Industrial Revolution and the Boom of the Middle Class - Term Paper Example

Industrial Revolution and the Boom of the Middle Class Abstract Industrial revolution has brought revolutionary changes in human life. The living standards of the public have advanced tremendously because of industrial revolution. Originated in United Kingdom, industrial revolution started to spread all over the world from the eighteenth century onwards. Even though the entire public got the benefits of industrial revolution, the middle class appeared to be the prominent community who reaped the harvest more than any other community. This paper briefly explains the boom of facilities received by the middle class community as a result of the industrial revolution. Industrial Revolution and the Boom of the Middle Class “The Industrial Revolution started in England around 1733 with the first cotton mill. A more modern world had begun. As new inventions were being created, factories followed soon thereafter”(IR Web information page, n. d). “It moves people from the countryside into rapidly expanding towns. It turns labour into a disciplined and mainly indoor activity, with an increasing distinction between owners, employers and managers on one side and workers on the other” (HISTORY OF THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION, n. d). Industrial revolution started to rise on the horizon from the 18th century onwards when major changes happened in areas like agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transport and technology. Industrial revolutions started in United Kingdom and slowly it spreads to all over Europe, America and to the entire world. Industrial revolution was a major turning point in human history as the entire life activities changed drastically because of it. The average income of the people started to double because of the industrial and agricultural growth. Middle class community was the major beneficiaries of Industrial revolution as their living standards and life philosophies changed a lot as a result of industrial revolution. Middle class & Industrial revolution Before the industrial revolution started, there were only the rich and poor in the global community. The rich people ruled the world and they used the poor people to make more and more wealth. In other words the poor people forced to work for the rich people without adequate wages or benefits. Their living conditions were pathetic and miserable. The entry of industrial revolution has brought one more segment in the global community which is the middle class. In fact the middle class people were the ones who rose from the poor class as a result of Industrial revolution. The poor working class who were earlier working in the agricultural sector, started to work in the factories as a result of industrial revolution. Moreover, they started to acquire certain skills as a result of industrial revolution and started to work in different factories, banks and other offices which offer higher wages to them. Craftsmanship was a term which was originated as a result of industrial revolution. The move toward urbanization, the “new” or second Industrial Revolution, and increased consumerism all played significant roles in middle class development. In some countries this was more rapid, such as in England, known as a nation of “shop-keepers and merchants.” Further, class consciousness in Europe evolved differently from that in the United States where an upper class of plutocrats associated with industrial monopolies developed and where no traditional aristocracy held sway to remind society of a once powerful Old Regime (Streich, 2009). Industrial and economic revolutions which were the bi-products of technological revolutions have changed the life of the middle class drastically. For example, the discovery of steam engine brought faster means of transportation which helped the people to explore new opportunities even at the distant places. Same way the invention of Morse code in 1837 revolutionized the way of distant communication. The advancements in communication helped the development of industry immensely and industrial units were started to develop across the world as a result of the industrial revolution. Lucy (n. d) has mentioned that “a sharp population increase was happening around the world at the same time the Industrial Revolution was gearing up” (Lucy, n. d). Even though the reasons for this population increase are still controversial, many people believe that industrial revolution was the major factor behind the population increase. Better living conditions and advancements in life facilities resulted in people thinking differently about their life philosophies and future generations. Before the Industrial Revolution, some industry existed throughout Western Europe. A little manufacturing took place in guild shops in towns. Craftworkers in the shops worked with simple tools to make such products as cloth, hardware, jewelry, leather goods, silverware, and weapons. Some products made in the towns were exchanged for food raised in the countryside. Town products were also exported to pay for luxuries imported from abroad, or they were sent to the colonies in payment for raw materials (World book, 2010). Industrial revolution helped the middle and upper class immensely in changing their way of life. At the same time it failed to address the needs of the poor people. The upper and middle classes always reap the benefits when a change occurs in the world and industrial revolution also followed the same pattern. Before the industrial revolution, only a few rich people lived in cities whereas most of the poor people lived in small towns and scattered across the country. The major revenue source for them was farming. But the yield received from farming was never surplus and hence they could not save anything from their farming. But, industrial revolution brought many changes in the farming methods with the help of newly developed fertilizers and agricultural equipments. Thus the farmers in the village areas were able to produce surplus quantity of agricultural products and hence their revenue from farming started to grow up. At the same time the people residing in the rural areas started to purchase the agricultural products produced from the villages and they started to make their own clothing, furniture, and tools from these raw materials. Thus both the villagers and the urban people started to earn more as a result of the industrial revolution. Loftus, (2009) has mentioned that this industrial and urban middle-class have started to challenge landed privilege and aristocratic corruption because of their superior political and economical powers. Moreover he also pointed out that “through education reform, schemes of civic improvement and the growth of the market the Victorian middle class saw themselves as facilitating equality of opportunity by enabling the working classes to realise their abilities” (Loftus, 2009). In the early days of industrial revolution, the middle class gained lot of successes compared to others in the global community. They were succeeded in converting their economic progress in to political power and subsequently they started to safeguard their social, economical, and political interests at the expense of others. Conclusions Industrial revolution has revolutionized the lives of the people all over the world generally and that of the middle class specifically. Middle class was able to achieve political power because of their superior financial abilities and they did everything possible to safeguard their interests. References 1. HISTORY OF THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION (n. d.). Retrieved from http://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/PlainTextHistories.asp?historyid=aa372 2. IR Web information page. (n. d). Retrieved from http://library.thinkquest.org/4132/info.htm 3. Lucy,S. (n. d.). The Industrial Revolution: Blessing or curse for the working class? Retrieved from http://everything2.com/title/The+Industrial+Revolution%253A+Blessing+or+curse+for+the+working+class%253F 4. Loftus, D. (2009). The Rise of the Victorian Middle Class. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/victorians/middle_classes_01.shtml 5. Streich, M. (2009). The Middle Class in the Late 19th Century. Retrieved from http://www.suite101.com/content/the-middle-class-in-the-late-19th-century-a96290 6. World book. (2010). Industrial Revolution. Retrieved from http://photo.pds.org:5005/student/article?id=ar275880 Read More