Andrew Carnegie And The American Dream

In the mid-1900’s America gained a reputation of being a land of freedom and opportunity, and for those reasons it has become a desirable destination for many immigrants seeking out success. Many people in the 1900’s came to America because they needed an opportunity to make something of themselves, and provide for their families, which wasn’t very easy to do in Europe given the economy of the time period. Americans found themselves thriving in just about every business, and therefore America was granted the title “The Land of Opportunity”. These immigrants and Americans began finding themselves rising to success after much determination and hard work, and the American Dream was born. This began the flock of people to America searching for

Andrew Carnegie is a great example of a foreign immigrant who achieved the American Dream; someone who worked extremely hard to get to where they ended up, and never gave up. He persevered through very tough times as a child and young adult, until he was finally able to make something of himself. He is an example of the true meaning of the American Dream, and he held himself and others to a very high standard, which he displays through his beliefs of the Gospel of Wealth. Andrew Carnegie was born in Scotland, and when his father began enduring extreme hardships that greatly crippled his ability to provide for his family, he packed up and moved to America. Carnegie began working at an early age as a messenger boy for a telegraph company in order to help provide for his family. He was never very privileged growing up, and his family struggled to make ends meet. However, he didn’t let his poverty-stricken childhood affect his ability to be successful. In 1853, Thomas Scott hired him and unknowingly began his career to success. Scott served as a mentor to young Carnegie, and he introduced him to investment opportunities, allowing Carnegie to build up his wealth over the years. Carnegie eventually became the King of Steel during the Age of Industrialization and made millions of dollars. However, he didn’t just

A lower class citizen born in my generation sees all of the glamorous celebrities who have been made famous by the average citizen. We see these celebrities on TV and in magazines, and we think that if they got to where they are now, then so can anyone. But honestly, that’s not what the true meaning of the American Dream is about. “The country is moving away from traditional notions of the ideal life—one centered around community and family, with religious faith and middle-class values as the guiding ethos—toward one focused on making and spending money and winning recognition,” shows a survey done by JWT. (Yahoo) Now, I’m not saying all of these celebrities are an example of this, but a lot of wealthy people in today’s world claim to have achieved the Dream, but they didn’t do much to get to where they are financially. Wealthy marry wealthy, and therefore many of these celebrities are born into extremely wealthy families that have been built up over the years. These people aren’t exactly rising from rags to riches, and they certainly aren’t living the original meaning of the American Dream—they are only living what the Dream has turned into; a rise of fame and fortune, even if the slightest amount of effort was put into it. The generations of today no longer see the Dream as being extremely exceptional and unique due to the fact that the meaning has