How Industrialization Changed Our Society
Industrialization is the transition of economic structure from agricultural to the one which is based on the mechanized production process. It is an economic, historical and social phenomenon that had changed the life organization for the whole mankind. It is commonly thought that the Industrial Revolution provided a basis for the development of capitalism and gave Western democracies the edge over the rest of the world. The Revolution has started in the late 18th century in Europe and spread to the United States in the early 19th century. A rapid emergence of industrial complexes, factories, railroads, as well as an unparalleled urbanization was among the defining features of industrialization of that particular historic period.
The second spike of industrialization in the U.S. had occurred during the Second World War and in the post-war period, which became known as the Golden Age of Capitalism.It allowed this country to obtain a global leadership in an economic and political sense but other countries have also experienced a rapid development as a consequence of industrialization. Nowadays, there are industrial complexes in every country, whether it is an advanced or developing one – every part of the world, except for North and South Poles, makes its contribution to the mass production of commodities. However, apart from being a momentum into economic and political shifts in the global arena, industrialization also had an enormous influence on the society as a whole and on its every member.
The 18th century marked the turning point for the society as it's lifestyle have bee changing with every new invention and it continues to change even now because industrialization hasn't stopped or even slowed down. Some people believe that the mankind has passed only an initial phase of industrialization, and many changes are awaiting us in the future. As for the changes that had already occurred, the earliest and the most important one was urbanization or the mass migration from rural areas to cities. The people moved to the localities that were close to the newly emerged factories where they could find better job opportunities.
Factory workers earned more money than rural people which meant that their families could enjoy better living standards, for example, better education, social and professional growth. However, a rapid urbanization and factory work were also associated with substantial negative impact its population. Cities became overcrowded because there wasn't any proper urban planning. The majority of people suffered from various diseases since they lived in the dreadfully unsanitary conditions without running water or drainage systems. As for the work at the factories, it was often carried out in unhygienic conditions, workers suffered from excessive fatigue, despotism from their supervisors and health problems. Fatal accidents were quite common at that time.
Child labor is another hideous phenomenon which took place in countries that experienced a swift industrialization, namely England and the U.S. We all know about the malignant conditions at factories which used child labor from the classic literary works, such as “Oliver Twist”. The owners of coal mines, factories, and mills exploited youngsters, taking advantage of their social vulnerability.
However, these horrible facts were relevant only for children who worked in factories. As for those who lived with their families, this period of early industrialization brought a lot of positive aspects because they had an opportunity to get a better education and to form a wider and better social circle.
It all sounds really horrible from the modern perspective but it was a necessary hardship of a transitional period. The society experienced rapid and drastic changes but the commitment and dedication of those people were crucial for the shaping of the modern world. The early period of industrialization is also associated with groundbreaking inventions, such as steam engine, gas turbine, steamboat and steam-powered locomotive, battery, electric light, the typewriter, the telegraph and so on. These inventions served not only as an incredible momentum for the development of industry and trade but also made the society much more mobile and interconnected having provided it with the mean of better communication and faster traveling.
Despite the harsh working condition, the overall living standard for people in Europe and the U.S. had increased due to the emergence of mass production which made a lot of commodities and services cheaper and more accessible.
Industrialization didn't stop at this point, it only continued to gain momentum, bringing about innovations, some of which were extremely beneficial for society while other brought misery and devastation. The emergence of large industrial complexes, as well as the development of methods of extraction of commercial minerals and oil, caused an increased pollution of land, water, and air. The phenomenon of industrialization is comparatively young but the humanity has already experienced a number of disastrous incidents, such as the one that happened in Minamata or the Chernobyl catastrophe.
Government and different organizations are trying to address this burning issue by signing multinational agreements, such as the Paris Agreement in 2015, or by conducting protests but these measures seem to have little effect because the impact of conglomerates, which were born out of industrialization, is just way too powerful, and they are not going to reduce their profits for the sake of well-being of the society. Another impact of industrialization, which is perhaps the most devastating of all, is the rapid development of military technology. It allowed the more industrially advanced countries to dominate over somewhat backward ones in an economic and military sense, tempting ones to carry out military aggression and dragging others into conflicts. It wouldn't be fair to say that industrialization was a direct cause of both world wars but it had certainly provided the means for these military activities to develop into global armed conflicts.
The impact of these wars on the global society was nothing but disastrous: tens of millions of people were killed, maimed, wounded and tortured in the course of military activities and genocides. These tragic events have not only redrawn the map of the world, they've left a tender wound in the mentality of almost every individual because one can hardly find a person whose ancestor wasn't in some way involved in those or some other wars. Industrialization has also brought another controversial innovation which is an atomic energy. While it provided us with the means of getting cheap electricity in abundance, it also caused a number of accidents and served as a basis for the most dreadful weapon of all – an atomic bomb which is hanging like a sword of Damocles over the mankind.
Nevertheless, all of the aforementioned threats and negativities and more than balanced by the positive effects. Innovations which occurred in the course of industrialization allowed people to enjoy even better living standards. Automobiles and civil aviation made the society extremely mobile, providing it with vast opportunities to travel and explore the world. The inventions of the radio, television, and computers gave the society the unparalleled means of communication, information acquisition, and education. Industrialization had also resulted in remarkable advancements in medicine, which allowed to save millions of lives.
In conclusion, it has to be acknowledged that industrialization is an ambivalent phenomenon which is going to affect our society whether we want it or not. However, we don't have to militate against it but we should be aware of its negative effects and try to reduce them to a minimum.
