The Great Man Theory By Thomas Carlyle: What Makes A True Leader

“Leadership is not to be measured just by appearance, but by the virtue of learning from experience.” From all the way back during the ancient times to the invention of television and much of the present day, man has perceived looks to be a leadership trait. This particular idea and belief has been coalesced into what is known today as “The Great Man Theory.” The theory created by Thomas Carlyle during the 19th century dogmatically asserts that “leaders are born not made,” following further into stating that it is society that makes these great men. However the question still stands, “Is it really practical or possible to measure a leader’s effectiveness just by their physical attributes? What makes one a leader is not by looks but by choices. Unlike the ordinary choices that people make in their daily lives, a true leader makes their choices not by free will, but for the benefit of others. In reality, regardless of the circumstances or failures that we invariably encounter due to the decisions …show more content…
He was one out of many who really showed the real acts of leadership and through his works explained the essential aspects: diversity and acceptance to failure, but lost the support of his people due to economics. What seemed like a good and ingenious idea turned out be disapproved by many of who he depended on, but in any case the job of a leader is to lead their people from where they been to where they haven’t been. In fact the significant part of being a leader is that you get to provoke change. Without doubt, it is evident as that many of us do not like change. For that reason a leader must be perceptive and work against all odds. The fact that Gandhi did not waver that he was the one to grant India’s independence has been controversial into being his weakness and strength. However in all retrospect, his work and potent leadership today has shown us how much one is capable