Abstract
The basic assumption of this study is that the total number of persons who become famous in an area at any given time is determined by historical circumstances and situations. Data from the English Dictionary of National Biography are presented to indicate (1) that the kind of eminence a person is likely to achieve is limited by his social origin; (2) that it is not always easy to acquire fame in the same activity during different historical periods; and (3) that during periods of expanding opportunity many activities appear which, because of their nature, are open to persons of the laboring group in a population who have the requisite talent and inclination. Contrary to the views of Havelock Ellis, Frederick Woods, and Pitirim Sorokin, the decline in the absolute and relative number of eminent men of genius produce by the English working classes after the 1800 birth period is apparently not due to biological deterioration, but to a curtailment of opportunity such as follows every age of great achievement.
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