Industrialization as a process of changing American society

Industrialization began a slow but steady process of changing American society. What were the major changes, good and bad, for society? Who did industrialization help or hurt? How did Industrialization shape the middle class and its values? What were middle class values and how did they differ from others? INTRO: Introductory remarks: To know who industrialization help or hurt, can bring us to understand how society is changing. Farmers would be under particular pressure. Laborers were given a wage, and livelihood, so they were helped. But in many ways they were hurt too, as the severity of the job and the demands of the bosses were for profit, hurt them physically in so many ways. Prior to the industrial revolution the two main classes in society were the farmers and elite. Now the middle class will become a political force to be reckoned with, in a way the working class will not. As women gained a voice, the change was not without its critics. The first women to work in factories were not working class, but middling clas​‌‍‍‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‌‍‍‍‌‍‌‌‌‍​s young single women. After some 10-20 years working conditions in the Lowell Mills, for instance, worsened and women organized themselves into unions. Critics of the Mills did not like the changes that they saw. The reformer Orestes Brownson certainly disliked the influence of the mill work on young women (and a changing society). His complaints focused on woman’s morals, their failure to marry, etc. Women certainly faced many vulnerabilities as they worked in factories and struggled to make a better life for themselves. TIP: Be sure that you are finding information that is relevant to the early 19th century, and not the later industrialization of 1870-1920s. Many websites focus on the latter 19th century, but we are discussing the earlier 1800s to 1860s. Here are some useful websites as you review the topic: https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/indu/hd_indu.htm https://historyofmassachusetts.org/industrial-revolution-america/ https://courses.lumenlearning.com/boundless-ushistory/chapter/the-industrial-revolution/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLhNP0qp​‌‍‍‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‌‍‍‍‌‍‌‌‌‍​38Q