Considerably above average

The sentiment which stuck with me the most from yesterdays discussion was this: greatness is not goodness. I realized Tony the Tiger had really gotten into my head as a child and permanently influenced how I read the word 'great'.
I then thought it prudent to examine the definition in the OED:

great . adj
1. of an extent, amount, or intensity considerably above average.
2. of ability, quality, or eminence considerably above average.
(the Great) a title denoting the most important person of the name.

It goes on, but all the important words are here. It doesn't indeed mention requiring any sort of benevolence to be great, only to possess exceptional importance. I found it interesting it says the title 'the Great' denotes the most important person of the name. With this in mind it seems wholly fitting that Alexander III of Macedon should be Alexander the Great; for whatever his qualities he is the most important Alexander in history. Similarly our criminal J-dub is the most important Jonathan Wild.

I think it's important to exercise a certain distancing when examining the lives and deeds of others. You can always find some troubling fact about someone and it's tempting to tear them down and attempt to discredit them in some way, but their deeds are often un-related to their dirt.

I remember my high school English class being absolutely scandalized when they discovered William Shakespeare smoked opium. I noticed people spoke of him like he was an authority figure; we learn about him in school, his work is highly praised, and we are spoon-fed his merits. Therefore, when they discovered he wasn't an upstanding beacon of morality, they felt he had been sufficiently discredited. 

People crave good examples, people to which they can aspire and often look to the famous (whom of course are only other human beings with the same faults). Questioning the very word 'great' was really mind-opening and helped me realize the title isn't really a misnomer after all.