Free Enterprise
"Work hard, save your money, and you can become wealthy - or, at least, "independent!" This is the motto of old-fashioned, "free enterprise." It expresses the idea that everybody in a capitalist society can participate and compete on the same terms with similar chances of success. It implies that the working class is just a collection of individuals who have not yet established their independence (worked their way up) through "individual initiative," rather than a being permanent class. In the early 19th Century, most Americans (including Abraham Lincoln, for instance) believed this. They thought opportunities under capitalism would keep expanding forever. But what is the reality behind this capitalist thinking? In the past, working people in America have had more opportunity to go into business or to get land for farming than anywhere else in the developed world. At the time the U.S. Constitution was written, it was generally assumed that only property owners should have the right to vote and participate in government. The "Free Labor" thinking of the Republican Party before the Civil Wa
Strong competition with other capitalists, who are constantly trying to gain a larger market by offering a cheaper product, forces the beginner to keep putting everything back into his business. He must invest in more modern equipment in order to be able to produce more cheaply with higher quality, and on a larger scale. He must do this in order to improve his product or services, and also capture a larger share of the market, until he has reached a level where there is no immediate threat of being put out of business by his competition. This means having the most modern machinery and getting the most productivity out of his workers. This huge need for capital also forces the capitalist to rely more and more on third parties. Making the capitalist borrow from banks to keep his capitol at a safe amount. They simply hire employees to make all the management decisions, design and develop the product, etc. r was basically a form of the capitalist work ethic. It meant that if 1) you were free yourself; 2) your country was "free"; and, 3) there was no slave labor to take your livelihood, you could "make somethin
Some common words found in the essay are:
Abraham Lincoln, Civil War, Free Enterprise, Americans North, South Reconstruction, Century Americans, free enterprise, Free Labor, capitalist work-ethic, cheaper product, price labor-power, abraham lincoln, civil war, forces capitalist,
Approximate Word count = 751
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
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