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Essay On Andrew Carnegie And The American Dream

967 Words4 Pages

Andrew Carnegie, one of the founders of US Steel, has one of the most inspiring “rags to riches” stories in American History. His success story is one of the most prominent examples of the American Dream, an idea whose validity is commonly debated to this day. The American Dream is the idea that anyone in the United States, regardless of social class, can achieve all of their goals and accomplish anything. Although romanticized and over exaggerated due to certain misconceptions regarding opportunity in the United States in the present, there are several biographies and novels that tell the stories of those who have lived the American Dream. The literary eras of Modernism and Postmodernism in American Literature are saturated with a recurring …show more content…

Carnegie began to progress up the chain of railroad positions. The use of the telegraph opened up doors to several different industries at the time, since railroad managers utilized its use to communicate with different stations regarding cargo shipments. Carnegie’s expertise in the telegraph allowed him to progress (Investopedia). The trend emerging from these promotions is quite evident in today’s culture, that being “the climbing of the corporate ladder”. In the United States today, many believe that everyone has the potential to climb up the corporate ladder to achieve different positions, such as chairman, chief executive officer, chief financial officer, or chief marketing officer. The idea is that if one is skilled enough in their industry, they can gradually achieve whatever goals they desire. In the early stages of Carnegie’s life, it’s evident that he was on a similar path. Carnegie was said to have an “able mind and charm”. Not only does this relate to Jay Gatsby’s charming characteristics, but it also relates to Willy Loman’s interpretation of the American Dream in Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman. Willy Loman believed that if one was charming, handsome, and dedicated, they could achieve anything. This interpretation of the American Dream perfectly fits Carnegie’s timeline at an early age, as he received numerous promotions as a

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From the beginning of Nickel and Dimed and Scratch Beginnings, the question posed is the same: “Does the American Dream still exist in the modern America?” And while liberal and conservative commentators will openly contradict each other and argue the viability of making it from almost nothing in this modern age, all that is hearsay. Ehrenreich and Shepard, the authors of Nickel and Dimed and Scratch Beginnings respectively, tried to go beyond what the commentators were doing and prove whether the American dream was still alive by embarking on their own separate case studies. And while, it is imaginable that anyone can rise from rags to as, Shepard stated “[to] slightly better rags,” the how to do this is the item in question. The American

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Carnegie bounced around to several jobs across several industries, including railroads, telegraphs, and textiles. The various experience would later prove to be invaluable in his evaluation of efficient labor processes. Throughout the text, Livesay emphasizes how what Carnegie learned as a young man—principles of communication and logistics—would apply to the steel industry to resounding

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Yet, those personal successes undeniably impacted the world, including the United States, earning the title “captains of industry” Surprisingly Carnegie was able to do both.

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In the essay “The American Dream: Dead, Alive, or on Hold?” Brandon king argues whether or not the American Dream is still alive and well in the USA. The author makes a strong case that the American Dream is, in fact, still held to a high degree of belief in America. Not only does he successfully argue that it is still alive, he presents information that shows how the Dream itself has shifted from a rags-to-riches story to one of a stable, happy life. Overall, King’s use of strong emotional appeals, coupled with his employment of sound reasoning and statistics make his argument that the American Dream has evolved over time very effective.

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Carnegie's business solidified the opposition however in spite of this, he trusted individuals ought to know the amount they are genuinely winning (Document 3). Carnegie realized that on the off chance that somebody didn't buckle down, they would not make the cut and get to be distinctly fruitful. Not exclusively was society enhanced by commitment to a business, however it could be enhanced by philanthropy

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Document 4 shows that Carnegie was able to cut costs by more than $20 per ton. The natural question that arises is this: how was he able to get costs so low? Document 5 suggests that the practice of vertical integration was essential to profits, as it enable Carnegie to own a monopoly on the entire industry of steel production, all the way from the iron ore mines to the ships that transported materials to the steel mill itself. Although ingenious, this strategy usually results in market monopolies, which can end up being harmful to both competitors and the consumer. In addition to the tactic of vertical integration shown in Document 5, Documents 6 and 7 reveal the extreme exploitation of workers that Carnegie used to increase his profits.

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Andrew Carnegie once said, “No man can become rich without himself enriching others” (Crazy Billionaires Speak: Motivational Quotes by Billionaires on Success, Business and Life 9). Many people associate Andrew Carnegie with his contributions to the economic world during his lifetime and future generations. However, he was also an inspiration to all, because he proved that a person living in tough times could ultimately strive and attain his/her utmost success. Additionally, Carnegie is the embodiment of the American Dream, because he is known as one of the greatest industrialists of his time who grew economically from rags to riches. He strived to achieve world peace and inspired others to follow his footsteps.

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Working Title: Railroad to Success To be revolutionary you must cause great change and that is exactly what Cornelius Vanderbilt had done. He paved the way for westward expansion. He had a railroad pool with the other railroad owners. Was a major success he was the American dream from rags to riches story.

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Often, he made harsh business decisions that negatively impacted his employees; however, he always felt it was justified. One reason he felt it was justified was that he was serving “America by building their enterprises.” (44). He saw the creation of wealth as a noble endeavor. When Carnegie built his company, he ended up creating one of the biggest companies in the world.

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A hero in disguise, a philanthropist at heart, Andrew Carnegie was one of the richest and most successful businessmen in America in the 19th century. Andrew was born November 25th, 1835 in Dunfermline, Scotland then later moved to America, when he was 13, where he worked a series of jobs involving telegraphing and railroad construction. Carnegie, being the mastermind he was, clawed his way out of poverty with hard work and determination into a life of riches when he founded his own steel production company, Carnegie Steel Company, in 1889. As illustrated in Andrew Carnegie’s “Wealth” in the North American Review, he said that you could go from being dirt poor to filthy rich only with a changing civilization and also with hard work, which is

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Looking back from the 1900’s till the 2000’s life has changed drastically. Now a day’s technology is used in everyday life like social media, compared to in the 1900’s where their technology was the first airplane, radio, and electricity. Adams’ definition of the American Dream is inaccurate and unachievable for Americans today because the minimum wage doesn’t cover the cost of living, digital society has replaced man’s ability to communicate, and college loans leaving young adults in debt. The American Dream is accurate and achievable if you work your hardest and achieve what you want you will live the American Dream.

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Lord of the Flies is a novel written by William Golding about a plane that crashes on an unknown island. The only survivors are a group of boys, and while they seek rescue from the island, cliques begin forming and leaders turn on each other in their quest for survival. Lord of the Flies uses a device that allows the story to exceed its original context, or an allegory, that closely mirrors the Cold War that occurred from the 1940's to 90's. The theme of this novel is relationship between human impulse and the need to have order in society, with two main characters, Ralph and Jack, representing these two ideas. This theme applies to human condition because humans have moments where they are conflicted between wanting order or embracing the

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His believe in the American dream was strong enough to make him achieve something he want too. So he believe that the whole American dream falls is as a person you want to achieve something you work for it. Secondly, the American

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