Pursuit for Greatness

“But man's greatness consists in the very fact of wanting to be better than he is. “ (Carpentier, Kingdom of this World)

The book that this quote is taken from, Kingdom of this World, was a hard book to get through— not only because of the wording and style of writing, but also because of the actual subject material. The confusing story-line was full of base actions, tyranny, and horror. And yet in the middle of all the chaos, there’s this line, speaking of man’s greatness. Man, great? After all they've done and are doing? Yes, even after all of the sin. This book attributes greatness not to actions of the past, but to those that are planned for the future.

Often, a man’s life is analyzed by his actions, who he affected, etc. If he didn't know too many people, touch anyone, or accomplish anything great, then he is often deemed a failure. However, "The Pursuit of Happiness" with Will Smith is a great example of how untrue this is. The main character had an honest life, but it was unsuccessful. His wife left him for hopeless and he was stuck trying to take care of his kid without a job. According to the quote by Carpentier, this does not matter. The fact that this man wanted so badly to take care of his son and be a better father made him a great person.

And yet, is merely wanting to be better enough? I certainly can want to do a lot of things, but until I put desires to action, how can it count toward anything? I can think that someone is exceptional, desire for them to know it, and yet if I don’t tell them so, they can never feel the confidence-boost.

So, what makes a human great? Man’s greatness is more than a desire, it’s when we work toward our better self. Should we be looking at our past actions for judgment or just for guidance?