Andrew Carnegie
Throughout his life, Andrew Carnegie?s concept of success evolved from usefulness and honor, to money and power, and finally to philanthropy and humanitarianism. During his early years, he wanted to be respected and thought of as a hard worker. Later on in his life, his goal was to make as much money as possible with the least amount of actual labor. Finally, as an older man, he strove to give back to the society that made his success a reality. Carnegie?s changing view of success is important because it illustrates that anyone can use the things they learn in life to ultimately achieve a worthwhile contribution to humankind. In his youth, Carnegie valued usefulness, honor, and respect, and he longed to improve himself. As a boy in Dunfermline, Scotland in the 1840s, he sought to gain knowledge by pushing himself to do well in school. He was a favorite of his teacher, Robert Martin, because he did his duties and studied hard. Very quickly the other children labeled him as "Snuffy Martin?s pet," and although Andrew bitterly resented the title, he kept on pushing. Andrew?s father Will, who was a hand-loom weaver of damask in Dunfermline, was soon put out of work by steam-powered textile mills. Thus, the Carnegies decided to move t
Carnegie, Andrew. "How to Succeed in Life." New York Tribune, 19 December 1903. Livesay, Harold C. American Made: Men Who Shaped the American Economy. Boston, MA: Little, Brown and Company, 1979. Because of his humanitarianism, the establishment of libraries was an important project to Carnegie. "I believe that it outranks any other thing that a community can do to benefit its people. It is the never failing spring in the desert. If one [child] in each library district, by having access to one of these libraries, is half as much benefited as I was by having access to Colonel Anderson?s four hundred well-worn volumes, I shall consider they have not been established in vain." By the time of his death, Carnegie had given money to build 2,811 free public libraries. Among other things, he established the Carnegie Teachers Pension Fund, the Hero Fund, and he donated organs to churches. He placed churches last on his list of appropriate objects for philanthropy, just below public swimming pools. Universities were at the top, just above libraries. Meeting halls for public discussion and concerts were somewhere in the middle. The quest for knowledge pervaded this list, and relaxation and the enjoyment of nature came next. So, Carnegie proved to be a very successful man by his own standards. Although his concepts of success changed as the years went by, his values did not change. Even as an investor and philanthropist, he endeavored to be honored and respected. To sum up, Andrew Carnegie himself put it best when he said, "Do not make riches, but usefulness, your first aim; and let your chief pride be that your daily occupation is in the line of progress and development; that your work, in whatever capacity it may be, is useful work, honestly conducted, and as such ennobling to your life. . . . Concentrate, perform more than your prescribed duties; be strictly honest in word and deed. And may all who read these words be just as happy and prosperous and long lived as I wish them all to be. And let this great fact always cheer them: It is impossible for any one to be cheated out of an honorable career unless he cheats himself." Kent, Zachary. Andrew Carnegie: Steel King and Friend to Libraries. Springfield, NJ: Enslow Publishers, Inc., 1999. Andrew took his new job seriously. He distinguished himself by coming early, staying late, and sweeping out the office when he had no messages to deliver. He also trained himself to recognize the Morse code letters directly by their sounds, and was only the third person in the United States to do so. Before long, sixteen-year-old Carnegie found himself promoted to telegraph operator. Thomas Scott, superintendent of the Western Division of the Pennsylvania Railroad, noticed him and often used Carnegie to send his important messages. Andrew?s cleverness and energy impressed him, and wondered if he might hire such a bright young man. After hearing that Scott was interested in hiring him, he replied, "Scott can have me. I want to get out of a mere office life," and grabbed this new chance to advance himself. He guessed that the growing railroad industry had even more potential than the telegraph. It was the opportunity, more than t
Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 2148
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page double spaced)
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