19th Century Industrial Society: Classes & Labor

19th Century Industrialization and Social Change

The 19th Century: Factories, the business bourgeoisie, and industry had the town as their stage. The United Kingdom was the first to undergo this transformation. London was the most populous city in the world, and its growth was fueled by rural exodus and a high birth rate.

An Industrial Society

19th-Century Traditional Rural Societies: Populations dedicated to agriculture continued to exist without much change in some areas of industrialized countries.

Evolved Rural Societies: Activity was focused on agriculture and commercial markets. There was a push for specialization and increased agricultural productivity.

Urban Societies: These societies emerged from the process of industrialization and rural exodus. They developed in the most economically active areas.

Prevalence of the Bourgeoisie

The bourgeoisie was the most powerful group in the new industrial society. Their power was based on property and wealth, leading to a plutocracy (rule by the wealthy). They often imitated the lifestyle of the old nobility.

Causes of the Emerging Labor Movement

Social Problems:

• Harsh working conditions for industrial workers (long hours, harsh discipline, no holidays, lack of social protection in case of unemployment, etc.).
• Rejection of machines by agricultural and industrial workers who feared losing their jobs.
• Inclusion of women and children in manufacturing and domestic work, under exploitative conditions.

Ideological Foundations of the Labor Movement

Utopian Socialism: Advocated for an ideal society of peace and harmony, achieved peacefully. This was embodied in the founding of small, egalitarian communities. Key figures include: Count de Saint-Simon, Charles Fourier, and Robert Owen.

Marxist Socialism: Believed in class struggle, with the proletariat defending social revolution against bourgeois domination and the establishment of a proletariat dictatorship with a single state.

Anarchism: Believed in class struggle and advocated for revolution. However, it rejected the formation of a proletarian state or any other state institution.

Development of the Labor Movement

First Partnerships: Arose in the United Kingdom in the late 18th century but were prohibited in 1800.

Luddism: A violent movement against machines, especially in the textile industry.

Legalization of Labor Associations: Robert Owen founded a national trade union, which ultimately failed.

Chartism: A working-class political movement that demanded political rights in addition to improvements in working conditions.

Trade Unions: Formed in specific sectors, generally for skilled workers, seeking to implement improvements through peaceful negotiations.

The First International

The First International Workingmen's Association originated from a meeting of trade unionists from Britain and France in London. In 1864, it was officially constituted with representatives from several European countries. It was inspired by the ideological foundations of revolutionary socialism. Soon, an ideological division emerged between Marxist and anarchist factions. At the Hague Congress of 1872, this division materialized, and the organization subsequently declined.