IND - Social Effects of Industrialization (Lesson)

Social Effects of Industrialization

You Have to Take the Bad with the Good…

As Europe continued to industrialize, the gap between the workers, the proletariat, and the owners, the bourgeoisie continued to widen. In this same time period, the middle class began to grow as well. People became aware of the differences in what they had, the way they lived, and how others lived. There was a real sense of self-consciousness when it came to the classes. This was particularly seen in the cities where the differences between the workers and the owners were more obvious. However, this  phenomenon was still evident in the less industrialized areas as the agricultural elite, or landed gentry, continued to dominate the social and economic activities well into the 20th century.

As class identity developed, the concepts were reinforced by the actions of the middle class. The middle class had the time and resources to participate in political, philanthropic (charitable), and social activities to improve their communities. The ability to be involved in the betterment of the community showed that a person had means and was successful enough to not have to work all the time to survive. While workers did not have the time or means to participate in these activities, they did manage to form trade unions to help improve their working conditions.

However, the movement of people from the rural parts of a country to the city did cause some problems.  Industrialization happened so quickly that there really was no time to attempt any form of urban planning. Because of that, tenements, which were poorly built, were put up as quickly as possible. Most of these poorly built homes had no windows or ventilation Even with these new tenements, there were overcrowded living spaces. The lack of urban planning extended into the issue of waste disposal. Because the population grew so quickly, there was no planning for sewage disposal, therefore, there was quite a bit of water contamination, leading to diseases such as cholera. Pollution was also an issue as there was no governmental regulation for the multitude of factories that had sprung up. They were able to dump waste products into the local rivers and streams and fill the air with pollution from the smokestacks. This led to respiratory problems and water-borne diseases for the inhabitants of the cities. 

While life in the city was hard and inhabitants faced horrible living conditions, living in the rural areas wasn’t much better. Although rural dwellers did not face the same challenges when it came to their environment, they did have to face labor shortages. The migration of people from rural to urban areas caused a decline in the available labor force. Not only did this affect production, but also, the robustness of communities. Without a stable population, community growth stagnated because there was no consistent leadership.

      

 

Family Matters

The growth of the middle class or bourgeois had an immense societal impact. The focus of the families changed from survival to the growth and well-being of the nuclear family. The nuclear family consisted of the father, mother, and any children. This was a change from the tradition of concern for the extended family. When money was less available, families would bond together and there could be three generations or more living in the same home with all contributing to the financial and social well-being of that family. With more money and stability, came the shift to the nuclear family. Middle-class women were expected to stay home and care for the family. They were in charge of the domestic sphere and this was known as the cult of domesticity. Special attention was paid to the upbringing of children, especially since infant and childhood mortality had decreased and middle-class children were more likely to grow to adulthood. Men and women had very specific gender roles with men being tasked as the provider for the family and the woman being in charge of the well-being of the family itself.

The middle class also had the luxury of having more leisure time. Without having to struggle to survive, they were able to spend more time with their families or small groups. Because of this, spaces for leisure time were developed. These include parks, facilities at beaches, and sporting clubs and areas. Culture was a large part of leisure time as well with the development of museums, theaters, and opera houses.

It was during this time period that the motivations for marriage changed somewhat. In centuries prior, marriage was often seen as a purely economic decision. That isn’t to say that people didn’t marry for love but one of the main reasons for marriage was economic. As the 19th century dawned, the idea of compassionate marriage or a marriage based on emotions became more important for people, especially the working class. Many of the elite still had marriage of economic convenience in order to gain power and land but the working class was more likely to marry for love.

 

A Closer Look at the Rise of the Middle Class

The industrial period saw many changes to European society including the rise of a new middle class. Often, when we think about the changes during this period, our first thoughts go to those working in the factory, but they weren't the only social group during this time. Distinct from the working class/urban poor, this new middle class worked primarily in industries that benefited FROM the factories (merchants, shopkeepers, factory owners, bankers, etc) and had a dramatic effect on European society, culture, and education.

But just what was this middle class?

The Middle Class was not a new concept in European society, but one that became firmly entrenched during the Industrial Age. The educated professionals who worked in white-collar positions gained additional wealth during this time, allowing them to live a comfortable life. Similar to that of the nobility, but without a title.

