Negative Side of the Industrial Revolution

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The Marxist Chronicles

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Welcome!

Welcome to The Marxist Chronicles Blog!

Here you will find all the information on the marxist's role and viewpoint during the Industrial Revolution!

I do hope that this will be able to assist you, and in the end, increase your full understanding of the Industrial Revolution as a whole altogether.

Thanks for visiting my blog!

Grace

What was the Industrial Revolution?

     The Industrial Revolution: a time of change and innovation; an event that changed human history drastically. Compared to countless other human events that occurred throughout history, the Industrial Revolution happened in a shorter amount of time, and still had a profound affect on people even today. Without the Industrial Revolution, companies would not be able to thrive under large or mass production circumstances. Not only would we not have the technology that has become apart of society, but we would not have large quantities of certain items because of the loss of large factories and such. However, as we think back, would have it been better if this event hadn't occurred? Of course we would not have as much money in the bank nor would we acquire large amounts of goods yet is that a good thing? Problems that arise such as global warming, poverty, or in general, greed, could these all be avoided if the Industrious Revolution hadn't occurred? The question remains unanswered and unfound.

     Many inventions arose from the Industrious Revolution such as steam engines in 1712, still serve us today in society. Other innovative ideas such as the telegraph in 1884, or even dynamite in 1866 all contributed to the welfare and entire prospect of this important time in history.

The steam engine was first created by Thomas Newcomen (1664-1729), but later improved by James Watt (1736-1819).  The idea of using steam to power engines was one of the main key concepts of the Industrial Revolution. However, it wasn't until 1769 that steam engines were used for trains, large factories, and steamboats.




This telegraph writer is one of the few devices that made people capable of communicating from a far. Samuel Morse(1791-1872)  was the inventor of this marvelous creation. Composed with an electromagnet and a small power source, the telegraph writer was the means for long distance communication, and Morse Code soon accompanied this invention.


The Spinning Jenny was created by James Hargreaves (1720, 1778) and named after his daughter, Jenny. From this invention, creating yarn was less difficult for the worker operating the machine could have at least eight spools of the material, compared to creating the yarn all by hand. Even though the machine may have created a more efficient process, some cloth workers were outraged for this meant they were out of a job and would lose money.

     As in all events of history, different social classes have different points of view on their certain situation. For example, capitalists wanted the government to have less control over the decisions of consumers. However, the "trickle down theory" also derived from this where the more wealthy created more businesses and employed the poorer part of society. Unfortunately, corruption existed and this did not occur. Poverty and suffering out-of-work people flooded the nation so something had to be done. This was where socialists and marxists entered the picture, yet many things soon took a turn for the worst, just like capitalism. The numerous viewpoints from child laborers, middle-class citizens, and even upperclass men all differed in the Industrial Revolution due to the circumstances each and everyone was in. 

In conclusion, the Industrial Revolution played a critical role in the history of human kind, and created a variety of positive (and negative) setbacks to the futures of our kind. Without a doubt, the question that boggles and perplexes our mind is: would our world be better if the Industrial Revolution hadn't occurred? The answer remains unseen and inconclusive. 

A Flashback to Marxism

     Marxism was initially thought of by the minds of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engel. Soon, the ideals and philosophy behind it all would spread around the whole world, and would soon come into practice of many countries.

     Marxism is the theory behind communism, and ultimately entails numerous goals for a different type of society. Marxism really came off the ground when both Marx and Engels published The Communist Manifesto, a document that gave nations a different perspective, yet ironically was radical enough to expel both Marx and Engels from the university they were studying at. It wasn't until the early 1900s (1914-1917) was when marxism began to emerge due to the Soviet Union putting marxism into their society's way of doing things. Marxism soon then made its mark on various countries, all varying from places in Europe, Asia, and even Latin America. Today, marxism-or lack of a better word-communism, is still used yet many countries are not in favour of this system being used due to the problems it can create.

