What is... Greatness?
According Urban Dictionary, "Greatness is an acquisition of status by the people who have contributed to an organization, group, or purpose that is greater than themselves. It is defined by the deeds of people that make this world a better place. To provide a purpose to those who have no purpose, and to sustain it, mitigate it from damage, and praise it in any way they can, while still maintaining their own dignity and greatness."
This definition examines greatness as a status. Something that can be achieved and in a sense, "used" to better the lives of other individuals by said "Great" person. Or it spawns from an experience or path that an individual has taken to help better themselves and in the process, helping other people due to their own dreams and ideals.
According to Wikipedia, "Greatness is a concept of a state of superiority affecting a person or object. Greatness can also be referred to individuals who possess a natural ability to be better than all others. The concept carries the implication that the particular person or object, when compared to others of a similar type, has clear advantage over others. As a descriptive term it is most often applied to a person or their work, and may be qualified or unqualified."
By this definition, Greatness is not only your status, but a symbol or a power. It also shows Greatness as "mastery", the highest level of skill or presentation.
But again, what exactly is Greatness and how does one get to that point? Let's unpack this topic here and now.
The majority of people who know me on the Facebook know that I might usually share a picture and my text above it is just "Greatness". Showing that said picture showed some sort of superiority or mastery.
A TV Show known as Merlin, features the titular character as a young boy born with the gift of magic, destined for greatness. The story of Merlin is a tale of experience and betterment. The main character, Merlin, has many adventures, spanning 5 seasons, that tell many different tales that set Merlin on the path to greatness. There are countless characters throughout the series that say, "Merlin. Man destined for greatness." They speak like it is a path, and Merlin is walking and along that path to fulfill his destiny.
The theme of greatness and achieving it, is the very foundation of my writings. A story of about someone or a cast of characters that experience countless different trials, because of your specific ideals, actions, or dreams in which during the process, they become "Great".
In history, there are figures who have "the Great" attached to their name. It is usually people who have accomplished feats of great proportions or reached a certain status such as an Emperor or Queen and people have seen such figures as Great. People can even gain the title posthumously because they are recognized and honored for their accomplishments and contributions after their death.
Now, you're probably wondering, "Gothorita, what is all this for? Just tell me your favorite song already."
Yeah, well, I'm getting there.
WARNING MINOR SPOILERS FOR FINAL FANTASY VI
Final Fantasy VI. An extremely influential and ambitious game of its time.
Final Fantasy VI tells a tale of war, rebellion, destruction, madness, and reformation. Featuring an eclectic cast of heroes, the story's pacing goes from Low, Medium, High, Lowest, High, and finally to Neutral.
Now let me explain it in depth. The story starts off at a Low point, in which the characters are being introduced. It gets to a Medium point where the characters are exploring the world and finding a way to fight against the antagonist while meeting new party members along the way. We get to a High point when the characters are finally getting close the antagonist and can finally strike them. The party has reached the highest point, until... Something happens to change the game completely and they literally hit rock bottom. The Lowest. The party has to find their way to get back at the antagonist and defeat them once and for all. Once they gain the strength to go out into the world once again, they reached a new High. And finally, once the antagonist is defeated, balance is restored and the party can finally rest and restore their lives back to a normal, Neutral state.
What I'm trying to say here is that, it is a tale of greatness. The party members experience many trials throughout their journey because of their wish to restore balance to the world. Because of their ideals, it shows the others around them their purpose, while maintaining their drive to do what they believe is right. And in the end they're heroes that saved the world. Even though they fell and lost faith, they eventually stood up, and kept moving forward because of their purpose and dream to restore balance to the world.
To understand Greatness, you must first understand humility and to be at your lowest point, but eventually rise back up and continue to do what you believe is right.
In the words of William Shakespeare, "Be not afraid of greatness. Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and others have greatness thrust upon them." There will always be hardship and experiences, but as we learn from it, the hopes and dreams that we carry are what makes us truly great because it influences those around us and those who see us making them believe that they too, can be great.
Now, just what is my favorite song of all time?
My favorite song is, Omen. From Final Fantasy VI. It is musical greatness. Deriving from the mastery definition of greatness. It tells the story of Final Fantasy VI in a beautiful non-lyrical 16-bit musical masterpiece. It combines several songs in the soundtrack while ultimately remaining it's own song. Every second of the song is pure greatness.
From the loud organ in the beginning of the song showing the darkness of the world overthrown in war, to the poetic and swift keys that create the feeling of progression that silently tells the beginning of the game's story. How the keys start to get quicker and quicker then slow down, show that progression and then the low point.
The song just drops. Tries to get up...and drops. The keys then play more notes as the party is slowly regaining itself, but is still very weak and not strong enough to defeat the antagonist. Until... they gain new powers and the party feels motivated to go out into the world again. Everything seems to go well, and once the party has finally gained their strength, they infiltrate the antagonist's domain. Then... A moment of silence that will ultimately decide the fate of the world. Will they be victorious...?
As the slow, lovely, and beautiful version of Terra's Theme plays, they rise up and fight the antagonist in an epic final battle. The song slows down and lowers the chord progression as the battle ends and the party is victorous. They can finally live in peace. Balance Is Restored...
It quite literally is musical mastery that tells a tale of greatness. When I first listened to this song, it was also the first time I said something is "Greatness" in the form of mastery. The song seriously changed my life.
It is an Omen, to the game entirely and I believe that the song has a very powerful message and lesson in it. That, no matter how dark things are, it is an Omen of great things to come. If you truly believe in your dreams, your ideals, your hopes, and as long as you stick by them, you will always be successful in your own way because of an indomitable will and unquenchable faith to march forward and continue to pursue your ideals and do what you believe is right. It is those who believe in and follow these principles that truly can become Great.
"Our key to greatness lies not in our ability to project ourselves to others as if we are putting ourselves onto a projector and creating an image of ourselves on a projector screen. Rather, our key to greatness lies in who we are which we can give to other people in a way that when they walk away from us, they are able to say in their hearts that they have taken away something with them quite extraordinary." - C. Joybell C.
Citations:
"Greatness." Urban Dictionary. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Sept. 2015.
"Greatness." - Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Sept. 2015
==
*Cue Final Fantasy VI SNES Victory Fanfare*
"It's not the net worth of one's life that's important. It is the day to day concerns, the personal victories, and celebration of life...and love!" - Terra Branford, Final Fantasy VI
Thanks for reading and I'll see you next time! ~Gothorita
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