alex

It doesn't matter than Alexander's empire didn't last. The Hellenistic world that he created out of essentially nothing had an impact that we still feel. Arguably Rome itself and the subsequent empire arose in that context and in that context only.

When Augustus lived, Greek was the most influential language in the world. Now it is Latin. No successor to Augustus was as good a leader as him. Hence, I shall vote Augustus.

For all those Jesus freaks here: Augustus carries the day simply because he alone is responsible for Jesus. Where it not for him alone, Jesus wouldn't have been born in the cradle in Bethlehem, his early childhood would have been a very different one and hence his character would have been less gr8. A vote for Alexander is a vote against Jesus and a spit on everything christian. (Not to forget that it is Augustus who is mentioned in the bible, not Alexander).

Alexander. Fwiw for the biblioll scholars, Augustus was influential in the NT, but alexnder's legacy of hellenized, fragmented kingdoms sets the stage for the Roman rise to power in the inetetestamental period. Read 1 Maccabees for an historical (a historical?) account of how all that happened. It's Alexander's legacy, though politically fragmented, that sets the stage for the cultural and linguistic triumph of κοινή greek, the language of the NT. Augustus was a pretty big deal in his own right, and probably a better statesman and general in the long run, but Alexander's contributions probably have farther reaching implications for the shape of western culture.

@teacon: they mostly spoke aramaic, not koine.

I nominate Napoleon Bonaparte for greatest among greatest.

Alexander: 14
Augustus: 5

Alexander the Great has succeeded above all other Leaders.

Remaining Historical Figures:

Leaders:
*24. Alexander the Great

Artists:
26. William Shakespeare
28. Johann Sebastian Bach

Scientists/Inventors:
6. Aristotle
13. Albert Einstein

Wild Card:
1. Buddha
10. Jesus

New Matchup:

Artists: William Shakespeare vs Johann Sebastian Bach

Note: Vash needs to update the brackets:
http://challonge.com/webDipGreatestLeaderBrackett
http://challonge.com/webDipGreatestArtistBrackett
http://challonge.com/webDipGreatestScientistBrackett
http://challonge.com/webDipGreatestWildCardBrackett

Bach.......

X3n0n: where are you getting data on what language they spoke on a day to day basis, and what was the dominant spoken language? I'm not challenging, I'm curious to learn more. Either way, it's immaterial to the point about the hellenization of that part of the world in the intertestamental period...

Shakespeare

An infinite number of monkeys has nothing on hie :-)

**him** Interesting typo there, if you turn the keyboard upside down the "e" key is exactly where the "m" key was. I blame dyslexia for that one.

Voting for Bach. Bach has a degree of musical beauty and mathematical complexity (like math? Look up the rules for counterpoint in baroque era music.) besides that, Bach combined the mathematical genius with a rather serious treatment of biblical texts in a rather poetic way. The importance of this point might be lost on you if you're not familiar with the complexity of christian theology in the time period. The theology there doesn't just repeat what other people wrote, he wasn't an artist trying to avoid overbearing religious authorities; he legitimately contributed to the discipline by way of the lyric performance of biblical texts. Theologians today still study the notes he made in the margins of his personal bible (it's on display in St. Louis, if you're interested).

Source: I've performed both Shakespeare's plays and Bach's music, and formally studied English literature, sacred music, and theology to one extent or another. But really, just go look at the guy's music and texts. It's source enough.

Crazy anglican: you missed an opportunity to blame a monkey for your typo.

I don't know how to choose between these two.

Bach

Bach

Shakespeare

bach

Shakespeare. Bach is a contender for the greatest composer, but no-one comes close to the Bard in terms of impact, continuing to the present day.

Shakepeare

Shakespeare. Personally one of my least favorite 'Popular" writers to read, while Bach created music I like to listen to. But by my own definition of greatness, which includes impact, Shakespeare gets the nod.

Shakepeare

Shakespeare.

Bach's influence is limited to the world of music, Shakespeare's impacted everything from literature to the very language we speak to pop culture and beyond.

What's more?

Shakespeare is far and away the most synonymous with English Literature, and theatre in general...if non-English speakers know one English writer, it's usually Shakespeare.

By contrast, if people know one composer, it's probably Mozart, Beethoven or Tchaikovsky.

Shakespeare

Bach. Vergil should be winning this though.

Bach

Close one here. The problem is Shakespeare probably didn't write Shakespeare. Bach wrote Bach. If you're undecided, invest 6 hours - listen to the Brandenburgs and then watch Branagh's Hamlet. Your life will at least be enriched even if you're no clearer on who should prevail.

##VOTE William Shakespeare

Bach's works may be inspiring to individuals, but Shakespeare brought artistry infused with deep wisdom about the human condition to the mass of commoners.

Shakespeare - 9
Bach - 7

The fact of the matter is that Bach is better at his craft by a thousand light years than Shakespeare. It's unfortunate that a legacy created by other people determined the vote last time and has the potential to do so again.

Bach