     Back then in the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, many people were noticing the flaws that a capitalist society had produced. Employers were exploiting workers of their finances, child labour was a cruel and inhumane way to treat children, the environment was being impacted poorly, and workers had to endure unsafe, unhygienic conditions for ridiculous hours at a time. Soon, rebellions became evident for the people of the nation could not nor should not have to go through these conditions. As stated before, Engels and Marx noticed this very much and created a more idealistic society where everyone was benefitting in some sort of way. Of course, this was published in the world renown document, The Communist Manifesto, and the document outlined many goals and principles.

     This document included ten main goals of the Communist Party which entailed: termination of all private property, everything is to now be of public use; a large progressive income tax law towards the government; abolition of everyone's rights to own anything; the seizing of all property of anyone who denies the system or rebels; all money to be given to the government or state and to be equally distributed among all citizens; all means of transport and communication is to be in the hands of the government; everyone has equal liability to work; the combining of both the agricultural and manufacturing (or industrial) industries, and there would be no separation between town and country distribution; free education for all children if they are to go to a public school, and the combination of education and the production of goods. Of course, many countries these days have altered some of the goals of the Communist Party and do not go entirely by what the document entailed, yet the main objectives are still clearly apparent in their society's system.

     There are still many ideas and topics associated with the word, marxism. Marxism revolved around human history and how the class in power greatly oppressed the other social classes, both with contrasting issues and interests. The marxism theory involved the working class overthrowing the capitalist society and its rulers. From this, a socialist society would sprout and the ruling class would now be rooted into more than half of its population. It would generally be a classless society, where everyone was equal and would all support and help one another for our nation to thrive and prosper. This would be a huge step up from the capitalist society that majority of the population wanted to evacuate from. Of course, all of this could not occur without a revolution, which Karl Marx heavily predicted in order for this socialist society to come about.

     Socialism is merely a lesser degree of communism, however, the same principles still do apply such as the termination of private property, and all of free trade is to be banned and heavy government regulation over trade and markets is promoted. Karl Marx was the mind behind socialism, yet his very theory was also called marxism, yet inevitably turned into communism. All three processes of government are intertwined, yet all lead to the process of communism in many governments to this day. With such good intent behind all of these systems in place, it is hard to believe that communism has also many flaws and downsides to itself. Many government leaders have altered the system so greatly that communism is usually associated with oppression and poverty. Unfortunately, this is the case with countless of other countries, with numerous amounts of leaders gaining extraordinary amounts of power, all to ill use. Examples such as Joseph Stalin, Mao Zedong, and Kim Jong-un are just a few of the communist leaders that have killed millions of people (and birds in Mao Zedong's case) in history. Poverty and lack of personal freedom outline majority of communism's flaws. Many people have heard of George Orwell's novella Animal Farm, a famous allegory depicting the events of the Russian Revolution in farm animals. One of the most common themes of the book is the inevitable misuse of power, therefore, will always be one of the main faults of communism.

     Without a doubt, there are many different societal systems in place, and marxism, socialism, and communism are just a few of the theories and systems put into place to this day. Even with a few of its faults, it is still put into practice today, which comes down to the ultimate question: what is the best system in order to rule a society properly?

The Mind(s) Behind it All

Before we go on further into what marxism or socialism was, we must ask ourselves, who was behind this philosophical idea? The answer awaits here.

It all occurred in 1818, starting with the world renown Karl Marx. Growing up in the kingdom of Prussia, Marx was one of nine children, all living in a middle class lifestyle. In 1835, Marx became a university student and became much influenced by the German philosopher, Hegel. His philosophy and principles resonated with Marx on such a deep level, due to his big ideas on human society and what path should be taken in order to benefit all mankind.



Soon, Karl Marx created two very special bonds that would ultimately change his life for the better. One was to the high class Jenny von Westphalen, an aristocrat who came from a very wealthy family. After meeting Marx, she soon broke off her engagement with another young aristocrat in order to be with with the love of her life. Yet Jenny wasn't the only person who changed Marx's life for Friedrich Engels created an outstanding intellectual bonding with Marx, none of which Marx had ever had before.








