Question

The industrialists of the late 19th century could be considered both “robber barons” or “captains of industry” determined by both social rank and how a person was affected by their activities.

Answer 1

Workers formed unions in the late 19th century to get higher wages shorter work hours and a 5 day work a week

Answer 2

Answer: This statement is true.

Explanation: Just to elaborate a little on the answer, it can be added that very powerful nineteenth-century American industrialists such as Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller were indeed viewed pejoratively, as "robber barons," as well as appreciatively, as "captains of industry," based on whose lives they affected, and how. Those whose lives they affected negatively, considered them "robber barons," since they argued that they were amassing extraordinary fortunes by using abusive and deplorable business practices—such as charging significantly less for their products by paying their workers a miserable salary, and, once their competitors could not keep up with them, increasing the price of their goods. In contrast, those whose lives they affected positively, considered them "captains of industry," since they argued that they were amassing extraordinary fortunes, but they were also giving back—providing more jobs and becoming philanthropists (granting vast amounts of money to found universities and hospitals, for instance).