I was having a conversation with a dear friend earlier and I heard this come from her:Â
"Honestly, though.... I don't believe one can impact the world without making a name for oneself first."
My response:Â Really? I disagree. In fact . . . Â I MAY get some research done and post my first article in weeks! ;)
So here's what I found after a very quick review:
Charles Darwin:Â Charles was virtually unknown until Henslow, a person 
to whom he was writing while he was on the HMS Beagle had determined to share this correspondence with selected specialists. It wasn't until he published On the Origin of Species that he became famous. His work changed the world. It was his work that made him famous. It was his work that made religious fundamentalists look like idiots. His work has been extrapolated into social Darwinism.Â
Joan d'Arc : Though she suffered from narcolepsy (an uncontrolled urge to sleep), she managed to bring the French to victory over the English in 1429. She was visited by angels (she claimed) who guided her. She was not famous before her deeds which culminated in her being burned at the stake at the age of 19.  The uncrowned King Charles VII (whom she was instrumental in having crowned) sent her to the siege at Orléans as part of a relief mission where she was in command of some units to render aid. She gained heroic prominence when she overcame the dismissive attitude of veteran commanders and lifted the siege by her input after only nine days. Several more swift victories followed and led to Charles VII's coronation at Reims and settled the disputed succession to the throne.
Johannes_Gensfleisch zur Laden zum Gutenberg : He invented the metal, moveable type printing press and brought the Bible to the masses. Never known before that!
Dorothea Lange : She walked with a limp due to a bout with polio when she was seven. She spent her life traveling and photographing the disenfranchised. A Depression era photographer virtually unheard of before her work put a face on the people suffering from the Great Depression. Her work for the Farm Security Administration humanized the tragic consequences of the Great Depression and profoundly influenced the development of documentary photography. World famous only after her photos were published and by putting a face on these people, she changed the was the world saw and treated them.
Martin_Luther :Â 
Without being known beforehand, he founded the Protestants, by nailing his thesis to the doors of a church and influenced the Nazi, anti-Jewish propaganda.
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Charles_Proteus_Steinmetz :Â 
Suffered Dwarfism and hip dysplasia as well as being a hunch back, he spearheaded Alternating currency in electrical work. His practical method of calculations revolutionized electrical methods and revolutionized electricity worldwide. He was never heard from before that.
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Harriet_Tubman :Â 
Struck in the head by an overseer, she suffered narcolepsy for the rest of her life. Founded the underground railroad (helping slaves escape for 10 years before the Civil War) and the first woman to lead an armed assault on the Union side during the Civil War. No fame in having been a slave before that.
Josiah_Wedgwood :Â 
Suffered an attack of small pox which required the amputation of his right leg. Revolutionized the industrial manufacture and design of pottery world-wide and had a grandson named Charles Darwin!
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Upton Beall Sinclair : 
Famous only after his book, The Jungle in 1906 that protected society by leading to Congressional acts that dealt with the issues he addressed.
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Florence Nightinggale! key player in the development of nursing, changing it from a world populated by prostitutes and hangers on . . . Not only unknown before the Crimean War but ostracized by her family her detested her occupation choice. She later served the Union in treating injured soldiers.
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So what do you think? Do you need to make a name for yourself before you change the world?
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Comments: 94
Good post Doyle
I get the impression that she wanted it to be on a greater scale than merely raising a child or being a great wife/mother/whatever. - While those are great things, I think she was going for something bigger. Touch more people.
Thanks Tom!
Regards,
Doyle I <~~~~~
While these are great examples, I wonder how many people did something they hoped was meaningful to spark others into action/reaction but since not enough people heard about it/read about it/knew about it, their best efforts were thwarted....
I'm guessing there are a bazillion people out there that failed because no one knew them.
Countless Darling . . . for example . . . the grandfather of Darwin . . . he changed the world by raising the man who raised Darwin!
Regards,
Doyle I <~~~~~
example two: Everyday I go to work I work with families who have children with developmental delays. I change the world in little tiny bits, the family realizes someone understands the struggle they have with their child. They see their child in a new light and encourage thier child in a different way. Who knows what this child may do. Temple Grandin is a reknown veterinarian. She was diagnosed as a person with Autism. Perhaps I may see some of the children I work with go on to do great things.
