The Aftermath of the Industrial Revolution - Essay Example

Industrial Revolution Aftermath The technological advancements that powered production and commerce in England in the late 18th century and early 19th century spreading over to other parts of Europe and America is aptly called industrial revolution, a term initially popularized by Arnold Toynbee (Encyclopeadia Britannica, 2010; Wikipedia, 2010), as it mechanized labor leading to industrialization – “The process underlying the transition from primarily agricultural and craft production to machine‐driven mass production organized on the factory model” (Calhoun, 2002). The Industrial Revolution, kick-started by Quake Abraham Darby’s new way of iron smelting that mass produced iron in 1709 (Wilkinson, 2009) and developed gradually in England from 1760-1850 (Montagna, 1981, p. 1) has fundamentally changed the English society “from an agrarian, handicraft economy to one dominated by industry and machine manufacture” (Encyclopeadia Britannica, 2010), which has influentially transformed human culture and has essentially ushered the globalization of economy. Characterized by technological changes such as the utilization of iron and steel as basic materials for production; making use of new energy sources with fuels, coal, steam engine, electricity, petroleum, and internal combustion engine taking over the use of woods; the invention of new machines that has made mass production possible, replacing manual labor; the systematization of labor and specialization of tasks through the factory system; the key developments in transportation (steam locomotive, steamship, automobile, airplane) and communications (telegraph, and radio); and the growing interrelationship between science and industry (Encyclopeadia Britannica, 2010, par. 3), it has caused irreversible changes on “human labor, consumption, family structure, social structure, and even the very soul and thoughts of the individual” (Hooker, 1996, par. 1) and has laid down the unprecedented and unstoppable technological and economic growth in human history. Profound social changes currently evolving in England during the 17th century brought about the industrial revolution. After the English Civil War in the 17th century, feudalism in Great Britain reached its pinnacle ending a rural-based self-sufficient agricultural economy and giving birth to an urban-based surplus capitalist economy (hooker, 1996, par.1), which mode of production is far more progressive. Pivotal to this fundamental change are the invention of ‘soulless machines’ (Hubbard, 2010, par. 1) powered by steam, fuel, coal, etc. that replaced hand tools and made production easier, faster, and the emergence of the factory system (Hackett, 1992, sec. 2, par. 1), which highly systematized and specialized production. The most exceptional social consequence of the Industrial Revolution that replaced the ‘putting out system’ – a decentralized production or giving out (Clifford, 2009, sec. 2, par. 2), where in the merchants supply the necessary raw materials to homeworkers who, at a fixed piece wage, would process these into finish products which afterwards would be returned back to the merchants to be sold (Putting-out System), was no other than the ‘factory system’ – the precursor of modern day production, as this organized and specialized system of production transformed not only the economic system or the system of production but the entire social system transforming feudalism to capitalism, thereby changing the conditions of people’s lives and the whole society. The factory system concentrates and multiplies the means of production so that the output is both accelerated and increased. Machinery is employed which accomplishes with infallible precision and prodigious rapidity the heaviest and most complicated tasks. Its motive power is not limited and irregular effort of human muscles, but either natural forces such as wind and running water or artificial forces such as steam or electricity; these are tractable, regular and indefatigable, and can be increased indefinitely and at will. A vast number of persons, men, women, and children, are brought together to tend the machines, all with specialized tasks – mere wheels within wheels. Implements more and more complicated, workmen more and more numerous and highly organized, these make up great undertakings, which are indeed industrial commonwealths. And, as the mainspring of this terrific activity, as a cause and as an end, behind this use of human labour and mechanical force, capital is at work, swept forward by its own law – the law of profit – which urges it ceaselessly to produce, in order ceaselessly to grow. (Mantoux, 1961, p. 25-26). In other words, the factory system, which basic principles remain until today are as follows: division of labor, specialization of tasks/functions, centralized management, wage system, modern machinery/technology, accumulation of capital, accumulation of profit, and mass production of goods. The relationship of which could be summed-up into labor and capital. The labor that creates massive production is provided by the wage-earner worker, who unlike the craftsman whose produce is his/her trademark, cannot own his/her produce as it does not bear the worker’s trademark because the produce is highly socialized. Meaning one finished product goes through the different processes in the hands of different workers, which is entirely different from the craftsman who processes the product by him/herself alone. The capital, which is the technology, gave the worker the power to produce massively with ease and dexterity, creating, expanding and supplying the market need. The social goods and ills created by the interaction of labor and capital as embodied in the factory system, which is the core of modern day production, spell out the positive and negative effects of Industrial Revolution to modern day production. In the first place, the best effect of Industrial Revolution to modern day production is paving the way to modern day production, as it laid down the basic premises and principles that had made modern day production possible. For example, the mechanization of labor opened up the endless possibilities of development, which today is crucial in making production more competitive. Today, modern day production is continually maximizing science to create better technology for better production and distribution. In fact, what predominantly characterize modern day production are the multi-national and transnational corporations. Furthermore, the creation of computer and information technology has further globalized economies making production and trading borderless, wireless, timeless. With the further development of technology and with technology further enhancing production, the realization of profit – the motive force behind capitalist production – becomes not only more realizable but has further increased. Secondly, the