Andrew Carnegie - an Influential Hero with a Golden Bag

Introduction

Andrew Carnegie is the most outstanding entrepreneur and philanthropist in the American industrialization era, one of the most important leaders of the rapid rise of the steel industry in the United States at the end of the 19th century, and one of the most important philanthropists of that era.

Early Life and Career

In his early years, Carnegie was in a poor family. He traveled across the ocean with his parents to pursue the golden dream in his childhood. He started working at the age of 13 with hard work and a unique vision. In the course of the major historical industrial revolution in the United States, he actively devoted himself to various basic industries of American industrialization, from the postman of telecommunications and post to the managing director of the Pennsylvania Railroad, from investing in railway sleeper cars to creating iron bridge construction companies. The attempt of the oil industry to stock bonds all reflected his ingenuity and entrepreneurial qualities. The most strategic choice was after realizing the importance of steel to the industrialized economy, he concentrated on operating the steel manufacturing industry, developing the American steel industry before others, and eventually becoming the American steel industry giant. When Carnegie sold the steel company to Morgan in 1901, he became the richest person in the world. Since then, Carnegie has spared no effort in pursuing his wealth philosophy and working tirelessly to maintain world peace. Prior to his death in 1919, he donated a total of 90% of the assets—$350 million, of which $288 million went to the United States and $62 million to the United Kingdom, leaving only 10% of his assets to his descendants.

Carnegie's Legacy and Philosophy

Andrew Carnegie's life is a vivid portrayal of the industrialization era in the United States. It is the epitome of the rise, development, and evolution of the great American entrepreneurs of that period. He diligently pursued corporate innovation, had a unique concept of talents, typical characteristics of capitalists, was not afraid of risks and dared to challenge, and was committed to the development and expansion of the enterprise. His life is a concrete embodiment of the American entrepreneurial spirit and has left many successful experiences for future generations with lessons. What sets him apart from his contemporaries is that in the materialistic capitalist country, under the state of the vicious expansion of capitalism and the sharpening of social contradictions, Carnegie proposed a bold and extremely challenging philosophy of wealth: Rich people are just the custodians of social wealth and should return it to society after death. 'The more money people have when they die, the more embarrassing they are.' This idea has become the standard of modern American philanthropy and has also laid the foundation of Carnegie's public welfare, reflecting the idealistic color in Carnegie's philosophy of life.

Impact on Future Generations

Although the proposition of wealth philosophy has its profound social and historical roots, under the influence of this philosophy, contemporary Rockefellers, Ford in the middle of the 20th century, and Bill Gates at the end of the century all followed this 'rich fortune'. The profound influence and spiritual value of the tradition of donation can be seen from this. However, Carnegie is the product of the times after all, and he guided his practical activities with the concept of realism. He resorted to all means to make huge profits and establish an industrial empire, which is a typical representative of the period when the United States swarmed the 'robber king'; he pioneered the foundation model of American charity, making charity more operable and effective.

Carnegie as a Multifaceted Figure

Carnegie was not only an American entrepreneur and philanthropist but also a critic and social activist. He had a wide range of interests, was diligent in writing, had diverse writing themes, and actively participated in the world peace movement. This thesis is based on the interpretation of the main ideas and activities of Andrew Carnegie in his life from four perspectives. One is Carnegie's growth course; the other is the pioneer of modern American corporations; the third is Carnegie's political thought and practice; the fourth is Carnegie's philosophical thought and practice. The above four perspectives on Carnegie's life's main thoughts and practices are the basis for the author's research on a large amount of Carnegie literature and the various books and biographies of Carnegie research written by his predecessors.

Conclusion

Foreign scholars have different perspectives on Carnegie's overall evaluation. In Burton J. Hendrick's 'The Life of Andrew Carnegie', Carnegie is described as 'Saint Andrew'; John K. Winkler's 'Fantastic Carnegie', called Carnegie the 'pretender'; American scholar Professor Wall completed 'Andrew Carnegie' in the spirit of 'here is Andrew Carnegie and his life in the eyes of biographers'. In the book, the author’s personal views are scattered in various chapters. In his later book, Andrew Carnegie's Book, the author opened his eyes in the foreword and said, 'Andrew Carnegie is unique among the American entrepreneurs. He is not due to his outstanding achievements in business, nor to his superior position in industry, or even to the generosity of his charity. What is special about him is his success in all these fields.' Its high rating is thought-provoking. The author believes that historical figures are often the sum of various social relations, the representatives and personifications of certain social forces. They can reflect this sum more concentratedly than ordinary people, and they are more susceptible to the impact of various social relations. Therefore, the content of activities is also richer than ordinary people. The nature and role of activities are often multi-faceted and multi-level. The business management ideas and practices, political thoughts and practices, and philosophical ideas and practices of Andrew Carnegie discussed in this thesis all reflect the complexity and diversity of Carnegie's thoughts and practices throughout his life. The final result of sex and diversity develops into unity under paradox. He led the leap development of the American steel industry with the ruthless means of 'the robber king' and the outstanding talent of 'industrial leader': in the contradiction between 'idealist' and 'realist', 'exploring in his past, there was a reconciliation between the radical Dunfermline and the life of the wealthy class that Carnegie spent most of his life.' In the real environment of the development of capitalism, his idealistic feelings are ultimately attributed to the trend of development in the United States: he earns money driven by his 'egoistic' ideology, and will he ultimately make the most of it?

References

1. Hendrick, B. J. (Year). The Life of Andrew Carnegie. Publisher.

2. Winkler, J. K. (Year). Fantastic Carnegie. Publisher.

3. Wall, A. (Year). Andrew Carnegie. Publisher.

4. Author, F. (Year). Andrew Carnegie's Book. Publisher.