Transcript An Age of Reform

An Age of Reform
As industrialized nations grew,
many felt that governments should
stay out of business’ affairs.
While others felt that governments
should play an active role in
bettering conditions for the poor.
An Age of Reform
Capitalism Fuels the Industrial Revolution
I.
A.
B.
C.
Laissez-faire economics
Adam Smith
Capitalism
Rise of Socialism
II.
A.
B.
C.
D.
Utilitarianism
Utopian Ideas
Socialism
The Communist Manifesto
The Union Movement
III.
A.
B.
Unions
Reform Laws
I. Capitalism Fuels the
Industrial Revolution
A. Laissez-faire Economics
 Philosophers
believed that if the
government would allow free trade,
without interference, the economy
would prosper.
 Laissez-faire refers to government
allowing owners of industry and
business operate without interference.
 The term comes from the French
phrase that means “let do.”
B. Adam Smith

Adam Smith wrote in
The Wealth of Nations
in 1776 that
government need not
interfere in the
economy.
 He claimed social
harmony would result
without any
government direction
“as if guided by an
invisible hand.”
C. Capitalism

The ideas of Smith
and economist
Thomas Malthus
were the foundation
of capitalism.
 Capitalism is an
economic system in
which money is
invested in business
ventures with the
goal of making a
profit.
II. Rise of Socialism
In contrast to laissez-faire
philosophy, other theorists that
government should intervene
A. Utilitarianism

Utilitarianism,
introduced by
English philosopher
Jeremy Bentham,
argued that the
government should
try to produce the
greatest good for
the greatest number
of people.
A. Utilitarianism



John Stuart Mill led the
Utilitarian movement in the
1800s.
He believed it was wrong
that workers should lead
deprived lives that
sometimes bordered on
starvation.
Mill wished to help
ordinary working people
with policies that would
lead to a more equal
division of profits.
B. Utopian Ideas

British factory owner,
Robert Owen,
improved working
conditions.
 He built low rent
houses.
 He prohibited children
under ten from
working in the mills
and provided free
schooling.
B. Utopian Ideas




Then, in 1824, he
traveled to the United
States.
He founded a
cooperative community
in New Harmony,
Indiana.
He intended this
community to be a
utopia, or perfect living
place.
It only lasted three
years.
C. Socialism



In socialism, resources
are owned by the public
and operate for the
welfare of all.
Socialists thought
government should
actively plan the
economy.
They argued that the
control of factories,
mines, and railroads,
and other key industries
would abolish poverty
and promote equality.
D. The Communist Manifesto



The writings of a
German journalist, Karl
Marx, introduced the
world to a radical
socialism.
He helped write The
Communist Manifesto.
In the Communist
Manifesto, Marx and
Friedrich Engels wrote
that all of history has
been a struggle
between the “haves”
and the “have-nots”.
D. The Communist Manifesto

According to Marx and
Engels, the Industrial
revolution had enriched
the wealthy and
impoverished the poor.
 They predicted the
workers would
overthrow the owners.
 “The proletarians have
nothing to lose but their
chains. They have a
world to win.
Workingmen of all
countries, unite.”
D. The Communist Manifesto

The Communist Manifesto said:
 The workers would revolt, seize the factories
and mills, and produce what society needed.
 Workers, sharing in the profits, would bring
about economic equality for all people.
 After a period of cooperative living, the
government would disappear and a classless
society would develop.
 Marx called this final stage, pure communism.
D. The Communist Manifesto

Communism is a
form of complete
socialism in which all
resources are owned
by the people.
 Private property
would cease to exist.
 All goods and
services would be
shared equally.
III. The Union Movement
By the 1800s, working people
became more active in politics.
A. Unions
– workers joined together in
associations to press for reforms.
 A union spoke for all the workers of a
particular trade.
 Unions engaged in collective
bargaining-negotiations between
workers and their employers.
 They bargained for better working
conditions and higher pay.
 Unions
A. Unions

If factory
owners refused
these
demands,
union members
could strike, or
refuse to work.
B. Reform Laws

In both Great Britain and the United States,
new laws reformed some of the worst abuses
of industrialism.
 Britain’s Factory Act of 1833 made it illegal to
hire children under 9 years old. Children from
9 to 12 could not work more than 12 hours
 In 1842 the Mines Act prevented women and
children from working underground.
 The Ten Hours Act of 1847 limited the
workday to ten hours for women and children
who worked in factories.