Assignment 27A: Reading Reflection No. 3

The Wright Brothers - David McCullough

What surprised you the most?

The most surprising for me was that the Wright Brothers had a very progressive thinking and were far in advance of the time. They have been entrepreneurs, believed in that specific opportunity of inventing a new way of transportation and didn’t give up when they experienced failures.

What about the entrepreneur did you most admire?

I admire the most their passion with which they were working on their mission. Orville and Wilbur Wright have been obsessed to succeed and never gave up. And in the end they had been successful, they have been the first people to pilot an engine powered airplane.

What about the entrepreneur did you least admire?

There is nothing that I didn’t really admire about the entrepreneurs or their work. But I think it was hard to be underappreciated a long time by the society and government while risking their lives when trying to fly their self-build airplane.

Did the entrepreneur encounter adversity and failure? If so, what did they do about it?

The entrepreneurs encountered a lot adversity and failure. On the one hand they had several private issues within the family for example the death of their mother or Wilbur’s accident when he planned to study in Yale at the age of 18. On the other hand the brothers experienced a lot of failures concerning their invention of the engine powered airplane. There was one tragic accident in 1908 (September 17th) where Orville piloted the airplane with a passenger for the first time. Orville was hurt badly and the passenger Lieutenant Thomas E. Selfridge was killed by that accident.

What competencies did you notice that the entrepreneur exhibited? 

• Tenacity
• Team work
• Passion
• Progressive, innovative, revolutionary thinking
• Ambition
• Valuable family spirit

Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.

I was confused about the fact that the Wright Brothers actually had three other siblings. I was especially confused when I heard about Katherine, their sister who managed everything at home while the brothers went to Kitty Hawk to North Carolina. I never heard about her before although I already read something about the Wright Brothers.

If you were able to ask two questions to the entrepreneur, what would you ask? Why?

• Who do you think supported you the best concerning your plans about inventing an engine powered airplane?
• What kept you from giving up after the fatal accident?

What do you think the entrepreneur's opinion was of hard work? Do you share that opinion?

I think it was especially hard not to give up after the fatal accident with Lieutenant Thomas E. Selfridge. But I also believe it was hard to keep on working on a project that seemed to be impossible.