Significant Social Consequences Of The First Industrial Revolution

GKE1 Task 4

Karla Weeks
WGU
#000438833

A. Justify your choice of the two most significant social consequences of the First Industrial Revolution (circa 1780–1850).
The Industrial Revolution is synonymous with Mechanization, or exchanging human labor for machine labor. During the first Industrial Revolution, child labor was a common theme in both Britain and the U.S. due to the great demand for labor. Looking for work families left their farms to travel to cities that were becoming industrialized. Upon arrival, they found desperate situations that forced all family members into the factory situations just to survive. Often treated to cruelly, children were cheap labor and typically forced to work for twelve to fourteen
When the demand for labor increased, so did the industrialization in the cities and the population shifted toward the urban area. Many downfalls accompanied the urbanization such as water pollution and air pollution from the coal. Many families lived in row housing in the cities, often six people in a bed and that close proximity as well as to neighbors help to spread diseases, (“The Industrial Revolution.” n.d.). The streets of the cities would become littered with trash, as sanitary conditions were poor and the cities would become filthy and unhealthy.

B. Discuss how the First Industrial Revolution contributed to the rise of capitalism. The birth of capitalism rose along with the birth of the Industrial Revolution. With the introduction of machinery, the demands for production leading to a demand for raw materials. This in turn led to changes in agriculture, transportation, communication and new world trade. A portion of the large existing markets were captured and men became wealthy by taking the ability to develop an idea, setting up a manufacturing plant and making products cheaper and more efficient than previous methods. This new way of gaining wealth allowed people to invest in new inventions and technology and quickly accumulate a fortune.

C. Discuss how the rise of capitalism led to the development of communist
This created a disparity between the rich and the working poor. This stage in society separation, known as socialism and marked by unequal pay for the work performed, is the intermediate stage between capitalism and communism, according to German philosopher and revolutionary socialist Karl Marx’s theory “The Communist Manifest”. (“Karl Marx” 2011) Marx described Communism “as a society in which each person should contribute according to their ability and receive according to their need”. (“Karl Marx” 2011)

C1. Justify your choice of two significant differences between capitalist theory and communist theory. The goal of Capitalism is individual economic freedom supported by private ownership of property. Factory and business owners make all the decision and maintain sole ownership of their property. Price is set by supply and demand for a product, prices are lower when the supply is high and the demand for the product tends to increase until the supply is depleted.
In the Communist theory, the government owns and makes the decisions for those business and factories based on what the government deems necessary for the overall well being of the population. Control of the economy is shared by the people and working in the name of the people, the government sets goals to eliminate economic inequality by dictating