Reading Guide for
Harold C. Livesay, American Made: Shapers of
the American Economy
c. 1999
Note: There are now three editions of this book. The second and third editions add more connections in the history of manufacturing between the U.S. and the world. Some information in earlier editions has been deleted in subsequent editions. For this course, reading the second or third edition will suffice.
For each chapter in this book, you should be able to:
1. describe the political economy in which each man operated;
2. analyze why each succeeded and/or failed to respond to the changing political economy; and,
3. note the important new developments and cumulative effects each man contributed to the evolution of the American system of production management. What characteristics of the manufacturing entrepreneur did each exhibit?
Beyond that, I encourage you to think about the choices Livesay made: Have you discovered in your readings (in this class and others) individuals who might better portray the themes Livesay promotes? Why is there so little negative criticism of these men? Would you work for these men? How does the addition of Ray Kroc, Michael Dell, and Sam Walton in Chapter 11 underscore the themes of the book? How do you respond to Livesay interjecting himself into the text as he does?
Ch 1 Introduction
Why did Livesay choose the men he did?
What has changed since the book was first published in 1978?
How has “the market” been
central to
Ch 2 The Artist of His Country: Eli Whitney
What obstacles stymied manufacturing in the U.S. at the end of the 18th century?
How were the weak patent laws
beneficial to the
What did Whitney contribute to the evolution of mass production?
Why did Whitney not mass-produce the cotton gin? Why was he so slow in producing muskets?
Why was Whitney the "artist" of his country?
The cotton gin.
Ch 3 The Grim Reaper: Cyrus Hall McCormick
How did McCormick overcome the complexity and expensiveness of the reaper?
How did McCormick respond to the Civil War? (Note later Pierre du Pont's reaction to WW I.)
Describe how McCormick wedded traditional and forward-looking business structures.
Ch 4 The Star-Spangled Scotchman: Andrew Carnegie
How did the steel industry in Livesay's trucking days differ from Carnegie's operations? (Why did these differences appear?)
How did the industrial revolution affect the Carnegie family?
Note the paradox in Andrew's character. (Note later a similar paradox in Henry Ford's character.)
To what did Carnegie always attribute his economic success?
How did the Pennsylvania Railroad prepare Carnegie for later business enterprise?
Why did Carnegie leave finance for manufacturing?
Why did he produce steel?
What problems in iron and steel manufacturing did Carnegie overcome? How did he do it? Contrast his methods with those of the British steel producers.
How did Carnegie reflect the gradual, evolutionary change from family-owned-and-run firms to modern firms that employed salaried managers?
Why could Carnegie beat the trusts?
c.
1878
Ch 5 The Most Useful American: Thomas A. Edison
Note the two-stage revolution in energy in the 19th century.
Trace the evolution of the factory.
List the useful inventions
How did
What did
Ch 6 The Insolent
Charioteer: Henry Ford
Describe Ford's individualism. What threatened his individuality?
When and why did the darker side of Ford materialize?
Why did Ford produce the Model T? How does the success of the Model T reflect the paradox in Ford's personality?
Note the distinction between innovator and inventor.
What idea did Henry Leland transmit to the auto industry?
Note the 4 basic principles of the moving assembly line. How long did Ford take to develop the concept? Why did he create the moving inventory?
What does the fact that Ford created a market he could not understand suggest about American business history?
Ch 7 The Patriarchal Pioneer: Pierre du Pont
Describe the du Pont attitude toward labor.
How did the family firm respond to crisis at the turn of the century?
Why did the cousins capture only 60% of the market?
Describe the strategy and
structure of
What principle guided
What new technique of
management did
Ch 8 The Organization
Man: Alfred P. Sloan
For du Pont and for Sloan, what was the true test of a firm's structure?
Why did Sloan sell out to GM in 1916?
What does the sale of the roller bearing firm reflect about one pattern in business history?
How did Sloan view the corporation and individual initiative?
What did Durant contribute? Why was GM in trouble in 1920?
Note how du Pont and Sloan revived GM. What principles anchored their strategies and structures?
Ch
9 Superstar (or Avatar) of the
Worldwide Car: Henry Ford II
How did Ford II fulfill the Ford Company's social responsibilities?
How did Ernie Breech save Ford Motor Co.?
Why did Ford II assume control in 1960?
Contrast Henry II's personnel policies with his grandfather's.
Why did Ford II expand overseas?
Note the continuities and discontinuities with earlier strategies.
What makes Ford II an avatar?
Ch 10 The Philosopher Scientist: Edwin Land
List Land's personal qualities. Do you see him as a philosopher-scientist?
How do Land's cameras compare to the Model T?
What were the aspects of Land's creed?
How were Edwin Land and Steve Jobs similar?
Polaroid instant camera
Sx70-2
Ch 11 And So It Goes … Burgers, Bargains, and Bytes
How do Ray Kroc, Sam Walton, and Michael Dell connect to other individuals in this book?
How have changes in the political economy since the 1970s affected the evolution of MacDonalds, WalMart, and Dell?
Ch 12 Of
Things Past and Things to Come
Livesay ends on a positive note; do you agree?