Define:
urbanization – the shift of place becoming more like a city as population grows proletariat – the industrial working class; the class who overthrew the bourgeoisie in Marxism socialism – an ideology that calls for collective or government ownership of the means of production and the distribution of goods utopian socialist – intellectuals and theorists in the early 19th century who favored equality in social and economic conditions and wished to replace private property and competition with collective ownership and cooperation
1. Why did Europe experience such dramatic population growth in the 19th century?
Although the European population has been increasing since the 18th century, the population experienced a dramatic rise in the 19th century. Unlike that past decades filled with European wars and disease outbreaks, there was decline in death rates across Europe. Europeans no longer had to be in constant fear of the smallpox and plague as they became less frequent. Additionally, they were able to enjoy the surplus of food available to them; as a result, the Europeans had better nutrition and increase resistance to disease. 2. What was the biggest drawback to the urbanization of the 19th century? Explain. An influx of population growth usually represented a time period of prosperity, which can be related to urbanization of the 19th century. However, the urbanization was not as beneficial as it sound. Urbanization meant that an excessive amount of people were migrating to cities in hope for opportunities and a better standard of living. Unfortunately, the massive flock of people moving to cities at the same time led to overcrowded living quarters in the cities, especially the industrial middle class. The biggest drawback to this urbanization was the unsanitary conditions caused by the overcrowded cities. People threw all kinds of animal and vegetable matters into the sewers, where it rot and stagnate. This led to a putrid and distinct smell throughout the cities, and unsanitary conditions are prone to outbreaks. 3. Describe the three greatest dangers of factory work. Working in a factory in the 19th century was terrible, and the long work shifts demonstrated the horrendous conditions. The work shifts lasted from 12 to 16 hours per day, but this occurred for six days per week. Not only were these work shifts long, but the workers also received an unreasonably short amount of time for lunch and dinner, lasting for a half hour. Furthermore, the minimum wage and security of employment did not exist at that time. This meant that the workers had less protection …show more content…
Some wanted to replace competition with cooperation in the industry, such as socialist Karl Marx. However, these dreams of the reformers were considered to be impractical in which some failed in their attempts, like Robert Owen. Utopian socialist Robert Owen thought that the goodness in human nature could be revealed if they were cooperative with each other, thus he successfully proved his theory when it worked out in New Lanark. Unfortunately, Owen’s idea did not work out in New Harmony due to fighting within the community. Trade unions were also another attempt by reformers in order to receive decent wages and working conditions. One national union was successful in winning employment benefits for its trade, which was the Amalgamated Society of Engineers in Britain in