Title: Does the life of Andrew Carnegie support or counter the philosophy of Social Darwinism? - eNotes.com
Headings: Social Darwinism and the Gospel of Wealth
Social Darwinism and the Gospel of Wealth
Does the life of Andrew Carnegie support or counter the philosophy of Social Darwinism?
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Content: Educators go through a rigorous application process, and every answer they submit is reviewed by our in-house editorial team. Palma Ebert
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Andrew Carnegie is known as both a “Robber Baron” and “The Father of Modern Philanthropy.” These conflicting identities could make it difficult to understand how his role in forming modern American business and philanthropic practices fit into an understanding of Social Darwinism. In a general understanding of Darwinism, those that are best adapted to their environment survive. This has been effectively understood as “only the strong survive,” but it is not always strength that wins the day. Sometimes it is better to be more slight than strong, more intelligent than wealthy. Carnegie gained his wealth by making quick investments, buying and selling companies, and cornering the market on the steel industry to drive up prices. He was a diligent and hard-nosed businessman, and he became one of the wealthiest men in America, alongside Rockefeller and Mellon. Later in his career, he published “The Gospel of Wealth,” in which he outlined his philosophy of substantial giving to those less fortunate, which he felt the wealthy class had a duty to do. Carnegie did not believe in handouts, and his money typically went to building organizations which would provide resources to those who wanted them: