"Absolute power corrupts absolutely"; Lord Elgin once said this quote. The short story "Butcher Bird" by Wallace Stegner portrays this quotation by showing that power becomes destructive when it is motivated and then fuelled by jealousy. This piece of literature suggests how the father in this story is influenced by jealousy, which in turn leads to him making drastic decisions, and his actions lead to dangerous outcomes for both him and his family.

In the story "Butcher Bird" the father Harry becomes jealous in many ways. One of the reasons he becomes jealous is due to his wife, who likes what their neighbour Mr. Garfield is doing with their home and their yard. "Sometimes I would give almost... feel how cool..." (pg.52) and "it is wonderful...some on our place" (pg.52) suggests that Harry's wife likes what Mr. Garfield is doing by making his house into a home...