Industrial Revolution: A Curse For The Working Poor

The Industrial Revolution brought many changes to society in the nineteenth century. With the rise of factories following the Agricultural Revolution and Enclosure Movement, it allowed goods to be readily available to the public due to mass production from having a large and available workforce. This led to further economic growth within the urban areas. While some might argue that Industrialization had primarily positive consequences for society because of this economic growth, it was actually a negative thing for society. Industrialization’s negative effects were the lack of working conditions, child labor, and horrible living conditions.

The Industrial Revolution occurred in Britain and America around the late 1700’s to 1900. This revolution improved the production of goods using new mechanisms and machines. Human labor was in high demand in order for the highest production rates. Factories employed low to middle-class people that were as young as three years old (Document 9). These workers were benefited with money, shelter, and clothes, but the working and living conditions were not satisfying. The average industrial worker experienced a variety of factors that can be classified as good or bad, including the positive effects of labor, like the shelter, money, and food they were given; and the negative effects of the factory,

In the 18th and 19th centuries, the industrial revolution was at its way, gaining many economic and technological advances but the price of hardship forced onto the workers and children during this time was paid. During this time period rural societies transformed into urban/industrial ones and a shift from working at home to factories and mass production with machinery. Many different advancements including the iron and textile industries, and also the invention of the steam engine helped pave the way of the revolution. Industrialization brought an increase of manufactured goods and also helped pave the way to our world as we know it today. As all these things were great, the industrialization significantly and truly lowered the living conditions

The working class during the Industrial Revolution made up 80 percent of society, the other 20 was composed of wealthy business owners. People in the 1800’s migrated from shops in their home to work in dangerous and life threatening factories. While many say this was a positive period, it came with negative consequences. The Industrial Revolution was more negative than positive because working conditions were very unsafe, workers worked extremely long hours, and employees worked for cheap wages.

The filth could not be contained with many factories producing it, as a result it darkened the city streets, lowering the air quality and making life for the lower class much less healthy (Document 12). The only class that didn’t feel as much of the repercussions was the upper class, since they owned their own land for the most part and had access to medicine and treatments that the lower classes didn’t. Despite all the revolutions, the upper class remained on the top of the social ladder, and were treated much better than the working class. While the wealthy rode in closed cars on steam trains, the lower classes had to make do with what was little more than a wooden box on wheels, exposing them to the elements (Document 11). Despite the negative on the working class, the Industrial Revolution improved Britain’s economy as a

The Industrial Revolution was a predominantly negative period in history, greatly affecting the lives of the poor working-class. Starting in 1750, rapid urbanization occurred, resulting in the higher and middle-class benefiting; but only because they were rich before it began. The working-class, however, became even more unfortunate as the era went on and were forced to become factory workers or miners. These men, women and children all faced harsh environmental factors, including the new technology of advanced machines and a shift in their family lifestyle.

While some might argue that Industrialization had primarily negative consequences for society because of the horrible working conditions, it was actually a positive thing for society; Industrialization’s positive effects were the production increases, more efficient transportation and better living conditions. The assembly line and factories were forms of production increase. The railroads and automobiles are examples of efficient transportation, and tenements and urban renewal are examples of better living conditions. These come to show that the industrial revolution was a major improvement in product distribution, transportation and living quarters.

The industrial revolution had caused many people to lose their jobs, as “unskilled laborers” were often fired and replaced with machines. This caused many people to go into poverty as they were no longer able to provide for themselves or their family. This problem was addressed in several ways. Some people such as Robert Hunter, wrote about it in studies such as “Poverty” which addressed how the Industrial Revolution had forced people to live in “miserable and unjust social conditions.” Different committees also played a role in the reform, such as the National Child Labor Committee, which made America aware of the horrible conditions children were forced to work and live in, bringing attention to child welfare issues.

The Industrial revolution started in Britain around 1750 and by 1850 it will make Great Britain the wealthiest country in the world. The revolution also spread to other European countries and the New World. Both Germany and United States will surpass Britain in the next fifty years. What was the effect of The Industrial Revolution on the working class?

Without the Industrial Revolution, majority of the people today would have to work on their farms for a living. There would be no factory production, no new types of transportation, and no jobs for the poor. The Industrial Revolution was a time of change and economic growth. New types of transportation were development, machinery slowly began to take the place of workers, and factories had been adopted into society. Businesses began to boom with these new inventions as time progressed. Materials were also shipped fast and efficiently because of the new ways of transportation. Not only did the Industrial Revolution shape the country’s economy, it also changed many people’s lives- especially the poor. The Industrial Revolution, “redefined how

“By the 1800s, people could earn higher wages in factories than on farms.” (Industrialization; Case study:Manchester, 723) Although these higher wages made in factories pushed the industrial revolution forward, by being able to afford resources such as coal, factory life damaged its workers and the community by created border between classes. For example, working conditions. Working conditions during this time were extremely poor, and on average, a worker would spend 14 hours a day in factories. Factories were unsanitary, unsafe and generally not enjoyable. “Factories were seldom well lit or clean. Machines injured workers. A boiler might explode or a drive belt might catch an arm. And there was no government program to provide aid in case of injury.” (Industrialization; Case

As many politicians and other public figures argue, poverty is one of the greatest economic issues of our time. Although the concern for poverty has primarily been a bipartisan effort, with conservatives and progressives making it an item on the political agenda, poverty has never been eradicated or even close to being confined to the history books. Many experts argue that due to globalization and technological innovation, poverty has gradually declined, or the conditions that face the impoverished have improved substantially since the 19th century. The poverty present during the Industrial Revolution was far more intense and pronounced due to the rapid changes that Britain was relatively unprepared for. In order to understand poverty in a

The industrial revolution, contrary to many beliefs, was a negative for the world. Although there were many positives, the environmental damage and the division of middle class from the lower class created many short and long term negatives. The amount of pollution and new emergence of new disease was partly caused by the invention of the Steam train. The steam train, invented in 1803 by Richard Trevithick, was viewed as an overall positive but came with many hidden negatives. The environment trembled under the steam and the population explosion created commercial train lines which people used to get into the city.

While the upper class reaped all the benefits of the industrial revolution and lucrative religious ventures, the lower class citizens were being treated like animals. The revolution into industry sent poor farmers into the cities looking for jobs that were controlled by the wealthy upper class. Immediately these people were exploited, being given long hours, low wages, and horrible living arrangements. The working class citizens were being exposed to conditions of “filth, ruin, and uninhabitableness, with the defiance of all considerations of cleanliness,

People from lower-class who had become rich while the industrial Revolution were the cause of this change. They were looking for ways to separate themselves from others in lower status, so the prestigious non-rhotic pronunciation was cultivated to highlight their new station (Cambridge University Press, as cited in Wolchover,