The Controversy Of Andrew Carnegie

Andrew Carnegie is one of the more controversial people in history. Carnegie grew up in poverty, making $1.20 per week, and worked his way up through a mix of hard work, wit, charisma, and luck to become the richest man alive. Carnegie is a classic rags-to-riches story and he viewed his success as a direct result of his work ethic. He truly believed that anyone could be successful if they tried hard enough and that when one had the means, one should use those means to help those in need. Carnegie made his millions and retired to a life of philanthropy. He gave away over $350 million dollars to charities, organizations, and those in need. But, on his way to great wealth, his own workers suffered through horrid working conditions and low wages.

With one hand he was throwing money at those in poverty, and with the other, he was lowering his own worker’s wages. Those that received his generosity were thankful and loved him, while those that were suffering through harsh conditions and low wages were angry with him. The cartoons about Andrew Carnegie show the working man’s anger toward him. They show him throwing money and libraries at people, but also show him taking money from his own workers, who he should have been protecting. The cartoon by Joesph Keppler shows large men in a courtroom representing different industries, towering over the small men who are the people’s elected representatives. This cartoon shows the corruption of the government at the time and how the people’s opinion mattered very little and how money trumped all else. All of the cartoons were created while the events were occurring and were shared with the public to acknowledge the things that were happening and to share their opinion of them. The point of view or bias is the same for several of the cartoons. Many of the cartoon’s authors were supportive of the working man and lived through the strikes and events that occurred with Andrew Carnegie or were directly affected by them. These people would be biased in their views because they were negatively affected by the outcomes of Carnegie’s decisions or his manager’s decisions. They also wrote these cartoons in protest of the bad conditions

This essay put into words the beliefs that Carnegie had. The essay expands on Carnegie’s core belief in hard work and giving back. He believed that the wealthy should help the less fortunate as much as they can and they should set an example of modest living. Carnegie growing up in poverty gave him the perspective few rich people had. He lived the life of the poor and, when he was able, wanted to improve lives and make them better than his childhood. But Carnegie did not just hand out bundles of money. The essay says, “In bestowing charity, the main consideration should be to help those who will help themselves,” meaning that, essentially, you should help people so they can help themselves. There is a saying, “If you give a man a fish, you feed him for a day, but teach that man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.” This was Carnegie’s vision. However, “The Gospel of Wealth” was a biased source. Carnegie wrote this essay to inspire people, motivate them to work hard, and live frugally. Carnegie was a hard worker and intelligent and he credited that to his rise through the ranks that eventually led to his fortune. It is possible that he never considered how much luck played into his