What were the effects of the Industrial Revolution on mass society? The Industrial Revolution took place in history from 1790-1870 and it had a profound influence on mass society because it led to worldwide urbanization. The other effects were felt by the end no feudalism and the rise of socialism, communism and capitalism. Leading up to the revolution, for 1300 years starting from the fall of Rome to the dawn of the Industrial
Revolution, Europe and the Orient were largely autocratic with elaborate caste systems and most people at the bottom rung as serfs which was kind of a virtual slave that tied a person and family to a plot of land to work it in perpetuity for the sake of raising revenue for his duke or baron. The
Industrial revolution broke the back of that system because the wealth it generated became more lucrative and factories had to be built in major population centers while mid-level nobility couldn't afford to build a factory in every domain. The back of feudalism was broken when wealth became concentrated in different hands under capitalism which is the means of production held by the bourgeoisie, socialism which was held by the people and communism which was held by the government (Stevens, 2013). The biggest effect I feel that came from the Industrial Revolution was our mass population in general which more than doubled during this period due to increased food production, advances in medicine, better sanitation and thus creating an increase in birthrate. Other effects were the creation of globalization and world economic connectivity, the massive rise of corporations, the rise of unions and collective bargaining, government oversight and the creation of such traditions as the 40-hour work week, safe working conditions, and the idea of benefits. This era created the working class period (Barrow, 2013). Improvements in agricultural methods continued to advance during the Industrial Revolution and landowners in Great Britain enclosed their open common lands and concentrated on making them more productive. Employing crop rotation and irrigation technology the farmers improved crop yields for market products and animal feed while the availability of better feed combined with selective breeding produced healthier stock and made more meat available to the market.
These agricultural advances substantially improved the British population's diet and increased life expectancy and in the United States the railroad transport and improved refrigeration methods in the later 19th century made fresh foods more widely available for longer periods during the year. This is really the effects of the revolution via means of food for mass society.
We truly saw the world as we know it now all stem from the foundation laid by the revolution and it’s amazing how it all built-up and came together (History.com, 2013). Advancements in medicine during the Industrial Revolution meant more lives were able to be saved and Dr. Edward Jenner performed the first vaccination against smallpox by inoculating a young boy with cowpox matter. By 1840, the use of the vaccine spread worldwide in Great
Britain. Shortly after that Dr. Louis Pasteur determined that microscopic organisms spread diseases and discovered a way to remove germs from milk through pasteurization. On Oct. 16,
1846, ether was used for the first time as an anesthesia during surgery. The procedure, which took place at Boston's Massachusetts General Hospital, marked the beginning of modern medicine. The development of the ophthalmoscope, stethoscope and thermometer in the mid-
1800s aided doctors in diagnosing medical conditions. This era created the foundation to medical advancements, vaccines and even cures to certain diseases that we use and live by in a mass society today. After reading this chapter and writing this essay I really feel so much more