The surest indicator of a great nation is represented not by the achievements of its rulers, artists, or scientists, but by the general welfare of its people.Write a response in which you discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the statemen

The word great is an abstract concept; there exist no proper definition. The term can be interpreted in an innumerable number of ways. And if it can be defined various ways then it can also be indicated in several ways. Accordingly, there exist no surest way to indicate the greatness of nation, as the greatness is not a measurable quantity.

What makes a nation great? Is it determined by how safe the people feel ? By how much they earn? How healthy they are ? Or how educated they are? To analyze it , divide it and concentrate on a specific unit. Consider the greatness of a man. A great man is not defined by its wealth, health or even by his education rather the greatness of man depends only on his contribution to the world. For eg. albert einstein is considered great because he introduced the world to concepts like relativity and its far reaching implications. Another case of Nelson mandela ,who is applauded throughout the world because he freed the nation from apartheid. The only thing shared by these people is the fact that they changed the world, they changed how people perceive things. They ultimately lead the human race towards a new era, a better era . Then can't one say that great nations are made up of great people?These great people make the nation great; they can be rulers, artist or scientists. For instance, Mahatma Gandhi freed india from british suppression. He, following his non-violence policy ,helped the nation achieve independence and consequently greatness. For these reason the achievements of the rulers, artists or scientist are indicators of a great nation.

Secondly one say that there are many elements that contribute towards the greatness of nation. The security, income , education, culture, healthcare facilities and development opportunities are few of those factors. The general welfare integrates most of these factors. Hence one can say it is very significant concept in determining the greatness of nation. However aren't the rulers, artist or scientist part of the people? Also their achievements can be seen as a corollary of excellent general welfare. These achievements then again aid in increasing the quality of life of the general public. The general welfare and achievements of the people are hence , not independent of each other. Take for eg - In european countries like germany , italy people have a higher standard of living because of the contribution of its architects ,designers and city planners.Now because of these improved living standards, the public have more opportunities and higher chances of becoming a ruler, artist or scientist Further consider edward penner, he developed the first vaccine. The small pox, a hazardous disease, which lead to innumerable deaths across the globe was rendered ineffective by the vaccine. Hence it improved the general welfare of the public .It also lead to the global vaccination which is still thriving and continually improving the health care of the public. These examples shows an interconnection between the general welfare and people achievement. Combined they are the indicator of a great nation.

On the contrary there are cases where the achievements of the artist and scientist are profuse but the general welfare is lacking. Because of these lack of opportunities due to the wanting general welfare the artists and scientist depart to another nation. This concept is called brain drain. Because of low general welfare, the nation is losing its invaluable talent. Hence in this case once can say that surest indicator of success is the general welfare because if the general welfare is substandard, the people that can contribute to the greatness of the nation leave the nation.

Once a person said that the greatest countries are those that produce great people. Following the quote, i mostly disagree with the issue. The nations greatness can be measure by considering various factors. Achievements and general welfare of the people are two interdependent factors that can help achieve greatness.