We know about hundreds and thousands of men and women who have helped shape the World for what it is today. And yet that wasn’t enough. Hence Man had to create an image of a person who would influence a certain section of the World population without raising eyebrows. Here is a list of 10 such (people).
10. Santa Claus
Almost all western children were told by their parents that Santa would leave them nothing if they misbehaved. Funnily enough, though, the fear always dissipates on Christmas Eve as you just know that Santa will be coming – even if you did slip up a few times.
9. Barbie
Barbie has been an important part of the toy fashion doll market for over fifty years, and has been the subject of numerous controversies and lawsuits, often involving parody of the doll and her lifestyle. Whether be the criticisms of Barbie is that she promotes an unrealistic idea of body image for a young woman, leading to a risk that girls who attempt to emulate her will become anorexic or the fact that the immense popularity shown by Barbie was one of the first toys to have a marketing strategy based extensively on television advertising, which has been copied widely by other toys. It is estimated that over a billion Barbie dolls have been sold worldwide in over 150 countries, with Mattel claiming that three Barbie dolls are sold every second.
8. Robin Hood
Robin Hood is a heroic outlaw in English folklore who, according to legend, was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. Traditionally depicted as being dressed in Lincoln green,he is often portrayed as “robbing from the rich and giving to the poor”alongside his band of Merry Men. This could potentially lead to a debate about whether Hood existed or not,therefore, he is listed as number eight on the list.Robin Hood became a popular folk figure in the late-medieval period, and continues to be widely represented in literature, films and television.
7. Cowboys
The cowboy was a great hero with a shining gun who represented the morality of Western ideals: manliness, defense of justice, protection of women and children. Oh – and for those who say “but cowboys are real!” – yes – but this is about the concept – not about a specific person – just as we might say Santa existed as St Nicholas, the concept is bigger than any one person.
6. The Marlboro Man 
Before the Marlboro Man campaign began, “real men” didn’t smoke cigarettes with filters – they were for women. The aim of the Marlboro Man campaign was primarily to get men smoking filtered marlboro cigarettes. The influence of the campaign is abundantly clear today. The campaign is considered to be one of the best in all history. According to Wikipedia, it transformed a feminine campaign, with the slogan ‘Mild as May’, into one that was masculine, in a matter of months.
5. Rosie the Riveter
Rosie the Riveter may not be a familiar name, but her picture certainly is. Rosie the Riveter told women that they can do anything – and they did! Rosie managed to motivate an entire generation of working-age women to get out of the home and in to factories to help the war effort. This is probably one of the most influential events of the Second World War. Once the floodgates of women working were open, they would never be closed again.
4. Daedalus and Icarus
The story of the mythological characters Daedalus and Icarus. The story tells of Daedalus building mechanical wings for his son Icarus and ever since the tale was told, man has lusted after the ability to take the sky and fly. This eventually came true and the entire planet is a changed place as a consequence of it.
3. The Little Engine That Could
This book has been regarded by many as a metaphor for the “American Dream”. The moral of this children’s tale is that self-belief, optimism, and hard work result in achievement – of even the most difficult tasks.The popularity of this book may also be a contributing factor to the huge number of self-help and “positive thinking” seminars and books that we see today.
2. Big Brother
Big Brother was first created by George Orwell for his novel Nineteen Eighty-Four, and now it symbolizes so much more-politically and socially. name comes up every time a government passes a restrictive law or a law which seems to remove aspects of our eternal freedoms. Everyone recognizes his face, everyone knows what he stands for, and everyone is terrified of the potential for our own lives to be governed by our own version of the fictional character. So much so that a show franchise has been successful in launching so many people into limelight all over the World.
1. Romeo and Juliet
Shakespeare’s masterpiece that went on to define young love and their fire and desire. Driven by love and seperated by family feud, this story has inspired many movies and real life incidents- some to be proud of others equally strange. Yet the allure of young love haunts us till today.