And an equal number known ONLY because of their actions which did change the world.
Whatever you do will be insignificant, but it is very important that you do it.
-Mahatma Gandhi
Exactly. Even giving advice one might start a string of events that seriously change our lives and those around us. Think of poor Adam Walsh . . . his father, unknown for some time, is now known for bringing criminals to justice. :)
Regards,
Doyle I <~~~~~
I totally LOVE this guy. Really. But he's wrong in this one quote. Seriously.
Regards,
Doyle I <~~~~~
No. It's because kind people like yourself allow me to make that claim unchallenged! :)
Thanks!
Regards,
Doyle I <~~~~~
I even think of the teachers my son had or even the people who influenced my life positively and negatively.
Perhaps in my life, if I teach 80 students a year and I impact 1, that is enough for me. I think it all depends on the person as to what qualifies changing the world.
George Bush Sr's dad impacted the world because he had George Bush Sr. who had GWB who started wars and ruined the economy.
I've changed the world because I brought a life into it.
Blah blah blah. We can argue that everyone has changed the world somehow.
But... What about the Elizabeth Gilbert's of the world who now have a #1 best seller on the NY Times list.... Who has been featured on Oprah.... If she merely decided to travel around a little bit and write about it, would a publisher have been really interested in it? Probably not. But, since she was a freelancer and a journalist, she already had connections. People knew her name. She was already promised a book deal before she even left the U.S.
These people changed the world though they were previously unknown. (My only point).
"Or because we allow you to live in that little world of fantasy land."
Duhhh.
I neither stated nor implied that being famous is not an extra help in this. In fact, I believe strongly that with great fame comes great responsibility.
Jim . . . I considered him initially . . . but greatness and change are two different things. Did he change a lot?
But every time someone DOES get involved, or speaks up, or refuses to look the other way. Every time someone pursues a new idea or works to help people, they make differences they can't begin to appreciate even if they never see the results themselves.
I understand. But by saying what you do is insignificant he doesn't speak to the common man as he usually did. Too many, by my thinking . . . would misunderstand.
Ok, Grems . . . I'm not informed enough on his impact to have a decent opinion.
IMHO - every person who was ever born changed the world in some way. Good deeds are done every day by unknown people. Some just make bigger impacts than others - not necessarily more important, either. Also, some are picked up more readily to go on to be "famous" thus are more recognized.
Back to the board games now...............
But one of my favorite songs mentions Joanie, so I guess it's not a life wasted... ;-)
My thoughts exactly...well, more or less.
I"ll give you Rosa Park's refusal to obey the order by white bus driver James Blake to give her seat to a white passenger, as an example. Her small act of defiance led to the Montgomery Bus Boycott...which helped fuel the civil rights movement which resulted in the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
[Saving the world obligation starts here ]
Please read Invisible Hand.
[End saving the world obligation]
and while I like your examples, I think there are all sorts of others as well... people who have changed the world and never become known for it
Who is she-- she's famous now!
But you can change the facts.
And when you change the facts
You change points of view.
If you change points of view
You may change a vote.
And when you change a vote
You may change the world."
I would like to agree with Sandy's definition, as I think many who have had huge impacts on many people over the course of history are veritably unknown.
Do you know who Tom Henderson is? Probably not. In 1999 he was a retired Royal Navy search-and-rescue diver, sitting in his home watching the BBC News one night. The report was on distribution of relief supplies to some African country following a massive drought which left millions starving. The film showed a number of large trucks pull up into a makeshift camp. When the trucks came to a stop, the relief workers started shoveling loaves of bread out of the backs of the trucks onto the ground, at which time the starving Africans descended on the bread, shoving, pushing and clawing their way to the loaves. It was a mob scene and many got hurt and walked away without a loaf of bread in their hands.
Tom was shocked and appalled. After going through such loss and suffering, these Africans were then subjected to a situation that, although meant to help them, literally stripped them of their last shred of dignity and respect. And he decided right then and there to make a difference.
In less than a year, with an abundant lack of skills in the area but with great persistence and determination, Tom started what is known as ShelterBox. In January 2001, ShelterBox delivered their first relief boxes to India. It has become one of the most effective aid agencies in the world, one of the few that was successfully allowed on the ground and delivering life-saving shelter, food and water to Myanmar after their recent disaster.
