First is the danger of futility; the belief there is nothing one man or one woman can do against the enormous array of the world's ills -- against misery, against ignorance, or injustice and violence. Yet many of the world's great movements, of thought and action, have flowed from the work of a single man. A young monk began the Protestant reformation, a young general extended an empire from Macedonia to the borders of the earth, and a young woman reclaimed the territory of France. It was a young Italian explorer who discovered the New World, and 32-year-old Thomas Jefferson who proclaimed that all men are created equal. 'Give me a place to stand,' said Archimedes, 'and I will move the world.' These men moved the world, and so can we all.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Individual actions can drive major global changes despite the scale of world problems.
- In plain terms
- One person can change the world, just like historical figures did.
- What can you take from it?
- Believe in the power of individual action to overcome global issues.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- What can one person actually change?
- Who inspires you to act?
Another view
Attributing complex changes to single individuals ignores collective effort.
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