What he means by this is that it’s not only the right thing to do but it is the duty of the wealthy elites to ensure the advancement of society as a whole. Moreover, he even takes it a step further and asserts that, “They [rich men] have it in their power during their lives to busy themselves in organizing benefactions from which the masses of their fellows will derive lasting advantage, and thus dignify their own lives” (Carnegie 370). Thus, the philanthropy of the rich is not only beneficial to the community but also the individual. His favor of a Carnegie later goes on to even go as far as condemning those who worships wealth as a false idol. He is very critical of those who hoarded their surplus riches while living and only wait until their death to allow their amassed fortune to be used for public goods.
Noam Chomsky on NAFTA One of Noam Chomsky’s major issues about President Clinton’s administration is that his biggest concern lies in supporting the wealthy with the use of government force to support big business corporations. Part of his achievement with NAFTA and other government agreements in the past are just enforced to benefit a small sector of the elite groups and increase their decision-making power. One of his major criticisms with this is that all the wealth goes to only this small sector of the wealthy. Therefore, economic integration is separating the gap in society to an even larger group of low growth and low income and a small sector of the wealthy and powerful. There were many issue and concerns that were brought up by the callers.
That’s greed. The incentive to do these things is to be as successful as possible. That is the “American Dream.” That is why the US is the way it is today. Capitalism does have its strengths and weaknesses but the strengths outweigh the weaknesses. For example, greed causes businessmen to compete with other businessmen, thus, keeping prices reasonable and forces them to keep up with consumer demands.
Although the idea of money and social class was very important in Dickens’ time he had a different outlook on this. Victorian society was very class orientated and gentlemen were the elite of their world. Traditionally gentlemen came from good backgrounds, were wealthy and conducted themselves in a proper and gentlemanly manner. Victorians had a very definite view of what they believed a gentleman was. The first major asset for defining a gentleman would certainly be wealth.
Carnegie took a strong stance on wealth and its stewardship. He argued that wealth in the hands of the few is actually beneficial for the progression of civilization overall: it is “essential for the progress of the race, that the houses of some should be homes for all that is highest and best in literature and the arts, and for all the refinements of civilization” Many disagree with the viewpoint that concentrated wealth in the hands of a few benefit the welfare of the greater masses, but I believe that not only was this a valid idea when he proposed this theory as a whole, but that his work has done immeasurable good and that it is still a valid theory in practice today by some of our wealthiest citizens. Many criticize the ideals in his essay The Gospel of Wealth as being elitist. Carnegie was to a certain point because he had earned the right to be with hard work, determination and business savvy. When he wrote this essay he was not writing it to talk down to the poor and destitute, he was writing this piece to urge his peers to demonstrate responsible stewardship with the wealth they had accumulated.
Response paper The essay “The way to wealth”, written by Benjamin Franklin and published in 1757, deals with the former bad economical situation in America and gives advice how to escape from it to achieve a wealthier life. In the following, I will elaborate on the different kinds of virtues that Franklin found important in order to become wealthier as well as the fact that they are still relevant nowadays. Benjamin Franklin points out that every man can improve his life and accomplish wealth by working hard, spending time efficiently and saving and spending money wisely. If you use your time efficiently, not by being lazy but by working, you will improve your situation. Nobody will ever be successful by being lazy.
In vertical integration, Carnegie bought companies that produce resources for steel making. Because he didn’t have to pay for the resources, he was able to make more profit. In combination with horizontal integration, the merging with or taking over of other similar companies in order to establish a monopoly, Carnegie was able to make staggering amounts of money. These business strategies clearly display that Carnegie was an innovative and successful captain of industry. Many people criticize Carnegie because he made so much money and paid his workers little in comparison, but Carnegie would go on to donate millions of dollars to worthy causes.
Others, however, view Carnegie as an important industrialist who was the king of steel. In the grand scheme of things, Andrew Carnegie’s good deeds clearly outweigh the bad. He made good and efficient steel, became very involved in philanthropy, and created jobs for thousands of American people. Carnegie was not a “robber baron”, but rather a groundbreaking industrialist who set the standards for further industrialization in the United States. Andrew Carnegie’s involvement in steel is what made him a hero in the sense of industry.
Since the days of industry moguls like Carnegie, Morgan, and Rockefeller, money and the achievement of the American Dream have appealed to the American people as indicators of success. The glint of gold, unfortunately, often blinds the greedy from the ill effects of good fortune. In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby and his peers are affected by their wealth or lack of it in varying ways, but Fitzgerald emphasizes the negative effect money has on his characters. Money and the pursuit of it are corrupting factors in capitalistic American society, as the wealthy can afford to be apathetic and careless. The wealthy are made shallow by their fortune and flit about with no real purpose, and are comforted knowing that they have the means to entertain themselves.
Arundhati Roy’s text “Excerpts from War Talk” and “Why the Rich are Getting Richer and the Poor Poorer” by Robert Reich are two texts explaining the major reasons of why in todays society rich people get richer while poor become poorer. Unfortunately, the society is very unfair. There is a system in place that is controlled by a handful of extremely wealthy people, who often were luckily born into the right families and never worked their way to the top. These people in power positions have the game rigged to continue to benefit them and to protect their heritage. Your future wealth is no longer depending on how hard you work; there are hardworking intelligent people and hard working less intelligent people in all groups of society.