Student Essay on The Effect of Industrialization on 19th Century Society

Agriculture, steam, factories, and the government contributed to how the people where affected by industrialization in the 19th century. With Agriculture beginning to use machinery, Steam becoming a very important part of every day life, and factories being able to put in new machinery there was an increase in the position of the government. Change did not always mean progress; with change there came a number of setbacks as well as advances for the people

With agriculture beginning to use new machinery the market for food increased. They began to use machinery rather than animals and people. A farmer and his sons would be able to run a whole farm on their own with out hired help. They were able to get work that would normally take weeks, done in a shorter period of time. They were then able to get food from places that were not close to them. It began to create wealth in the cities and farmers began to move in to the cities rather then stay in the rural areas.

There was a steady increase in the size of cities. This had some negative effects. People were moving into the cities faster then housing could be constructed. Disease began to spread because of the overcrowded cities and the unsanitary living conditions. There were positive effects also. With the growth of the cities came new technologies. To help with transportation, subways, street cars, and elevated trains were used. New water and sewage systems were built also.

As a result the government had to step in to deal with the new issues that had evolved because of industrialization. The government had to set up police officers and firefighters because there was an increase in crime and fires. The government started a food and safety regulation.

The steam engine was invented which allowed people to go outside of their community which they were not easily able to do before. Products were able to be moved around easier without the fear that it wouldn't be received in time. Steam engines lead to locomotives.

Factory workers were put into worse conditions as industrialization began to sink in. They where forced to work long hours in a very unsafe environment for very little pay in order to survive. There was an iron discipline when it came to working in the factories, they were expected to be at there at a certain time and stay there till a certain time with no exceptions. With this woman's roles in society changed those who were once housewives and caring mothers became an active part of the working class. They no longer stayed home to care for their husbands and children and they began to have moral values.

Every aspect of life was affected from that of the lower class to that of the higher class. Mass production was possible with interchangeable parts and production lines. All this sparked a whole new world and it accelerated mankind's rate of progress faster then any other period in history.