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After looking through and learning about many different topics from the 1920s and 1980s, I will use the Great Man criteria to see which one out of the three topics I've chosen from each decade had the biggest influence. The Great Man criteria breaks down a person or an event to see if their accomplishment was significant, if there was an enduring legacy, if large extent of influence, and if there was a heavy impact on daily life. The three topics I chose from the 1920s were Jazz & Duke Ellington, FDR & Polio, and Ernest Hemmingway. I chose these topics because they were the most important events out of all of the ones I read about in the 20s, and they all had a large impact on either life today, or life in the 20s. The topics I chose from the 80s were The take down of the Belin Wall & Ronald Reagan, Michael Jackson, and Fashion Fads & Madonna. I chose these topics out of the rest because they were the most interesting and also had a large impact back then and today.

Due to the way I picked my topics for the 1920s, all three of my topics have a strong signifcance of accomplishment. The first topic I chose was FDR and his fight against polio. I would rank his signifcance of accomplishment as long run. I say that because "Franklin D. Roosevlet was the driving force in the cure of polio"**(Corbin D).** After FDR was diagnosed with polio, in 1938 he created the March of Dimes to find the cure. Thanks to FDR Polio was cured in 1955, but sadly he had already died and wasn't alive to see the cure himself **(Corbin D).** My second topic was Jazz and it's creator, Duke Ellington. Duke Ellington's significance was both wide-spread and long run. Ellington "was very talented and had revolutionized an entirely new style of music"**(Arat I).** With out Ellington, there wouldn't have been a "jazz age" and the jazz style of music may have never been created. My last topic I chose for the 1920s was Ernest Hemmingway. I would rank Hemmingway's significance of accomplishment as wide spread. His significance of accomplishment was huge- people all over the US read his work, and it is still referenced to today**(Lucas S).** The endurance of the legacy of the 1920s topics I chose vary greatly. Some of the legacies endured up until today, and some ended with the decade. FDR and his fight against polio endured up until today. I say this because "his accomplishment endures up to today since the March of Dimes still excists today. (March of Dimes) The extent of infulence was world wide because children in almost every country were having problems with this diease, until there was a cure. Today there are very few cases of people with polio"**(Corbin D).** The legacy of Ellington didn't endure like FDR's did. "[Jazz] was the new form of entertainment, it was the most up to date trend, and the funny thing is that it remained that way for a long period of time"**(Arat I).** However, Jazz didn't remain as popular as it was in the 1920s, making the endurance of legacy only moderate. The legacy of Ernest Hemmingway was another story. Hemmingway's work is still popular and discussed in English classes today. "[Hemmingway's] legacy still continued up until this day, where people still make references back to his writings, and base their writings on his style of writing. No one else could have done what Hemingway did"**(Lucas S).** The extent of the 1920s topics all touch on some aspect of modern life. FDR's march of dimes still exists today and had a large influence on the people of the 50s when polio was cured, but now only has a moderate influence on daily life. It primarily only concerns the people effected by polio. Ellington's jazz had a huge influnence on the creation of jazz and pop culture of the 20's, but doesn't have a very large impact on life anymore. People still listen to jazz, but it's not as big as it was in the 1920s. I would say Ellington's influence was wide-spread, but only moderate at the same time. Ernest Hemmingway influenced the population of the 20s "through his books. People were able to grasp reality in their lives after reading them and most people were influenced by his writings, especially his short stories. They brought up arguments that have been going on for long periods of time such as in his story "Hills Like White Elephants" which deals with the concept of abortion and the mental and emotional stress that comes with making a decisions like that"(Lucas S). The impact on daily life was huge for all three of my 1920s topics, but only a few lasted up until today. FDR's march of dimes had a huge impact on the world when it cured polio, but doesn't have a very big influence on daily life today. It doesn't effect people's lives unless they are somehow involved with polio**(Corbin D).** Jazz impacted the people of the 1920s by "opening up more cultures since it was created by the african american culture. This meant a great deal to the americans. The american culture was impressed by the culture of the african americans and gave them a better social standpoint"**(Arat I).** Ernest Hemmingway "was a very influential writer, specially during the 1920's when chaos was breaking out in every street corner. He brought "sense into people's minds""**(Lucas S).** Hemmingway's influence was strongest during the 1920s, but continued into today. His work is still recognized by modern society. "Hemingway's reputation was already sky-rocketing during the 1920's and it didn't stop - even up until today"**(Lucas S).** Out of all of my 1980s topics, I would say that the take down of the Berlin wall and Ronald Reagan was very significant. I say this because "as the democratic leader of the time(Ronald Reagan), by him commanding the take down of the Berlin wall, the Soviet Union collapsed and democracy spread through out the world"**(Matt Y).** This is the most significant because with out this event or Ronald Reagan there might be more communism in the world than there already is. Michael Jackson was significant beacause he added new style to dance and music. "His name has become synonymous with pop music and music videos. He "developed [music] videos with narrative structures that both illustrated and existed in counterpoint to his music"**(Emma P).** I would say the significance of his accomplishment was wide-spread because it changed music all over the US. I would also consider Madonna and Fashion's significance as wide spread. Madonna changed fashion from "a more secrete look with little explosure to a more provacative trend." This was significant because the "provocative trend" lasted up to today.**(Ashley M).**

