Why Andrew Carnegie Is Not A Hero

Having courage, a caring personality and integrity are the qualities possessed by a “hero”. Andrew Carnegie was an industrialist who supported capitalism, and Social Darwinism, free enterprise and economic competition. He favored the idea that the most superior people in society naturally rise to the top. He was born in 1835 in the attic of a weaver’s cottage in Dunfermline, Scotland. Carnegie´s family faced poverty, which caused him to begin work at the age of 12 to contribute to his family's responsibilities. Working 12 hours a day, Carnegie earned 1 dollar and 20 cents. (“Wealth”, in the North American Review) As Carnegie aged, he realized his potential and began seizing business opportunities, creating deeper knowledge and power in the
In 1861 the nation began the civil war and Carnegie received a draft notice from the Union army. Carnegie followed the practice of many wealthy northern draftees and hired a pittsburg draft agent to find him a replacement. Carnegie payed an irish immigrant 850 dollars to serve in Carnegie's place. (background essay DBQ project 2008) This evidence explains why Andrew Carnegie was not a hero because it proves he cared more about his personal benefits than serving his country. This evidence helps explain why Andrew Carnegie is not a hero because this action is one of a selfish
Andrew Carnegie was in charge of multiple steel factories. One factory known as Homestead Mill which was located in Pittsburgh. These factories were created to produce larger amounts of steel more efficiently. Employees often referred to the factories as pits like the mouth of hell and a deathtrap (“Homestead and its perilous trades”). Factory workers ranging from all ages lost limbs, some even died in tragic collisions. “The night set go on at six and come off at six in the morning. I go on at six and off at six”. For 12 hours of slave labor these men earned 2 dollars and a quarter and the men that shoveled in the rain earned one dollar and forty cents (McClure’s Magazine). These workers labored in these dangerous factories for days on end and earned closed to nothing. This evidence helps explain why Carnegie was not a hero because a hero is someone who cares about others and puts society's well being before their own, which is something Carnegie failed to