About Opentopia
Opentopia Directory Encyclopedia Tools

Robber baron (industrialist)

Encyclopedia : R : RO : ROB : Robber baron (industrialist)

John D. Rockefeller Sr., American capitalist
Enlarge
John D. Rockefeller Sr., American capitalist
Robber baron was a term revived in the 19th century in the United States as a pejorative reference to businessmen who dominated their respective industries and amassed huge personal fortunes, typically as a direct result of pursuing various allegedly anti-competitive or unfair business practices. The term may now be used in relation to any businessman who is perceived to have used questionable business practices in order to become powerful or wealthy.

The term derives from the medieval German lords who illegally charged exorbitant tolls against ships traversing the Rhine river (see robber baron). There has been some dispute over the term's origin and use. It was popularized by U.S. political and economic commentator Matthew Josephson during The Great Depression in a 1934 book. He attributed its first use to an 1880 anti-monopoly pamphlet in which Kansas farmers applied it to railroad magnates. The informal term captains of industry may sometimes be used to avoid the negative connotations of "robber baron".

Contents

Impact on society

Some historians consider that the vast accumulation of wealth and power among the men known as robber barons constituted a substantial mis-allocation of resources across society. The harsh reality of the existence of robber barons in the United States inspired the 19th century economist and sociologist Thorstein Veblen to write The Theory of the Leisure Class. In this work, Veblen argues that the modern businessman is not different from a barbarian because he uses brute force, cunning and competitive skills to make money from others, and then lives off the spoils of conquests rather than producing things himself. Modern scholars, such as the Professor of Economics Robert Heilbroner, describe robber barons in a similar way. In his book The Worldly Philosophers Heilbroner claims that robber barons used deception, violence, kidnappings and extraordinary dishonesty to gain economic power and industrial supremacy. Hence they became known as robber barons.

Other historians argue that the robber barons were essential to the transformation of the United States into a world power, due to their significant investments in industry, infrastructure, and education. Novelist Ayn Rand stated that such men were among the "greatest humanitarians and the greatest benefactors of mankind who had ever lived because they had brought the 'greatest good' and an impossible standard of living - impossible by all historical trends - to the country in which they functioned."

New York City owes much of its monumental architecture and many of its museums to the generous patronage of these men, most notably Rockefeller Center, Grand Central Terminal, Cooper Union, The Frick Collection, Carnegie Hall and The Astor Library. Carnegie sought to encourage literacy and funded the establishment of 2500 public libraries across the U.S. and around the world. However, the robber barons contributed minor fractions of their wealth to charity[[Citing sources citation needed]], and during their lives they did not appear to have any particular inclination towards the perceived common good. Although men such as J. P. Morgan were sometimes noted for such misanthropic statements as "I owe the public nothing", Morgan neverthless made significant contributions to the arts and universities.

The cultural impact of the massive riches accumulated by the robber barons was influential in defining the American Dream as it appeared to prove that a "rags to riches" story was possible only in America. However, an 1870's study of 303 textile, railroad and steel executives, found that c.90% came from the upper or middle class Howard Zinn, p. 248; A People's History of the United States (2nd edition).

J. P. Morgan assaulting photographers (he hated being photographed due to facial disfigurement caused by the skin disease Rosacea, and had all of his official portraits retouched).
Enlarge
J. P. Morgan assaulting photographers (he hated being photographed due to facial disfigurement caused by the skin disease Rosacea, and had all of his official portraits retouched).

List of businessmen who were called robber barons

In popular culture

In popular American culture, robber barons were usually depicted as men in suits with black top hats and canes as typified by Rich Uncle Pennybags, the icon for the board game Monopoly.

References

Books

See also

External links

 

From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.

Search Titles
0123456789
ABCDEFGHIJ
KLMNOPQRST
UVWXYZ?

E-mail this article to:

Personal Message: