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Lives of the Working Class

Lives of the Working Class. Textile Factory Workers in England. Young “Bobbin-Doffers”. Young Coal Miners. Child Labor in the Mines. Child “hurriers”. Industrial Staffordshire. Worker Housing in Manchester. Working hours ranged from 12 to 16 hours a day, six days a week

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Lives of the Working Class

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  1. Lives of the Working Class

  2. Textile FactoryWorkers in England

  3. Young “Bobbin-Doffers”

  4. Young Coal Miners

  5. Child Labor in the Mines Child “hurriers”

  6. Industrial Staffordshire

  7. Worker Housing in Manchester

  8. Working hours ranged from 12 to 16 hours a day, six days a week Half hour for lunch and dinner Textile mills were hot, dirty, dusty, dangerous, and unhealthy By 1830, 2/3’s of the mill workers were women and children. Women and children were also employed in the mines under horrible conditions. Many children suffered severe injuries and permanent damage to their bones.

  9. Factory Wages in Lancashire, 1830

  10. Reforms • Factory Act of 1833 -- prohibited children under age of 9 from working in textile industry; limited the hours of children from 9-12 to 8 hours a day; limited the hours of children 13-17 to 12 hours a day; called for 2 hours of education for children 9 to 12 • Mines Act of 1842 – prohibited women and children from working in mines • Ten Hours Act of 1847 – women and children under the age of 18 could not work more than 10 hours a day

  11. Social Impact of Industrialization in Europe Population Growth: 1850 – Europe’s population had almost doubled due to decline in death rates, war, and diseases. Because of increased food supply, more people were better fed and resistant to diseases. Exception – Irish Potato Famine in the 1840’s.

  12. Response to Industrialization The pitiful conditions created by the Industrial Revolution prompted diverse opinions on how to respond. Some offered theories to support laissez-faire policies; others suggested that the government should intervene in industry to alleviate the suffering of the working class.

  13. In The Wealth of Nations, Adam Smith said that government should not interfere in the economy. Progress results from individuals following their own self-interests. Three natural laws of economics; self-interest, competition, supply and demand Classical Economists

  14. In his Essay on the Principle of Population, Thomas Malthus argued that since population grows more rapidly than the food supply, wars and epidemics are necessary to prevent mass starvation.

  15. In Principles of Political Economy and Taxation, David Ricardo put forth the iron law of wages: Wages are low when workers are plentiful. If the number of workers goes down, wages will go up. However, as soon as workers have more money, they will have more children, and wages will fall as the population rises once again.

  16. Utilitarians • Most noted were Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill • Most associated with “the greatest good for the greatest number”. Government should promote programs that would provide for the greatest good. If a program does not benefit the majority, government should keep hands off. Also pushed for legal and prison reforms and improvements in education

  17. Utopian Socialists • Utopian socialists favored common ownership of property and blamed private ownership of factors of productions for society’s ills. • Believed that the government should actively plan the economy • Well-known Utopian socialists included Robert Owen, Charles Fourier, and the Count Saint-Simon

  18. Scientific Socialism Most noted Karl Marx and Fredrick Engels, The Communist Manifesto, • Believed that history is marked by class struggle between the haves and the have-nots. • Industrial Revolution, to Marx, was a struggle between the proletariat (workers) and the bourgeoisie (employers). • Believed that someday the proletariat would revolt, taking control of the factories and government. • Once the proletariat seized control of the means of production, a dictatorship of the proletariat would educate the masses in the communist system. • Eventually the need for government would disappear. The result would be a classless society or pure communism

  19. Additional Responses to Industrialization • Unions, especially those of highly skilled workers had some success. Eventually governments would grant unions the right to collective bargaining and to the strike

  20. Luddities (named for Ned Lud) attacked and destroyed the machines that they thought were depriving workers of their jobs. First united effort by workers; however failed to halt spread of industrialization. Involved several hundred workers in Britain who were never found.

  21. Chartist Movement – first united effort by workers to gain rights for workers; presented a People’s Charter to Parliament requesting • universal male suffrage • secret ballot • end of property requirements for holding office • salary for those serving in House of Commons

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