Great Leaders in History Essay

Tags: leadership speech civil war inaugural address american civil war morality integrity great leaders sacrifice resilience duty character war leaders poverty

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Great leadership, this is a trait most people do not have. Among the many leaders of the world present and past, only a few could be deemed great. That is why the literary world becomes a place to cultivate what an ideal leader is. From Robert the blind man in “Cathedral” by Raymond Carver, to “The Things They Carried” character, Lieutenant Jimmy Cross, these leaders harken back to real leaders of the past like Lincoln and Kennedy. It is with these shining examples in mind that an idea of what a great leader is, takes shape and even provides inspiration for new leaders that break the mold of what is typically expected like Daenerys Targaryen from Game of Thrones. These new leaders will perhaps inspire the greats of tomorrow.

Many consider John F. Kennedy and Abraham Lincoln amazing leaders because of their ability to stand up for what is right and their desire to maintain their integrity. What is integrity?

There are varying definitions of integrity. My own personal definition of integrity revolves around the notion that our identities, our perspective molds our morality. When someone had a clear idea of who she or he is, their integrity shapes itself around that identity.

As people age and mature, their identity evolves, based on the various learning experiences observed within a person’s perspective. These experiences, these events, provide a crucial piece to the formation of identity for every person. (Cohen) Whether the experiences or small or momentous, they all provide a foundation from which the self, changes.

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The journey to the self is crucial for integrity to properly develop.

Lincoln and Kennedy had integrity, a set of morals and principles they believed in, that they developed as they became adults. Their decisions like the Civil War and the support of the Civil Rights Movement demonstrated how they not only believed in what they deemed ‘right’, but they acted on these beliefs to ensure fairness and civility for all. January 20, 1961, JFK delivered his inaugural address and demonstrated to the world, his sincerity and his desire to change things for the better. (James, et al.) He saw how the world was and still is, the poverty, the need to remember the first revolution, where people fought for freedom from oppression, and used that to show what he believed needed to come to fruition for a better world. The same can be said of Lincoln and his inaugural address.

Lincoln delivered his second inaugural address on March 4, 1865, a few months before the end of the American Civil War. During his speech, he recalled how it felt years prior and his attempts at preserving the union. (James, et al.) Lincoln faced great danger and adversity in helping eliminate slavery in the United States. However, through this tough and arduous time, he proved just how important it was to stay the course and in doing so, alter history. Lincoln because the face of great leadership and this speech was the final….....

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Works Cited

Cohen, William A. "Absolute integrity is the basis of heroic leadership." Leader to Leader, vol. 2011, no. 59, 2010, pp. 46-51.

Della Quercia, Jacopo. "A Machiavellian Discourse on Game of Thrones." Game of Thrones versus History, 3 Mar. 2017, pp. 33-45.

James, Missy, et al. Reading Literature and Writing Argument. Pearson, 2017.

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