An individual's greatness cannot be judged objectively by his or her contemporaries; the most objective evaluators of a person's greatness are people who belong to a later time.

There are quite a number of people in history who did great things for their country and society. Some of their greatness might be conspicuous and some might not. Some might be acceptable to the conservative societies, and there might be some which is opposed to the dogma. Therefore, whether or not an individual’s greatness can be judged by their contemporaries is depend on the situation.

Since time immemorial, people were very conservative and parochial. Not only were they too reluctant to embrace new information but also opposed and censured the people who came up with new ideas which were against their creed. In that case, an individual’s greatness, which is against the creed, was not appreciated by their contemporaries. Copernicus and Darwin were the great example for this case. People were against Copernicus’s discovery of earth and other planets revolving around the sun and Darwin’s evolution theory because those discoveries were completely opposing their previous creeds. It took a long time for people to acknowledge the greatness of those discoveries. However nowadays, almost everyone appreciate their discoveries and their greatness. According to this case, an individual’s greatness cannot be judged by their contemporaries but people who belong to a later time appreciate their greatness.

On the contrary, if the greatness of an individual is conspicuous then it is inevitable that the greatness of that individual will be acknowledged by the contemporaries. Leonardo Da Vinci, whose paintings were acknowledged and admired by his contemporaries, is the most suitable example for this case. Moreover, people nowadays are getting more liberal and flexible. They can perceive the greatness of an individual from their own achievements and their influence on the society. Bill Gates’s achievement on Microsoft software business is well accepted by people nowadays. Also, Aung San Suu Kyi is also acknowledged for leading the people to attain democracy and her sacrifices for the country. According to this situation, if an individual’s greatness is conspicuous, it is inevitable that people will acknowledge that greatness without being reluctant. Since people nowadays are more liberal and flexible, they can perceive the greatness of an individual even if it is not obvious.

Conclusively, whether or not an individual’s greatness can be judged by his or her contemporaries is depend on the situation. Even though the greatness of an individual were not judged with a proper manner in the past, people in present days can judge the greatness of the individuals impartially.