Did The Industrial Revolution Bring More Harm Than Good?

The Industrial Revolution was a time of immense progress: technology, medicine, education, industry, and economy all made a massive leap forward. However, with tremendous growth came challenges. This period marks the beginning of global warming, child labor exploitation, and growing disparities between the rich and poor. So, was industrialization really a force for good? Here are the biggest pros and cons of this formative era in human history.

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1. More Affordable & Accessible Goods

As opposed to being handmade, goods were mass produced in factories. This caused them to become much cheaper, allowing for lower class people to be able to afford them.

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2. Evolution of Medicine

The Industrial Revolution allowed for tools like scalpels and test tubes to be manufactured on a much larger scale. Additionally, communication between doctors in different areas improved through technologies like telegraphs so new cures and treatments could be spread much more quickly. 

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3. Enhanced Quality of Life

The lower cost of items and increased employment opportunities in factories allowed for common people to accumulate wealth. This created a growing middle class between the aristocratic population and the poor.

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4. More Specialized Professions

Factory workers were trained in specific tasks for maximum efficiency, and new machines provided a need for specialized workers who knew how to fix them. What's more, the expansion of urban areas necessitated additional doctors, lawyers, and transportation specialists to deal with the needs of the growing population. 

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5. Technological Advancement

Industrialization brought on a wave of technological innovation made possible by the mass production of goods and raw materials. Industrialization also brought greater wealth allowing for more investment in technology such as the steam engine and telegraph. 

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6. Economic Growth

Just like individuals grew personal wealth, economies also grew thanks to new industries and trade between nations. This caused living standards to be greatly improved for most people.

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7. Increased Agricultural Productivity

With the improvements in agricultural technology, farms became much more productive, allowing for greater food stability. This coincided with the unprecedented population growth.

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8. Improvements to Education

The greater need for specialized workers encouraged better education. If before everyone was reliant on farming, now there was an incentive to pursue other types of training.

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9. Promoted Globalization

Industrialization made factories capable of producing more than ever and new forms of transportation allowed for those products to be brought to different locations around the world much more quickly. This facilitated global trade expansion and greater cooperation between nations.

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10. Expansion of Cities

Employment opportunities in factories caused rural farmers to move in droves to cities in search of work. As a result, urban infrastructure was drastically improved. 

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Now that we've covered some of the biggest pros of The Industrial Revolution, let's talk about the not so pleasant effects.

1. Overcrowding of Cities

Although the droves of farmers coming to cities allowed for better infrastructure development, they also caused population problems in cities. The result was poor living conditions, sanitation, and the spread of diseases. 

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2. Pollution & Environmental Degradation

The start of global warming has largely been traced back to this time in history. Factories, engines, and manufacturing industries caused an unprecedented rise in air and water pollution, and a reduction in biodiversity.

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3. Poor Working Conditions

Although factory workers were often paid better than farmers, their working conditions were much worse and they worked longer hours. Factory owners cared much more about profit and production than about workers' safety.

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4. Health Problems

There were many health problems associated with factory work caused by the harsh conditions. Overcrowding in cities caused a rise in infectious diseases and air pollution triggered respiratory problems like asthma. The life expectancy was low and child mortality was high.

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5. Increased Disparity Between Rich & Poor

Although there was a burgeoning middle class of factory managers and professionals, there was also a growing divide between rich and poor. As the rich and middle classes made more money from industrialization, the poor factory workers continued living and working in harsh conditions.

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6. Loss of Traditional Crafts

Although it allowed for goods to be manufactured much quicker making them more accessible, industrialization also put an end to the jobs of many skilled artisans. Items that were previously made by hand were created by machines and factories.

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7. Poor Nutrition

Because food had to be transported and there was such high demand in the city, it was expensive so malnutrition was rampant. A factory worker's diet during this time frequently consisted of bread, potatoes, and weak tea. 

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8. Tedious Labor 

Factories implemented assembly line style of work which consisted of simple repetitive tasks. This type of labor replaced more intricate and meaningful skilled crafts and led to dissatisfaction.

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9.  Uprooted Rural Communities

The reduced need for farm labor forced agricultural communities to relocate to cities which often offered less happy and balanced lives. It also caused rural areas to be deserted and contributed to more overpopulation in cities.

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10. Child Labor

To supplement their parents' meager income working in factories, children were often put to work for long hours in dangerous environments. Child labor was so rampant it eventually led to the formation of labor unions to protect children's rights.

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