If you would like to know more about ShelterBox and that unknown guy who started it and is now CEO, check out:
http://www.shelterbox.org/home.htm
Each box completely supports a family of 10 for six months and costs about $1,000. There are countless ShelterBox groups throughout the world, working to raise money and giving their personal time to travel and deliver these life-saving boxes.
One guy....sitting in his living room. I bet there are a lot of Tom Hendersons out there in many different areas, unknown to us all, but making a huge difference in the world.
Please read Invisible Hand.
[End saving the world obligation] "
What the hell?? Did you just place an ADVERTISEMENT for YOUR content on MY article?? You ARE kidding me, right?? 43 chapters AND a Prologue?? Well how about YOU? Huh? Make yourself at home!!
Agreed Flit . . . though it makes it kinda' hard to use them as examples. :)
Regards,
Doyle I <~~~~~
I select my friends VERY well. She was famous before. :)
Regards,
Doyle I <~~~~~
I think your friend was speaking on a grand scale, but even so, I disagree with her statement. How many famous people can you name who did something to change the world AFTER they became famous? Off the top of my head, I cannot think of one.
Yet, I can think of 20 immediately who have changed the world in some way - and name them - who will never be famous, at least not beyond their very own community. Granted, their impact isn't on some grand scale as some of those you named above, and they may not seem to have had a "world-wide" impact, yet how do you know that?
An example and a true story: A woman from my state who was virtually unknown except for those who attended her Sunday school classes and answered her calls for volunteers to go out into the mission field impacted two of her students to begin their own ministry. This ministry sent them into a nearby women's prison where they witnessed to a woman who was there for murder and was a hard, angry woman. Through the love and kindness they showed this woman (and not just "preaching" to her) she became a Christian, turned her life around INSIDE the prison, and when she was released and finally able to return to society, joined the mission field and wound up traveling to other poorer countries where she happened to have saved the life of a man who was the sole provider to a family of children who had lost their mother to disease.
Did she impact the world? Of course she did. And her impact continues. I have no idea what happened to the children of that family who are all adult age now, but without their father alive, they would all have starved or worse. How are we to know that one of those children won't one day discover the cure for diabetes, or cancer, or AIDS?
I could cite a dozen other examples.
" Makes you wonder what "famous" people have changed the world--positively that is. "
Many examples come to mind.
"Yes, but when Bono says something, more people listen than the guy ranting on a street corner. "
I never said famous people cannot change the world. I imagine it's easier for them to do so.
Regards,
Doyle I <~~~~~
Thank you Spanky . . . good points except I do know people who have changed the world after they became famous. Take Bono as a perfect example. :)
(Good morning!)
Regards,
Doyle I <~~~~~
Regards,
Doyle I <~~~~~
Doyle ( aka The MAN of the 6 Sass-shays ) C., Aug 14, 2008, 9:28am EDT
I think that was the initial point.
I guess I was thinking along other lines.
And good morning, Doyle!
Angelina Jolie.
Joaquin Noah. (I think I spelled that wrong...)
P. Diddy.
Lainie, Dubya's grandpa actually was very well known in his time - as a very wealthy man and a political mover and shaker. He was also infamous - he used his wealth to support Hitler's rise to power in Germany and spent WWII with his assets frozen.
BZZZZZT. The initial point was that you do not have to be famous to change the world, not that famous people cannot do so.
" Bill and Melinda (is that her name?) Gates.
Angelina Jolie.
Joaquin Noah. (I think I spelled that wrong...)
P. Diddy. "
P. Diddy?? :P I conceded already famous people can make a difference. I will not concede that fame is needed first.
"Dubya's grandpa actually was very well known in his time - as a very wealthy man and a political mover and shaker. He was also infamous - he used his wealth to support Hitler's rise to power in Germany and spent WWII with his assets frozen. "
He was also involved in a plot to overthrow the US Government.
Thank you Julie . . . very well said.
Regards,
Doyle I <~~~~~
Paris Hilton could bring a lot of attention to some charity. Hello? Paris? Get going !!!
"It's just easier to reach a broader audience with some amount of notoriety already established. : ) "
It IS. :)
"It's always a shame when people have celebrity and don't use it for the charity bully pulpit."
Lack of passion? Usually, they need the tax deductions!