 

Let's take a closer look at the 2012 essay that addresses the middle class:

To understand the question, you must understand the changes the middle class underwent. First and foremost, you must understand that the middle class WAS NOT the working class. These were not the ones working in the factories. Once we start from that point, it will be easier to see what changes occurred. Below you'll see some of the information that would help you answer this question. Keep it in mind as you read your text for this module.

• A diversity of jobs in the white-collar sector.
• Valued economic self-sufficiency, literacy, respectability, and economic freedom.
• Women were the guardians of morality, responsible for their children's morals.
• Families were smaller, more nuclear.
• Lower mortality rates meant children lived longer and parents became more attached.
• Rousseau's writings on children as unique beings influenced the middle class to begin treating them as children rather than young adults.
• Toys and games are created and marketed toward children.
• Separate spheres were determined for men and women, women were in charge of the home while men were breadwinners who provided for their family.
• Marriage became based more on love and affection rather than for financial gain.
• Changes in the 2nd industrial revolution allowed for more leisure time spent at parks as well as contributions to consumer culture.
• Education became mandatory for all children.
• Women were able to work outside of the home, but did so rarely and were involved in white-collar professions such as clerks and teachers.
• In the home, women supervised chores and servants, they often worked extremely hard but were to appear idle.

So what does all of this mean? Ultimately that in the middle class, gender roles were well-defined: women as the caretaker of the home and men as the head of the family. Family structure was altered as children began to be celebrated, allowing for education, love, and play. Plus the smaller families, high salaries, and lower work hours allowed families to spend time together, taking advantage of the consumer culture created at the end of the 1800s.

 

Childhood wasn’t all fun and games

With the dawn of Industrialization in Europe, especially Great Britain, came the adoption of the practice of child labor. Children were frequently used in factories and mines to perform jobs that couldn’t be done by fully grown adults. This would include cleaning machines where their small hands were perfect for the small openings. They also worked in mines pulling small carts through very small shafts where a fully grown man could not work. This practice led to innumerable deaths of children as well as long-term physical problems for those who did survive. Years of breathing in coal dust and working in the dark while not being fed properly led to children growing up to be adults in poor health. There was no oversight on the use of children in the workplace. Another reason they were used was that they could be paid much less than a man or even a woman. These children worked long hours with poor diets and dangerous conditions. 

Women didn’t fare much better than children. They, too, worked long hours for very little pay, particularly in the textile mills. The work was hard and dangerous with many people suffering injuries that would end their job without any compensation. Without childcare, women were expected to find someone to tend to their children until they were old enough to work side by side with their mothers.

By the end of the 19th century, efforts were being made to improve the working conditions for women and children. In 1832, the Sadler Committee issued the Sadler Report. This was an investigation into conditions in the factories and mines as told by the people who worked there. The conclusions drawn by the Committee led to the beginning of legislation to restrict the labor of children and women. This legislation includes:

• 1833 – Factory Acts – limited the workday of children and set minimum hygiene and safety requirements.
• 1842 – Mines Act – prohibited underground work for all women and girls and boys under 10.
• 1847 – Ten Hours Act – restricted the working hours of women and young persons 13-18 in textile mills to ten hours per day.

These efforts to create better working conditions for children and women were a start. There were also efforts to require higher wages, implement more social welfare problems and improve diet. There were also attempts to increase access to birth control for the working class. By limiting the number of children in the family, parents would not have to provide for as many people and would not have to have children work at such a young age.

 

Sadler Commission -

After reading an excerpt from the Sadler Committee Report, what do you think the point of view of Matthew Sadler was? Did he exhibit bias in the content and method by which he asked the question?

Access  the Victorian Web: Sadler Commission website. Links to an external site.

 

 

---

 

In your notes, respond to the following.

• Because of the urbanization it spawned, industrialization drastically altered the makeup of the societies in which the process took place. Describe how the class structure and family life changed in Europe as the 19th century progressed, as it became possible to speak of distinctly different middle-class and working-class lifestyles.

 

[CC BY 4.0] UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED | IMAGES: LICENSED AND USED ACCORDING TO TERMS OF SUBSCRIPTION