Greatness
Origin
Middle English grete, from Old English grēat; akin to Old High German grōz large
Definitions
- 1a : notably large in size : huge
- b : of a kind characterized by relative largeness —used in plant and animal names
- c : elaborate, ample <great detail>
- b : predominant <the great majority>
- 3: remarkable in magnitude, degree, or effectiveness <great bloodshed>
- 4: full of emotion <great with anger>
- 5a : eminent, distinguished <a great poet>
- b : chief or preeminent over others —often used in titles <Lord Great Chamberlain>
- c : aristocratic, grand <great ladies>
- 6: long continued <a great while>
- 7: principal, main <a reception in the great hall>
- 8: more remote in a family relationship by a single generation than a specified relative <great-grandfather>
- 9: markedly superior in character or quality; especially : noble <great of soul>
- 10a : remarkably skilled <great at tennis>
- b : marked by enthusiasm : keen <great on science fiction>
Description
Since the publication of Francis Galton’s Hereditary Genius in 1869, and especially with the accelerated development of intelligence tests in the early 1900s, there has been a vast amount of social scientific research published relative to the question of ‘greatness’. Much of this research doesn’t actually use the term ‘great’ in describing itself, preferring terms such as ‘eminence’, ‘genius’, ‘exceptional achievement’, etc. Historically the major intellectual battles over this topic have focused around the questions of ‘nature vs nurture’ or ‘person vs context’. Today the importance of both dimensions is accepted by all, but disagreements over the relative importance of each are still reflected in variations in research emphases.[1]
