BBC Discussion: The Consequences of the Industrial Revolution
LISTEN TO THE CONVERSATION on the BBC MEDIA PLAYER
The Industrial Revolution, or roughly the period of time from 1750-1830, wrought myriad and lasting chances to the infrastructure of both British and American society. National economies, public health sectors, and education systems (to name a few) evolved to accommodate the massive changes wrought by “steam power and new manufacturing technologies.“
A young Friedrich Engels wrote The Condition of the Working Class in England in 1844 in response to the filth and poverty he witnessed and lived in. In this piece, Engels coined the term “Industrial Revolution”
This panel discussion from BBC sheds light on the social, economic, and political consequences of this epoch on England, while comparing & contrasting the short and long-term effects of early Industry on American society via cultural diffusion.
From BBC…
“Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the far-reaching consequences of the Industrial Revolution.
After more than a century of rapid technological change, and the massive growth of its urban centres, Britain was changed forever. Lifestyles changed as workers moved from agricultural settlements to factory towns: health, housing and labour relations were all affected. But the effects were both social and intellectual, as thinkers originated theories to deal with the new realities of urban living, mass production and a consumer society”
Guests include:
- Jane Humphries Professor of Economic History and Fellow of All Souls College, University of Oxford
- Emma Griffin Senior Lecturer in History at the University of East Anglia
- Lawrence Goldman Fellow and Tutor in History at St Peter’s College, University of Oxford
