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Amelia Earhart

by Debbie from San Diego

Amelia Earhart. (www.nndb.com)
Amelia Earhart. (www.nndb.com)

"I want to do it because I want to do it. Women must try to do things as men have tried. When they fail, their failure must be but a challenge to others." (Amelia Earhart) These potent words came out from Amelia Earhart's mouth and it well exemplifies the mentality of Amelia Earhart. Always the "go-getter", Earhart did not just lounge about and wait for opportunities to unveil themselves, she sought to make it happen. Amelia May Earhart was born on July 24th, in 1897 Atchison, Kansas. She was raised to be a proper Victorian woman. But Earhart decided early on being ladylike and genteel did not suit her. Young Amelia was interested in daily adventures. And each adventure lead closer to Earhart's true rapture, flight. Amelia Earhart was extremely dedicated to promote the advancement of flight and the advancement of women, continually giving one hundred percent to the task at hand, acted passionately, and was unimaginably courageous and would always do what had to be done, knowing full well that there were many dangers that came with flying. Amelia Earhart earned a place in our textbooks through her groundbreaking contributions to commercial aviation and women's struggle for equality.

Amelia Earhart was compelled by passion for flight. However, Earhart's interest in aviation did not come immediately. When seeing an airplane for the first time she later recalls: "It was a thing of rusty wire and wood and looked not at all interesting," she said. (Women in Aviation and Space History). When Earhart first sighted an airplane at the age of ten, she had taken no interest in airplanes at all and later recalls being unimpressed. At first she thought of airplanes as a rusty old thing which did not have a very interesting appeal to them. It was not until on December 28, 1920, when veteran flyer Frank Hawks gave Earhart her first flight which had introduced her to her lifelong liking for aviation. "By the time I had got two or three hundred feet off the ground," she said, "I knew I had to fly." (Women in Aviation and Space History). That one flight forever changed Earhart's life. Amelia Earhart's first flight at the air show awakened her passion for flight, making her destined to fly. In her passion of flying, Amelia Earhart did not slow down; in the years that followed, Earhart continued to break more flying records which could have filled up a phonebook.

Amelia Earhart Aviatrix with Lockheed Vega Crowd. (www.kansas.com)
Amelia Earhart Aviatrix with Lockheed Vega Crowd. (www.kansas.com)

If Amelia Earhart was anything in the world, she was perseverant. Perseverant to her craft, and to the advancement in commercial aviation; Earhart's perseverance was resolutely firm and unwavering and a aircraft of which she flew with perseverance as she embraced every challenge. "Her talents as a pilot were questioned, perhaps with envy, by many contemporaries." (Wilkinson, Stephan). They said women could not fly. Earhart pushed beyond those limits so she would be able to prove to the world, and more important, to herself that she was a capable pilot. Committed to aviation, Earhart did not listen to the negative uncertainty that others had about her as a pilot, but only to her own confident mind set to say "yes." "Earhart became upset by reports that she was largely a puppet figure created by her publicist husband and that she was something less than a competent aviator (pilot)." (Laura B. Tyle). Although many had discouraged her unwomanly ways, it was not enough to destroy her vigorous amount of ambition for becoming a pilot. A determined woman whom sought respect, Earhart was committed to show of being the able pilot she was.

One of the qualities Earhart possessed in abundance was courage. Amelia Earhart put herself on the line when she took on the challenge of becoming the first woman to fly. Fully knowledgeable of the hazards that lay ahead, Earhart faced the challenge with courage. "Earhart made a solo flight across the Atlantic Ocean in 1932." (Sonia Benson). Although flying was extraordinarily dangerous, Earhart had the courage it took to fly of which perhaps was built on her adventurous spirit and zest for life. Amelia Earhart had been daring and successful in a male dominant world and had accomplished things that women of that time could not have even dreamed of. "Earhart made one final flight plan, although she did not know it would be her last. Her goal was to fly around the world at or near the equator, something no one had ever attempted." (Sonia Benson). Amelia Earhart had decided to endeavor a daring feat of flying around the world at the equator which no man nor woman in aviation had ever attempted before. It proved Earhart of being a courageous and able pilot. In the end, the price of her courage cost her her life.

Amelia Earhart's Last Flight. (www.aerospaceweb.org)
Amelia Earhart's Last Flight. (www.aerospaceweb.org)

Amelia Earhart is a true enduring American hero to everyone around the world. A pioneering aviator and inspirational figure, Amelia Earhart became the first woman to accumulate a number of distance and altitude world records throughout her career. But Earhart did much more than that, she always believed that a woman could do as much a man. Amelia, a woman's right activist, dedicated much of her life proving that women had a place in the world other than being a helpful wife or a stay-home mum. Earhart used the fame and fortune gained along the way to forward rights for women. Earhart inspired plenty to generations of young girls & women all around the world showing them that they to, like man, could excel in their chosen professions and have equal value. Earhart's contributions to commercial aviation and the women's movement set a new precedent to follow. And all because Earhart had what it took to fly - into our hearts, where her presence resonates today.



Works Cited

"Earhart, Amelia." UXL Encyclopedia of U.S. History. Sonia Benson, Daniel E. Brannen, Jr., and Rebecca Valentine. Vol. 3. Detroit: UXL, 2009. 475-478. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 9 Dec. 2013.

"Earhart, Amelia." UXL Encyclopedia of World Biography. Ed. Laura B. Tyle. Vol. 4. Detroit: UXL, 2003. 643-646.Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 9 Dec. 2013.

Mergen, Bernard, and Mergen Bernard. "Amelia Earhart." Great Lives From History: The Twentieth Century (2008): 1.Biography Reference Center. Web. 9 Dec. 2013.

Wilkinson, Stephan. "Amelia." Aviation History 20.3 (2010): 22-30. History Reference Center. Web. 11 Dec. 2013.

"Women in Aviation and Space History - Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. 2013. Web. 10 Dec. 2013.

"203 Remarks on Presenting the Gold Medal of the National Geographic Society to Amelia Earhart. June 21, 1932." History Reference Center. EBSCO, 2013. Web. 10 Dec. 2013.



Page created on 1/9/2014 12:00:00 AM

Last edited 1/9/2014 12:00:00 AM

The beliefs, viewpoints and opinions expressed in this hero submission on the website are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the beliefs, viewpoints and opinions of The MY HERO Project and its staff.

Related Links

Amelia Earhart The Official Website - The Official Website of Amelia Earhart
PBS - Timeline: Amelia Earhart, 1897-1937
Cleveland - Legendary flier Amelia Earhart brought glamour and influence to early Cleveland information