The Distribution of Wealth

877 Words2 Pages

Everyone has his or her own ideas of how wealth should be distributed properly. Some people believe wealth should be left to family, left for public services, or become the property of others. Others believe that people should not have excess wealth, resulting in non-existent class distinctions. An alternative view is that wealth is not distributed; instead, the wealthy continue to grow wealthier while those in poverty can not escape it and fall further into a life of poverty. The beliefs discussed above come from three different writers. Those writers include Andrew Carnegie, Karl Marx, and Robert B. Reich. These writers all have different opinions on how wealth should be distributed properly.
Andrew Carnegie does not believe wealth is distributed properly (Carnegie 485). In fact, he has a few different ideas of how to distribute wealth. In Carnegie’s essay, “The Gospel of Wealth,” he states, “There are but three modes in which surplus wealth can be disposed of .” The first way he suggests to dispose of wealth is to pass it down in the family after the one with wealth passes away. The second way to dispose of wealth is, after death, distribute it for public uses. The third and final way one can dispose of wealth is by giving it to others while he or she is alive. This idea most reflects the idea of a communist in the case that the surplus wealth is distributed and becomes the property of many. All of the above are different ways that Andrew Carnegie felt wealth could be distributed among people. He says that the third and final way to distribute wealth is a lot like the beliefs of Karl Marx in the sense that Marx strongly believes in communism.
It is also believed that wealth should be non-existent. This is only possible if cl...

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...ealth should be for public usage after the owner passes. This shows that he believes the wealth should be used to benefit the public when it can no longer benefit the person who withheld it. The above are just a few reasons why Andrew Carnegie has the best views on the distribution of wealth.

Works Cited

Carnegie, Andrew. “The Gospel of Wealth/” A World of Ideas: Essential Readings for College Writers. Ed. Lee A. Jacobus. 9th ed. Boston:Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2013. 485-95. Print.
Marx, Karl. “The Communist Manifesto.” A World of Ideas: Essential Readings for College Writers. Ed. Lee A. Jacobus. 9th ed. Boston:Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2013. 456-76. Print.
Reich, Robert B. “Why the Rich Are Getting Richer and the Poor, Poorer.” A World of Ideas: Essential Readings for College Writers. Ed. Lee A. Jacobus. 9th ed. Boston:Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2013. 516-29. Print.

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