Weekly Online Lesson Online Lesson Archives Grade Level: 7-12 Subject: History

People of the Century

Who has had the greatest impact on the 20th century? In five special presentations, now available online, TIME is profiling 100 remarkable people who changed the world during the last 100 years, for better and worse. The project started in March, 1998, with Leaders & Revolutionaries, followed by Artists & Entertainers in June, 1998. Builders & Titans was launched last December, with Scientists & Thinkers in March, 1999. Our latest site is Heroes & Icons, introduced June 6. The project will all culminate with the selection of Person of the Century in December, 1999.

If you know your history—even if you don't—this is a fascinating look at some of the fascinating individuals who made history in this century...who have changed our lives, and our world, forever.

Leaders & Revolutionaries

Begin your reading of the TIME 100 with the Introduction to Leaders & Revolutionaries. Be sure to read all six pages of this excellent overview to this century, and then return to the list of 20 Leaders & Revolutionaries. The list includes political heroes like Winston Churchill and Mahandas Gandhi, villains like Adolf Hitler, spiritual leaders like Pope John Paul II, and an unknown rebel who took a bold stand against a column of tanks in China.

You can view the list of 20 along a timeline of events, which may help you visually place each of these individuals in the context of the historical events they were helping to shape.

Artists & Entertainers

Whereas leaders and revolutionaries of this century have impacted our nations and our communities, Artists & Entertainers have had a profound effect on us culturally as well as individually. Again, read the Introduction to a century of talented individuals who transformed old arts and created an array of new ones. Read the three page summary of art, music, film, television, literature, and fashion that defined the 20th Century. Then go back to the list of 20 Artists & Entertainers and read each, names like Steven Spielberg, Pablo Picasso, and Louis Armstrong. (Would somebody please explain how Bart Simpson got on the list?)

Again, it may help you to see each artist in a timeline of the century.

Builders & Titans

In a century where capitalism triumphed, and ideas became industries, Builders & Titans defined the economic landscape. You may not recognize many of the names, but you'll recognize the accomplishments, and most of the company names: Sam Walton (Wal-Mart), Henry Ford (Ford Motors), Thomas Watson, Jr. (IBM), Akio Morita (Sony), and Bill Gates (a little software company called Microsoft).

Take a side tour while you're there and read about the most profound technological developments of the 20th Century. Also, read Scott Adams' humorous take on the future of business.

Scientists & Thinkers

The 20th Century was the age of splitting the atom and conquering disease, of probing our own psyche and the nature of the galaxies. See how these Scientists & Thinkers took us beyond our old ideas about logic, language, learning, mathematics, and even space and time. Besides reading about great thinkers like Philo Farnsworth (television), Alexander Fleming (penicillin), and Tim Berners-Lee (the World Wide Web), you can view special slide show presentations on Albert Einstein, The Wright Brothers, Rachael Carson, and others.

Heroes & Icons

To round off this tour of the century, read about the 20 people who have "exemplified courage, selflessness, exuberance, superhuman ability and amazing grace." Some are extraordinary people whose determination and will helped them achieve extraordinary things: Muhammad Ali, Pelé, Jackie Robinson, and others. Some might be termed as ordinary people who, through a combination of circumstance and extraordinary character, likewise accomplished extraordinary things: Rosa Parks, Anne Frank, The American G.I., and others. Look for photo essays on several of them.

Now, if you're ready for a review, Test Your Knowledge of the 20th Century by taking the current interactive TIME 100 Quiz. For more quizzes, click the Quiz Archive drop-down list at the bottom of the page and select from the list.

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