Steel was one of the largest industries of the late 19th century, and Andrew

Carnegie was one of the most influential people in the Steel Industry, but did that make
him a good person? There were many different corporations popping up for different
things such as oil, steel, and railroads, and each had different people that influenced the
industry. One of these people was Andrew Carnegie and his steel company. Andrew
Carnegie may have been a philanthropist and businessman, but he was not a hero
because his spendings at Skibo was selfish, he believed in survival of the fittest, and he
was leading a double life.
The first way Andrew Carnegie was not a hero was that his spendings at Skibo
Castle was selfish. In Document A it explains that Carnegie put 10 million dollars into
the Castle, this would have caused more people to maybe visit there and a rise in taxes
for locals. The cost of living there would rise a lot and people would be forced to move
and find a new place to live. This shows that he was a villain because he wasn’t thinking
of his impact on the community and what would happen to the people that originally
lived there. So his spending was very selfish.
The second way that he was not a hero was that he had the survival of the fittest
mentality. In Document B it shows that Carnegie believes in social darwinism and
“survival of the fittest”, this shows he isn't a hero because he believes that he is the best
and wants to be looked at almost as a god. Document B also shows that he wanted to
be looked at as the “top” and he would do anything to get there including knocking off
smaller businesses in bad ways. This also shows that he wasn't a hero because he
didn't care about anyone around him including his workers and just wanted to be the
best without thinking of the people surrounding him.
The final reason that Carnegie was not a hero is that he was leading a double
life. In Document D it shows a cartoon of Carnegie split in two handing nice things to
“his public” and wage cuts to his employees. This shows he isn’t a hero because he was
trying to appeal to who he thought was important, while he was treating his employees
horribly and was giving them wage cuts. Carnegie was also having his workers work in
horrible conditions and didn’t listen to them when they complained.
Overall, there were many different ways that showed that Carnegie was a villain.
Andrew Carnegie may have been a philanthropist, but he was not a hero because his
spendings at Skibo was selfish, he believed in survival of the fittest, and he was leading
a double life.