People are who they are because they had to overcome adversity in their lives. Important figures such as Thomas Edison, Benjamin Franklin, Martin Luther King Jr. and many others have all faced adversity and it has led them to become who they are in society.
The Roman poet Horace one said “Adversity has the effect of eliciting talents which in prosperous circumstances would have lain dormant.” His quote examines the role that adversity plays in a person’s life. When someone faces adversity they are forced to encounter a hardship. Through these struggles, an individual can discover new talents that they wouldn’t have obtained if the circumstances were different. Adversity like racism, difficult childhoods, and disabilities can reveal an individual’s true character even if they were unaware of their true potential. Adversity is basically inescapable in the lives we live.
If we go out and try to accomplish our dreams, we will have to overcome adversity. The pursuit of advancing technology has really pushed people to their limits. Thomas Edison was said to be very dim when he was a child, especially in mathematics. However, in 1878 Edison started his research on the light bulb.
He worked tirelessly on perfecting his design even though he wasn’t making much progress. The exact number of tries was debated, ranging from 1,000 to 10,000 attempts, but it is safe to say that Edison tried and failed a lot before he successfully created a working prototype. This story outlines the importance of adversity in our lives. Edisons repeated failures didn’t discourage him and eventually he persevered.
Edison’s response to his repeated failures was “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” When he succeeded, Edison believed he was a better individual because of his failures. Another person who battled adversity was Benjamin Franklin. Franklin’s parents could only afford to keep him in school until his tenth birthday. That didn’t stop the great man from pursuing his education.
He taught himself through voracious reading, and eventually went on to invent the lightning rod and the bifocals. Benjamin Franklin overcame all the adversity that was thrown at him and became a better individual because of it.
