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The Industrial Revolution In the last part of the 18 th century, a new revolution gripped an unready world. This revolution was not a political one, however it would lead to many implications later in its existence. Nor was this revolution a social or cultural one. This revolution was an economic one in which there was a transformation from the traditional hand made tools and items to machine driven, mass produced goods.
The Industrial Revolution, as it is called by historians, changed the ways the world produced goods. Basically, it also changed our primarily agricultural society to one that was dominated by industry and manufacturing. It brought work from home and centralized it in the factory. The Industrial Revolution first got underway in Britian during the 18 th century. At this time, Great Britian was the most powerful empire on the planet, and as a result, a revolution would be inevitable.
Also, the English merchants were leaders in developing a commerce that increased the need for more goods. The expansion in trade had made it possible to accumulate capital to use in industry. England also contained a plethora of natural resources, which is a favorable factor in industrial development. After the adoption of the Industrial Revolution, many other countries, such as Germany, the United States, and France joined the revolution. In England, the demand for cotton cloth was very high. This crisis had to be solved or else England?
s economy would be hindered. A British weaver named John Kay came up with a reasonable solution. He invented the flying shuttle, which cut weaving time in half. This paved the way for many future inventions to come. The machines paved their way to England and the Industrial Revolution had begun. At first, the inventions of the Industrial Revolution were limited to cotton weaving.
Inventions such as the spinning Jenny and the water-powered frame made cotton weaving much more efficient. On the technology front, the biggest achievements were in steam power. A Scottish man named James Watt improved the steam engine so that it did not waste as much fuel as the primitive steam engines. New fuels, such as coal and petroleum, were introduced to steam power.
This revolutionized many industries, such as textiles and manufacturing. Also, a new communication medium known was the telegraph was invented, making communication across the oceans much easier. Also, people were able to feel the benefits of electricity, with the invention of the dynamo by Michael Faraday. Electricity flourished in people? s lives, supplying them with light and to power machines. The telegraph, as stated above, used the benefits of electricity.
Although there were many technological advancements made during the Industrial Revolution, many socioeconomic and cultural problems arose from this new industrial age. Although there was a great leap in technology, there was an overall downfall in the socioeconomic and cultural situations of the people. Overpopulation of cities was on major downfall of the Industrial Revolution. Many people migrated to the cities to find work, because their jobs normally done with hand were taken over by machines.
In turn, the cities could not support these people. They, as a result, ended up living in germ infested, crowded, and often unhealthy living conditions. Children and women labored in harsh conditions, working long hours for very little pay. With the new industrial age, people took a new quantitative and materialistic view of the world, which, in turn, caused some people to become greedy and take as much as possible. The Industrial Revolution was overall not a good revolution for out planet. From its start, the atmosphere has been filling with carbon dioxide from the various factories.
Also, in our drive for consumerism, we have used up many of our earth? s valuable natural resources at an alarming rate. Is the Industrial Revolution a true revolution? The answer to that is no; the term?
revolution? is incorrect. This is a revolution in the fact that there was a major change, but the change took many years, and there was no revolt involved. The change is still taking place today. The Industrial Revolution did not follow the characteristic stages for a revolution, also. The Industrial Revolution led to other revolutions which further advanced our technology.
The Transportation Revolution, Communications Revolution, and the Information Revolution can all be traced back to the Industrial Revolution. These revolutions had added to the prosperity of humankind, and each of them had their effects on society. The Industrial Revolution had far more of an impact on us than any other political revolutions of the era, mainly because the effects of the Industrial Revolution last much longer. For example, today we have automobiles, televisions, and computers, which were all made possible because of the effects of the Industrial Revolution. Without the Industrial Revolution, we probably would not have all the luxuries we have today. 33 a
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Research essay sample on 18 Th Century Industrial Revolution