The endurance of legacy for Ronald Reagan I think was long run. Ronald Reagan, "Being the Democratic leader at the time he was able to speak out for the people against Communism. He ordered the wall be taken down in one statement. This influenced people to speak out and to do what they want. He influenced the world" towards democracy and away from communism. **(Matt Y).**This is long run because his ideas lasted- most of the world is more democratic than anything else today. Michael Jackson's legacy was very similar. Even after he died, people still listen to his music, buy his albums, and talk about him like he was the greatest man to come into the music industry. He changed music and dance styles permenantly. I think his impact was particularly strong because other artists today use similar styles of dance that he came up with. There is also proof of his lasting legacy by the number of African Americans now involved in the music industry. "[Michael Jackson] being an African American himself, lead the way for African Americans in the music industry. Michael Jackson's legacy has lasted almost 30 years now, with 'Thriller' still being one of the most sold al bums ever and his "iconic moonwalk""**(Emma P).** Madonna also had a long lasting, enduring legacy. By influencing the people that it was okay to dress more provocatively, people went along with it. This trend endured up until today- super short shorts and mid drift shirts are still in style. "[Madonna] created life style changes within society. She set an example, and people followed it."**(Ashley M).** The influence of Ronald Reagan was subtle, but it was there. By taking down the Berlin Wall, he showed people that a single person could make a big change. "[Reagan] influenced people to speak out and to do what they want. He influenced the world"**(Matt Y.)** The influence of Michael Jackson was strong. He influenced other people in the music industry to change their style to a style more like his, and influenced dancers then and today to be more like him. Jackson changed the music industry completely."His accomplishments where phenomenal and his influence in music spread all over the world"**(Emma P).** Madonna's influence was huge. She changed the fashion industry back in the 80s, and it influenced people all the way up to today. Madonna changing "the world of pop culture to a culture was so familiar with sex and homosexuality, it became more fluid to talk about in every day life.**(Ashley M).** The impact that Ronald Reagan had on daily life was large, although I don't think many people realized it. Reagan changed the views that people had on democracy and communism, and influenced peoples views towards democracy. "The Berlin Wall separated Communism from Democracy" so when Reagan got rid of the wall, communism and the USSR collapsed with it **(Matt Y).** The influence of Michael Jackson on daily life was minimal unless you were involved in the music industry. "His effect on daily life was only in pop culture"**(Emma P).** Madonna's impact on daily life was moderate- she changed the style of dress, but not society. However, Madonna's changes did spur other things to change. For example, "even though 1980's style has been long over, the social changes in which it caused are still practiced today. Now, US fashion is less conservative, and homosexuals have been in the process of retaining more rights, along with a wider range of social acceptance"**(Ashley M).** Out of the three 1920s and three 1980s topics I chose, I think the most influential for the 1920s was Ernest Hemmingway, and for the 1980s was Ronald Reagan. Ernest Hemmingway was more influential than Duke Ellington and FDR because his impact on daily life, his legacy, and his significance was stronger. He brought a sense reality to a time of craziness, and his work is still big almost 100 years later. His legacy also lasted longer because his work continued to live when he didn't. Hemmingway didn't just solve a problem and that was it, and his work didn't lose popularity like Ellington's Jazz did. Ronald Reagan was more influential compared to Michael Jackson and Madonna because he changed not only the US, but the world. By taking down the Berlin wall, he took down part of communism, which lead to more democracy. His legacy will last probably forever, because now we live in a world with out the soviet union and with more democracy. I think FDR would come in second for most influential because he created the foundation for curing polio, which saved many people from the disease. Ellington did however create a new style of music, but that was bound to happen sooner or later. I think that Madonna was second influential for the 1980s because her influence over the fashion industry lead to acceptance of homosexuals and different races. It lead to social change then that carried over to today, and Michael Jackson just primarily changed pop cutlure, not the entire society of the US like Madonna.

Over all, I have found that out of all the 20s and 80s topics, that the most influential out of those two decades were Ernest Hemmingway and Ronald Reagan. They were most influential because they had the longest lasting legacy. Both Reagan and Hemmingway's legacy lasted up to today. They both made an impact on the entire US society, not just a little part of it. Due to my conclusion, I think that Great Persons were more influential in the 1920s and 1980s than Civil Society. __**Works Cited:**__ __**1920s:**__ Arat I."Jazz and Duke Ellington" 2012. //Buchholtz Sidor American Studies.// Web. 1 Apr. 2012

Corbin D."Franklin D. Roosevelt and Polio" 2012. //Buchholtz Sidor American Studies.// Web. 1 Apr. 2012

Lucas Sencio."Ernest Hemmingway." 2012. //Buchholtz Sidor American Studies.// Web. 1 Apr. 2012

__**1980s:**__ Ashley M."Fashion Fads and Faux Pas" 2012. //Buchholtz Sidor American Studies.// Web. 1 Apr. 2012

Emma P."Michael Jackson:King Of Pop" 2012. //Buchholtz Sidor American Studies.// Web. 1 Apr. 2012

Matt Y. "Take down order of the Berlin Wall & Ronald Reagan" 2012. // Buchholtz Sidor American Studies // . Web. 1 Apr. 2012.

RUBRIC

A quality comparison essay will

•Use the __four__ criteria of Great Man Continuum to analyze the significance of three 1920’s topics and three 1980s topics. good analysis of individual criteria

•Analyze of each of the 6 topics with evidence taken from the 1920s and 1980s wikis, supporting evidence for each topic--topics' importance described

•Develop thoughtful and thorough conclusions on all 6 topics, yes

•Rank the three topics for each decade and explain why one topic is more influential than the other two, yes,

•Answer the essay question with a clear, well reasoned argument, clear reasoning mostly supported with evidence

•Explain why the __second__ choice fell short compared to the __first__ choice but is more just than the __third__ choice, generally attempted

•Organize ideas in extended power paragraphs, with a few exceptions, consistently done--essay organized logically

•Identify the source and establish its credibility with an appositive phrase, done

•Cite evidence with internal citations and in a Works Cited. Click links for exemplars.  Correct WC, IC entries