Karl Marx (1818-1883)


Engels came from a wealthy German manufacturer and was raised in believing Protestant values and in the higher power of God. However, as Engels aged, he started to believe in more atheistic values and soon began a very strained and uncomfortable relationship with his family. Engels soon entered university, and like Marx, became enamored with Hegel's philosophy and started reading up on Hegel's ideals and such. After leaving university to join the military, Engels noticed the poor working conditions and horrible living arrangements that factory workers had to endure while he serving in the military. Soon after his time had been served, his parents sent him to Manchester, in hopes of sorting out his liberal opinions. While in Manchester, Engels met the fiery Mary Burns, yet never married her due to their societal beliefs. However, Engels noticed much worst conditions such as child labour and a despoiled environment. He noted all of this down so when the time came when both Marx and Engels encountered one another, they both would have the same ideals in order to invoke change in the system.


The two met each other in Paris and soon created a bond unbreakable for the rest of their lives. In 1847, a group called the Communist League held an important meeting in London and invited the two to express their views on the whole matter. That following year in 1848, Marx and Engels finally published their most famous document, The Communist Manifesto yet due to its radical ideas, it soon expelled both Engels and Marx from the university they were studying at. The document outlined the ideas of communism where all individuals were equal and that the wealth procured by others should be distributed among the poor. Other principles included a government in charge of all resources and economic issues, and where private industries did not exist. The both of them found numerous faults in the former way of how society was run. Child labour, exploitation among workers, undesirable working conditions were just a few of the flaws the capitalist society had obtained whilst being in power.




Friedrich Engel (1820-1895)

Before long, the two's document had become world renown and soon other countries began to adopt the principles and ideals of communism. For example, the Russian Revolution event or the country soon to become the Soviet Union made headlines as the first country ever to adopt communist values. Not only did this idea spread to Europe, but to parts of Asia and Latin America as well. Many people think communism made its rounds due to the differing contrast it had compared to the former economic way of doing things. However, the disadvantages of communism became evident, especially among the Soviet Union for poverty and the lack of personal freedom became a nightmare for all who endured communism.


In conclusion, the brilliant minds of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels were ultimately behind the philosophy of marxism/socialism. However, when most people hear of the word "communism" it is usually associated with a negative connotation. We must ask ourselves, how did communism evolve into such treacherous system of poverty and despair? Other opinions may differ about the likes of communism, yet the answer may still seem evident in others. In the end, the philosophy behind this idea was intended for the good, however, like many things, not all can turn out for the better.

A Flurry of Facts/Statistics on Marxism

A number of interesting facts and statistics varying on the subject of marxism, socialism, and communism.

• In the United States as of 2010, socialism was viewed negatively by 58% of all Americans, while 36% viewed it positively. Republicans and Conservatives both shared majority negative of views on socialism while Democrats and Liberals shared more positive views on socialism, however it was 53% positive for Democrats and 61% positive for Liberals. (Newport, Socialism viewed positively by 36% of Americans, 2010)

• In 2012, the top ten most censored countries (suppressed, no contact from outside world, limited freedom) were all communist nations. (Wang, Censorship in Communist Countries, 2014)

• Less than 48% of the population of China can legally access the internet such as Google or Yahoo, however, more young people in China are finding ways around this type of oppression. (Wang, Censorship in Communist Countries, 2014)

• A famous Marxist saying was recited as this: 

Socialism cannot come into existence
without revolution. For the birth of
socialism to take place the old order must
die. This requires, according to Marx, the
overthrow of the existing ruling power,
which he defines as revolution.
(n.a. 25 Key Points about Marxism, n.d.)

• During the communist period of the Soviet Union, nearly 61 million people were killed, with Joseph Stalin being accounted for about 43 million of these deaths. (Rummle, Murder by Communism, 1993)

• The Communist Manifesto outlined around ten distinct goals of the Communist Party consisting of the principles such as: free education for all children and the abolishment of child labour, confiscation of property of rebels or people who deny the system, the combination of agriculture and the manufacturing industry, and even a heavy progressive or graduated income tax. (Cole, What You Need to Know about the Communist Manifesto', 2016) 

• Marxism and socialism are extremely similar, however, they greatly differ by marxism being just as equal as communism, while socialism is the planning and organization of resources, and is a lesser degree of communism or marxism. Marxism is practically the theory behind communism; the two cannot be separated. (Prabhat, Difference Between Communism and Marxism, 2011)