Industry Changes Society ForeverThe Industrial Revolution (1760-1840) was a completely radical shift in the way people functioned in society. The rural farming way of life began to disappear, and people began moving into the cities to work in factories. As can be seen by the picture to the right, traditional methods of transportation, like the horse, began being replaced by steam locomotives on railroad tracks, and more efficient methods of water transportation, like steamboats in canals. Hygiene improved, birth rates skyrocketed, life expediencies rose, and a middle class (Bourgeoisie) started to form.
Life was still rough for the lower classes though, and many people had to live and work in terrible conditions. Factories, mines, and tenements were filthy and dangerous places, and many people died or lost limbs in accidents. Child Labor was exploited for many years, and they began working as early as 5 years old to help support their families. Many of the technologies we use today came from the Industrial Revolution, but it came at a difficult price for many people. |
This is not your ordinary Revolution....
We have commonly used the term "revolution" to talk about a violent and immediate change to a society or government by the people of that society. Here, the Industrial and Agricultural Revolutions refer more to a social and economic change, rather than a solely political or military one. Think of the technology you have in your pocket right now, for instance. You probably have a cell phone, or music player of some kind, right? Now, where do you go to get food? How about if you are feeling sick? We have done this before as well, but picture yourself without that technology, access to a huge supermarket, or antibiotics at a pharmacy. These are things people did not really have access to before the Industrial Revolution.
What was life like before this?Well, for the most part, people lived in the countryside on farms and grew their own food. (People also lived in the cities, but there were fewer of them there.) They made their own clothes, and they used the small amount of money they earned to pay for the things they really needed. Most things were simply too expensive to buy, and were seen as luxuries, so they made as much on their own as they could. Few people had access to indoor plumbing, and electricity was not really something people had a clear idea of yet.
Importantly, access to effective medicines was not available, because not much research had been done beyond simple home remedies for common illnesses. Due to this, life expectancies were fairly low, and people tended to marry early and produce as many children as they could to help support their families. Life could be really tough at times for these people. This is not to give the impression that these people were backward and had no concept of anything. Most had at least a bare-bones, extremely basic education, and made a decent living off their farms and lands. They had communities where they exchanged their goods and services for the things they needed, and lived generally happy lives. Living in the countryside was tough, but that does not mean it was a deathtrap. People just made do with less technology. |
What was life like during this?Basically, people began to move into the cities in the 1800's, a process known as Urbanization. In the countryside, farmers started to lose their lands and jobs as the process of Enclosure (closing land for mass production farming) began. On top of that, new farming tools and equipment made farms capable of producing more food, with less people needed to harvest it, so not only did more farmhands lose their jobs, but this made it possible to feed a larger population.
With nowhere left to go, many farmers and their families moved into the cities to look for work. With the increased availability of food and other necessities, people began buying everything they needed in stores, rather than making it themselves. This actually became a really affordable thing to do for the first time in history. Those goods had to be made somewhere though, and these are the places where these migrants found work, in the factories. Factories were large buildings, usually dedicated to making one specific thing, like: textiles (clothing), steel, new machines, weapons, and medicines. These goods would be mass produced, and shipped around the country, and to other countries, at cheaper costs than were available before. Factories were very dangerous places to work though, and child labor was common, because parents needed as much money as they could get their hands on. In factories, people regularly lost limbs in machinery accidents, and inhaled horrible amounts of dust and other particles which made it hard to breathe. On top of all that, they were extremely hot, and there were not many safety mechanisms in place. Factories needed to be powered by something though, and the steam engine had just been invented, which made the production of goods even faster, so people needed coal. With forests already being depleted, many people, especially kids, found work in the dark and disgusting mines. Here, they constantly breathed in toxic coal dust which gave them lung diseases (like Tuberculosis), and it was tough, back-breaking work. The coal they mined, however, went to power factories, ships, and locomotives which carried all of the mass produced goods to new markets, ones which had been previously unreachable. The Industrial Revolution definitely came at the price of many people's health, and living in tenements (cramped and filthy apartments) only made things worse. With the linking of germs to disease, the use of antiseptics, and an understanding of the importance of hygiene, however, life expectancies rose, and people had more children. This triggered a population boom. With the emergence of entrepreneurs (people who start their own businesses), and an increased population, class structures changed too. A distinct middle class (bourgeoisie) and working class developed, all of whom demanded better rights and protections from their government. This spurned a whole new argument about the role of government in society, and led to the development of new forms of government, like Communism. |
How was life after this? |
The simple answer to this question is that people's lives would never be the same. With the new advances in transportation, and buying necessities instead of making them, people began to develop a broader sense of community, and felt connected to distant places. This was the beginning of the global nature of the society we have today, and relying on others to supply what we need in stores and pharmacies.
By all means, we have a long way to go in history before you see that technology you have in your pocket right now, but this is where the technology which made that possible started. In general, the Industrial Revolution brought a faster pace of life, and a demand for new and better things. It is hard to place yourself in the shoes of someone who lived hundreds of years ago, but to best appreciate the differences, one must do that exact thing. Trains, supermarkets, and antibiotics are things we take for granted nowadays, but these things were brand new concepts during this time period. Putting everything in perspective and context like this helps us to imagine how different life suddenly became for everyone, and how it could no longer ever be the same again. |