has no genuine authority over its "subjects". As such, most characters of this trope have no one (except for the occasional Yes-Man or Professional Butt-Kisser) who actually respects their non-existent authority. In terms of the ranks of Authority Tropes, the next steps up are The Caligula, The Good Chancellor, and Evil Chancellor, Standard Royal Court, and Deadly Decadent Court. Contrast Mayor of a Ghost Town, where the person is a recognized authority figure, it's just that there's no one left to rule over. Also contrast Just the First Citizen, where the figure doesn't claim a grand title but holds the real power nevertheless -- the diametric inverse of this trope. For characters who actually do wield tyrannical control over some place, see I Own This Town. Can overlap with Kicked Upstairs if the title is actually bestowed by someone else who does have real authority, often specifically to appease the victim or move them out of the way. Examples of Authority in Name Only include:
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