"This, then, is held to be the duty of the man of Wealth: First, to set an example of modest, unostentatious living, shunning display or extravagance... and after doing so to consider all surplus revenues which come to him simply as trust funds, which he is called upon to administer... to produce the most beneficial results for the community." — Andrew Carnegie, "The Gospel of Wealth," 1889
Carnegie's argument in this excerpt is best characterized as a defense of which Gilded Age phenomenon?
- A
Government redistribution through progressive taxation
- B
Labor union ownership of industrial enterprises
- Ccheck_circle
Concentrated private wealth balanced by voluntary philanthropy
- D
Direct democratic control of corporate boards
Explanation
Carnegie defends inequality by tying it to the philanthropic obligation of the rich. He explicitly opposed government taxation as redistribution; his alternative was voluntary giving administered by the wealthy themselves.