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Captains Of Industry Via Cornelius Vanderbilt, Andrew Carnegie, And John D. Rockefeller

565 Words3 Pages

Arguably one of the most pivotal points in American history, the industrialization of the 19th century brought about a new way of life, and with that came intense competition and crucial outcomes. Cornelius Vanderbilt, Andrew Carnegie and John D Rockefeller are just a few examples of industrialists that made lasting impacts on society. I believe that these 19th century industrialists did not always play fair, but it was their motivation and intuition behind their choices that credit them as the “Captains of Industry” and helped shape American business. To earn this title, these men had to do whatever it took to stay on top. Being the front runners, they were constantly being targeted and had to fight back to ensure the prosper of their own …show more content…

As much as big company owners did hurt the working class with lower pay, or hurt their competitors with hostile takeovers, they were presented with no other viable options. If they didn't take drastic options they might have lost everything, it was their own company and their own life's work on the line, and they had all come too far to let it slip away without a fight. In my opinion, it's this incentive for self preservation that embodies the cutthroat American way of business. Its survival of the fittest, and we live, and have always lived, in a ruthless society where if you're not willing to make these crucial choices then there will always be someone who is, and they will prosper because of it. These men set the precedent for hard work, as they showed what it truly meant to put everything on the line. It's fair to say that these men got lucky, but as much as it was luck it was also intuition and intelligence. Carnegie was a poor immigrant with big ideas for the expansion of the steel industry, and rather than play it safe he took a gamble. Carnegie knew he was risking everything he had, yet he trusted his intuition and it paid

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