The Industrial Revolution Essay

The long-lasting effects of the Industrial Revolution are still shaping the contemporary world. Because of the discoveries and innovations made during the process of mechanizing the industries, workers can now produce large quantities of products without having to worry about their skill sets. The advancements made in the transportation sector facilitated the quick and efficient movement of people and products over long distances. People during that time period also benefited from changes in living standards as education became essential for kids to increase their literacy levels. As the rate of growth grew, the life expectancy increased thanks to improvements in healthcare and food safety regulations. In the modern world, the effects of the Industrial Revolution are felt in all nations. Most of these nations are characterized by capitalistic and free-market economies as well as strong industrial sectors. Industrial societies are further identified through their political structures that underscores the concept of democracy (Hewitt 460). Closely associated with the right to participate in political processes is the idea of upholding the human rights. The modern society has also been negatively affected through aspects such as pollution, unemployment as a result of increased use of machines and the creation of social classes that have widened the gap between the haves and the have not’s. In order to be more conversant with the effects of Industrial Revolution and the various ways it has shaped the modern society, it is necessary to specifically delve into the social, economic, political, and environmental impacts of the scientific process.

Industrial Revolution had a number of positive and negative impacts that continue to affect the modern society. Currently, modern societies are also referred to as mass societies because of the population being concentrated in the cities that house millions of people (Bell 46). Such industrialized societies have been benefiting from the high standards of living, welfare programs and the guarantee of the fundamental freedoms and rights. Another notable feature worth scrutinizing in the widening gap between the rich and the poor that is associated with the transformation to industrial societies. The gap is said to be contributing to poverty and unemployment, two factors that also lead to homelessness, lack of shelter and food. It is, however, worth recommending the job being done by governments across the affected regions to ensure that issues like unemployment and poverty issues are addressed.

Industrial Revolution is also associated with the formation of Labor Unions that have had both positive and negative benefits. The class conflict between the bourgeois and the proletariat that was conceived by Karl Marx resulted to occasional strikes in a bid to strike equality (Marx 24). Labor forces began as a result of the effort to strike the power balance, something that eventually leads to unionization. The revolutionized labor unions in the modern world can be well understood with the knowledge of the Industrial Revolution. Unionization resulted to the expansion of the revolutionary workforce that saw the rights and the equality of all citizens being observed. Trade Unions were however viewed as posing a big threat to the bourgeois as well as the rich class in the modern society because of the firm stand against exploitations and poor working conditions.

The modern family life is another social issue that can be analyzed to find out how it has been shaped by the industrialization process. An easily identifiable change in the family structure was the change from domestic to the working type of members. Families would get their salaries and wages and could afford to satisfy the traditional needs that had been there earlier on. An in-depth analysis of the impact of industrial revolution on the family institution had more positive benefits to reap that offset the negative impacts. The family life was at the core of the industrialization process which also made the roles and responsibilities carried out by men. Women and children to change (Goode 12).

Industrial Revolution is also associated with the promotion of child labor in the modern society. Child labor was a normalized activity when industrialization process was picking up in most nations of the world. In Britain, there were industries that did not require skilled labor such as textile mills and spinning mules. Owners of these factories sought unskilled and cheap labor from children. Children would also offer services in running machines that were easy to operate as well as other sectors that had repetitive tasks (Horell and Jane 515). Children were not aware of the importance of joining trade unions if at all they met the minimum requirements. The inability to have bodies and organizations that would fight for their rights resulted to more exploitation to the extent of offering services under no pay. The modern society superficially seems to condemn child labor although there are many children serving in the industries, a trend that goes down in the history of industrialization.

The Industrial Revolution has also shaped the modern world economy. Mechanization was a common characteristic in industries during the Industrial Revolution, particularly when considering iron and textile making industries. The modern world has however built on the foundation to come up with various levels of industries. The primary industries concentrate on the collection of the raw material and are dominant in the fields of farming, mining, fishing, and forestry. Secondary industries deal with turning raw material into finished goods and are behind the textile, steel production as well as car making. Tertiary industries deal with the provision of services in various sectors such as finance, judiciary, and healthcare. Lastly, we have quaternary industries that deal with telecommunication or the transfer of information.

Politics are often affected by the changes that occur in other sectors such as the economy and the social organization of people. Modern nations have adopted the ideology of capitalism with the means of production being privately owned. Besides, individuals get a chance to invest in businesses that produce goods and services for people to freely purchase. The processes are supposed to be carried out independently with minimal interference from the government. Capitalism emphasizes on the idea of producing goods at a lower cost and selling them at a higher price, an idea that is deeply rooted in profit making. The capitalistic economy is a direct impact of the Industrial Revolution which eventually triggered democracy in most nations (Birchfield and Markus 196). Countries like Britain and the United States spread their democratic ideal to other nations that they interacted with during the industrial revolution. Industrialized nations in the modern world are increasingly emphasizing on the need to adopt democracy in running political processes, often expressed through voting.

Besides the political sector, the process of Industrial Revolution has directly or indirectly affected environmental issues in the modern world. There are many organizations and policies like the Kyoto-Protocol that have been put in place to control the negative effects of the industrialization process. Currently, much of the efforts in controlling the environmental pollution are geared towards the emission of the greenhouse gases and effects of land clearing. The increased mechanization in the modern world has made pollution to rise above unimaginable levels resulting to negative climate changes. Some of the most adverse effects of pollution that are currently drawing the attention of many researchers is the melting of the ice caps that have made the ocean level to rise. The rise in the water level is behind the disappearance of islands in countries like Samoa. The pollution from the industrial wastes is also associated with negative environmental impacts such as soil erosion and land degradation. In the attempts to restore normalcy, world governments are teaming up and formulating policies and mitigation measures through bodies like the United Nations Environment Program.

Conclusively, the Industrial Revolution was a process that has continued to impact and shaped the modern world either positively or negatively. The positive aspects outdo the negative ones because, for a long time, there is no country that has opposed the industrialization process. The impacts of the Industrial revolution continue to affect almost every facet of the dynamic societies in the world through the political, social, economic, cultural and environmental spheres. There are various measures being put in place to check the negative aspects of the Industrial Revolution in the modern era. Examples of such efforts are the formulation of the labor unions, the emphasis on the need to uphold democratic governance and the environmental programs to reduce the rate of pollution.

Works Cited

Bell, Daniel. “The coming of the post-industrial society.” The Educational Forum. Vol. 40. No.4. Taylor and Francis Group, 1976: 45-47.

Birchfield, Vicki, and Markus ML Crepaz. “The impact of constitutional structures and collective and competitive veto points on income inequality in industrialized democracies.” European Journal of Political Research 34.2 (1998): 195-199.

Goode, William Josiah. “World revolution and family patterns.” (1963): 12.

Hewitt, Christopher. “The effect of political democracy and social democracy on equality in industrial societies: A cross-national comparison.” American sociological review (1977): 459-462.

Horrell, Sara, and Jane Humphries. “” The Exploitation of Little Children“: Child Labor and the Family Economy in the Industrial Revolution.” Explorations in Economic History 32.4 (1995): 515-516.

Marx, Karl. Karl Marx: selected writings. Oxford University Press, 2000: 23-25.