Vanderbilt: The Rise and Fall of an American Dynasty

How did the Vanderbilt’s attitudes toward money define them? In what ways did their relationship with their own prominence and wealth shape them as people?

Some argue that the present time is another Gilded Age in the United States. Do you agree or disagree? Why? Be sure to compare a variety of aspects from the book to contemporary society, such as social norms and trends, philosophy, government, education, the economy, etc.

The authors refer to the myth of the self-made American, noting that it is a story Americans like to tell themselves with little basis in fact. How does the book’s portrayal of the Vanderbilts reinforce the myth, and how does it deconstruct the myth? Were the Vanderbilts self-made?