Industrial Revolution gave birth to the disciplined and skilled workers who in specializing their task had further improved production, which paradoxically also threatens their work. The conflict – man versus machines, which led to the beginning of the Arts and Crafts Movement, believing that “a healthy society depended on skilled and creative workers” (Hubbard, 2010, par. 1) remains until today, as workers are being further displaced by modern machines. If before, the conflict lies on the view that ‘soulless machines’ are taking over the society (Hubbard, 2010, par. 1), today the problem is jobs are further rationalized with the creation of more sophisticated machines that further limit the need for human labor. Meaning to say, before, even with machines, it needs 10 workers to operate one machine, but today since machines are push buttons, operating them is easy and less complex thus requiring lesser machine operators. But despite this, it could not be denied that Industrial Revolution has socialized labor, which is the very condition that has disciplined, sharpened, and better crafted the workers. Without these basic characteristics of workers, modern day production could have never been realized, as workers could have not coped with the increasing demand for efficiency of modern day production. Thirdly, the capitalists, who emerged simultaneously with the workers during the Industrial Revolution, became more powerful in leaps and bounds with the free capital, as they influenced and got hold of the government to gain more profits. This insatiable hunger for profits, which is inherent to capitalists, has driven production to its further growth, because for profits to be doubled production has to be doubled and for products to be double, markets have to be doubled, but for markets to be doubled needs have to be doubled. It is no wonder then that with the broadening of production comes the parallel broadening of the market. This is the other important effect of the Industrial Revolution to modern day production – the inseparable relations of market and production, which today is superbly manipulated. The classic law of supply and demand, where “buyers purchase goods with money, and sellers get money for selling goods… behind this exchange of monies is the exchange of goods: Buyers are in effect trading what they make (and sell) for the goods they buy” (Wessels, 2000, p. 30), today is no longer premised on what the society truly needs, but the other way around. Meaning, today to make production necessary, society’s needs are created in varied ways more than what people thought. For example, cosmetics and other luxuries are no longer luxuries as they become basics to people’s lives, thus the promotion of the culture of consumerism. For computers, viruses are created to make anti-virus products necessary. Ironically however, from these good effects of Industrial Revolution to modern day production also arise its negative effects. While the essential change in the mode of production from feudal to capitalist mode has provided the basic needs of the society, it unfortunately did not equate distribution. Few have more, while many have less. And although, many have been elevated to middle class, the disparity between the rich and the poor widened. Since technology is controlled by the capitalist, whose predominant interest is to gain more and more profits, products are not only meant to supply social needs, but more to gain bigger and bigger profits. So, the social produce which should have been a social good becomes mere commodities that could be bought only by those who have the purchasing power. Furthermore, the mechanization of labor which had radically lessened the hours of work should have not only lessened the value but should have also improved the quality of the produced. On the contrary, products are valued not on the number of hours they are made but on their quality. And with this, the lesser the quality of the product, the cheaper it is sold. Moreover, due to the unquenchable greed of capitalist for more profits, mass production has in fact eroded the value of the produce, making it no longer a need but waste. Thus, the supposed social benefits of the efficiency of technology are being eroded, not to forget the basic contradiction between capital and labor, where labor is exploited by the capital, undermining its crucial role in the production, and not to disregard the negative effect of technological development to the earth’s environment. NASA reports that “human activities, particularly fossil fuel burning and deforestation, have upset Earths carbon cycle balance. Since the Industrial Revolution began in 1750, atmospheric carbon dioxide has increased from about 280 parts per million to about 385 parts per million” (cited in Guanqun, 2009, par. 7-8). Another thing, which could be seen in two opposing views, the expansion of production which necessitated the expansion of markets led to economic wars resulting negatively to further exploitation, yet positively has increased and spread production. However, looking at it in a wider perspective, it has further divided the globe between the developed and the underdeveloped. And much more, as man’s needs should have been satisfied by succeeding scientific developments, the world should have been more peaceful, but on the contrary, as technology is further advanced, the world becomes more chaotic and more violent. Therefore, the effects of Industrial Revolution to modern day production are both positive and negative, as it has civilized yet dehumanized societies. It has civilized societies in the sense that societies are industrialized with people’s standard of living improved and with man’s quest for development further intensified. However, on the negative note, it has dehumanized societies in the sense that man is alienated from his/her produce and that instead of man working in order to realize his/her fullest merely works in order to live. Also, Truly, Industrial Revolution is revolutionary not only because of the radical changes it has effected to societies, but more so to the contradictions that it has sharply marked as modern day production is continuously modernizing. References Calhoun, Craig. 2002. “Dictionary definition: Industrialization.” Dictionary of the Social Sciences. Retrieved January 22, 1010, from High Beam Research http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1O104-industrialization.html Clifford, AGA. (2009). “Effects of Industrial Revolution.” Buzzle.com. Retrieved January 19, 2010 from Buzzle.com http://www.buzzle.com/articles/effects-of-industrial-revolution.html Encyclopædia Britannica. (2010). Industrial Revolution. 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(2009). “Men of Shropshire shook the world.” Toronto Sun. 1 February. Retrieved January 22, 2010 from Toronto Sun Online: http://www.torontosun.com/travel/europe/2009/02/01/8221856-sun.html Read More