"Paris Hilton could bring a lot of attention to some charity. Hello? Paris? Get going !!! "
Like Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Aged and Infirm Adult Film Stars? :P
Regards,
Doyle I <~~~~~
It's very Oprah-ish, but I think we're all changing the world around us, maybe not The World, every time we do good, or probably unfortunately, bad.
If I'm in line at the grocery store with a full basket, and a man comes up behind me with a gallon of milk and a loaf of bread, I always say, "Please go ahead of me." Having been on the receiving end of that gesture, he may, hopefully, give someone else a break sometime. It could conceivably spread around and maybe change the whole community just a little bit. Most of us will never get any acclaim for the little things we do to change something, but it can still be seen.
I know it's simplistic, but if we err on the side of our actions and words making an impact, who gets hurt?
THAT'S IT ! ! ! ! ! Thanks Vicky!
"We will never really know if we have left our mark...but, that isn't the purpose is it? "
To leave our mark or to know we did? What isn't the purpose?
Good point Julie. :)
Regards,
Doyle I <~~~~~
Hi Ron! Always a unique comment from you! :) You're probably right about Darwin but watching the insanity of insurgent warfare he might never have considered the process of natural selection and the overall concept of evolution based on it. He certainly would have had less time to write. The Mo-Fo would have been an officer too. Yeah . . . he was better off on the Beagle! :P
Regards,
Doyle I <~~~~~
Oh, we're not supposed to do that?
Huh! Color me educated... ;-)
Huh! Color me educated... ;-) "
Oh really? You know what? Why not just start with "This Space for RENT"? Hell's bells, I might as well let YOU advertise the superior quality and content you have come to be known for, eh?
This Comment has been brought to you by by the King of Cool!
If you liked this - you certainly should check out the SQOTD too!
SQOTD - Come ONE COME ALL!!!
The afore-mentioned endorsement does not guarantee you unrestricted glee. Side effects may include side-splitting laughter and rolling on the floor laughter . . . possibly wetting yourself laughter . . . or partial, spontaneous, involuntary regurgitation. Your results may vary. :)
And we think publishing today is rotten !!!
Now, that My Master of Genius-ocity Friend, is funny -- nipple-crackingly so.
You're a tad off about John Henslow. John was a colleague at Cambridge and was certainly in High Society. Even then, publishing other people's scientific work was bad. He only showed it to other naturalists in that same elite circle. Henslow's father was a Solicitor and his grandfather a nobleman. I'm pretty sure he got on well. ;)
Regards,
Doyle I <~~~~~
Regards,
Doyle I <~~~~~
Since the beginning of time, children. That's the definition of "determinism", further buttressed by all the examples of cause and effect many of you have noted. 'If that hadn't happened, this wouldn't have happened' and so on, in an endless chain, for infinity.
Thanks Lance . . . silverware was actually invented by MY GreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGrandfather. Too bad he let the patent expire.
GreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGrandMAH MAH invented chopsticks. :P
Regards,
Doyle I <~~~~~
You're great Peter . . . After a couple hundred years, minor figures in history's pantheon get fuzzy. For what it's worth I'm betting you have a bigger reading audience than he did! :)
Of course. :)
Regards,
Doyle I <~~~~~
Thank you Susan . . . I agree completely.
Regards,
Doyle I <~~~~
You should really be nice to me now, Doyle, before I become really famous.
humbly yours,
cheri
(*yawn*) Back atcha' cupcake! ;)
Regards,
Doyle I <~~~~~
These examples required an "act" to be noteworthy of achieving fame. It is a good example of how famous people are just as ordinary as others. In todays sad world though the box with the view of the world makes "extraordinarily ordinary" people famous who have not done or accomplished anything and who's fame has nothing to offer. One could say Bart Simpson has even changed the world. Unfortunately not every one who is capable of effecting a change does it for the good of the world.
On the flip side there are also many people who have changed the world and no one knows who they are. But in many of these situations it wasn't "they" who changed the world it was their invention, writing, discovery etc. For example Henrey Ford is often accredited for inventing the automobile when it could be attributed to others like Karl Friedrich Benz.
Being that famous means "known about by many people" this popularity or notoriety also changes over time. It can also be that someone within a "group" is famous within but the existence of the group as a whole could be obscure to everyone on the outside.
Great article