Industrial Revolution: Impact on Social Hierarchies and Standards of Living

Introduction

• Industrial Revolution brought significant changes to social hierarchies and standards of living.
• Emergence of new social classes.

New Social Classes

1. Industrial Working Class

• Comprised mainly of factory workers and miners.
• Consisted of rural people moving to urban areas due to mechanization of farming.
• Transition from skilled to unskilled labor:
  • Factory work required little skill; workers were seen as replaceable.
• Benefits and challenges:
  • Higher wages than rural areas.
  • Dangers of factory work, poor living conditions, and spread of disease.

2. Middle Class

• Included factory owners, managers, and white-collar workers (lawyers, doctors, teachers).
• Benefited the most from industrialization:
  • Comfortable lifestyles and access to manufactured products.
  • Some could rise to the aristocracy.
• Perception of self-made success and views on the working class.

3. Industrialists

• Known as captains of industry.
• Gained incredible wealth and power, surpassing traditional aristocracy.

Impact on Women and Children

Working Class Women

• Worked in factories alongside men to support family income.
• Children as young as five worked in factories and mines.
• Families often split due to different work locations for members.
• Some laws eventually enacted to protect children.

Middle Class Women

• Did not work for pay; husbands' income sufficient for family support.
• Defined by domestic roles:
  • Homemakers creating safe environments for family.

Challenges of the Industrial Age

1. Pollution

• Rapid industrialization outpaced infrastructure development.
• Coal smoke and industrial waste led to pollution and health issues.
• Notable example: Pollution of London’s River Thames.

2. Housing Shortages

• Influx of people into cities led to overcrowded and poorly constructed tenements.
• Poor ventilation and sanitation fostered disease spread (typhoid, cholera).

3. Increased Crime

• High concentration of poor people in urban areas.
• Rise in theft and violent crime linked to survival needs and alcohol consumption.

Conclusion

• Industrial Revolution reshaped social structures and brought new challenges.
• For further study, access AP World Heimler Review Guide or other topics in Unit 5.