AP EH CHAPTER 23 NOTES---Mass Society in an “Age of Progress” (1871-1914) THE GROWTH OF INDUSTRIAL PROSPERITY
New Products and New Markets
the 2nd Industrial Revolution saw the advent of steel as it replaced iron as the “go to” metal of choice
between 1860 and 1913, steel production went from a combined 125,000 tons to 32,000,000 tons combined in Great Britain, France, Germany, and Belgium
Germany began to replace Britain as Europe’s industrial leader by the early 20th Century largely due to its development of new areas of manufacturing including chemicals and heavy electric machinery
electricity was the energy source that powered the 2nd I.R. American Thomas Edison invented the light bulb
American Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone
Italian Guglielmo Marconi sent the first radio waves across the Atlantic
the first internal combustion engine burning a mixture of gas and air was produced in 1878
the internal combustion engine would lead eventually to the development of both the automobile and the airplane
the growth of industrial production depended upon the development of markets for the sale of manufactured goods
increased competition for foreign markets and the growing importance of domestic demand led to a reaction against free trade and the imposition of steep protective tariffs by most nations
cartels were formed to decrease competition internally
the formation of cartels was paralleled by a move toward even-larger manufacturing plants, especially in the iron and steel, machinery, heavy electrical equipment, and chemical industries
the development of markets after 1870 was best characterized by wealthier urban consumers in Europe who desired a growing number of products
the chief result of the 2nd I.R. on agriculture was a drop in agricultural prices (abundance of grain & lower transportation costs)
by 1900, Spain lagged behind the rest of western Europe in terms of industrialization
Women and Work: New Job Opportunities
the 2nd I.R. had an enormous impact on the position of women in the labor market
working-class men argued that keeping women out of industrial work would ensure the moral and physical well-being of families
the desperate need to work at times of family necessity forced women to do marginal work at home or labor as pieceworkers in sweatshops
the expansion of government services created a large number of service or white-collar jobs such as secretaries and telephone operators
big businesses and retail shops needed clerks, typists, secretaries, file clerks, and sales clerks
these new white-collar jobs available to women were generally mundane and, except for nursing and teaching, required few skills beyond basic literacy
most white-collar jobs were filled by working-class women who saw these jobs as an opportunity to escape from the “dirty” work of the lower-class world
despite these new job opportunities, many lower-class women turned to prostitution to survive (estimated that 60,000 prostitutes lived in London alone in 1885)
the rise in female prostitution in European cities during the later 19th Century can best be attributed to the heavy migration to cities by country women and their increasingly desperate struggle for urban economic survival
in most European countries, prostitution was licensed and regulated by government and municipal authorities
Organizing the Working Classes
the desire to improve their working and living conditions led many industrial workers to form political parties and labor unions (many socialist or Marxist in nature)
Germany became a hotbed for socialism and labor unions
the German Social Democratic Party (SPD) founded in 1875
working-class and socialist party
led by Marxists Wilhelm Liebknecht and August Bebel
party espoused revolutionary Marxist rhetoric
sought to improve the living conditions of the working class
despite the “establishment” government’s efforts to kill the party, it became the largest single political party in Germany by 1912
socialist parties also emerged in other European states, although none proved as successful as the German Social Democrats
as the socialist parties grew, agitation for an international organization that would strengthen their position against international capitalism also grew (ex: 2nd International in 1889)
Revisionism and Nationalism some Marxists believed in a pure Marxism that accepted the imminent collapse of capitalism and the need for socialist ownership of the means of production (ex: Bebel)
most prominent among the revisionists was Eduard Bernstein (1850-1932)
Bernstein thought many of Marx’s ideas had been proven incorrect and he stressed the need to work through democratic politics to create socialism
nationalism was also a divisive issue for international socialism
socialist parties varied from country to country and remained tied to national concerns and issues
nationalism proved a much more powerful force than socialism on such issues as WWI
the Role of Trade Unions trade unions in the 19th Century were shaped by: fusions of nationalism and socialism
the decline of the labor movement in Britain
the development of evolutionary socialism (Bernstein’s philosophy)
the trade union movement prior to WWI varied from state to state, but was generally most productive when allied with socialist parties (most successful in Germany)
the Anarchist Alternative the lack of revolutionary fervor of socialist parties and trade unions drove some people from Marxian socialism into anarchism
anarchism was a movement that was especially prominent in less industrialized and less democratic countries (Spain, Portugal, Italy, Russia)
initially nonviolent, in the later 19th Century, anarchists attempted to accomplish a transformation of society through assassinations and other acts of political terrorism
THE EMERGENCE OF MASS SOCIETY Population Growth
the European population increased dramatically between 1850 and 1910, rising from 270 million to over 460 million by 1910
the chief cause of rising European populations between 1850 and 1880 was a rising birthrate
after 1880, a noticeable decline in death rates largely explains the increase in population
medical discoveries and improved environmental conditions contributed to this drop in death rate
although growing agricultural and industrial prosperity supported an increase in European population, it could not do so indefinitely, especially in areas that had little industrialization and a severe problem of rural overpopulation
some of the excess labor from underdeveloped areas migrated to the industrial regions of Europe (ex: 400,000 Poles moved to the Ruhr region of Germany)
Poles and Jews fled Eastern Europe for the US during this time
between 1880 and 1914, 3.5 million Poles migrated to the US
Transformation of the Urban Environment one of the most important consequences of industrialization and the population explosion of the 19th Century was urbanization
in 1800, urban dwellers constituted 40% of the population in Great Britain, 25% in France and Germany, and only about 10% in Eastern Europe
by 1914, urban dwellers had increased to 80% of Great Britain’s population, 45% in France, 60% in Germany, and 30% in Eastern Europe
from 1800 to 1900, the number of European cities that had populations of at least 100,000 went from 21 to 147.
people were driven from the countryside to the cities by sheer economic necessity---unemployment, land scarcity, and physical want
Improving Living Conditions
in the 1840s, a number of urban reformers, such as Edwin Chadwick in Britain and Rudolf Virchow and Solomon Neumann in Germany, had pointed to filthy living conditions as the primary cause of epidemic disease and urged sanitary reforms to correct the problem
the British Public Health Act of 1875 prohibited the construction of new buildings without running water and internal drainage systems
essential to the public health of the modern European city was the ability to bring clean water into the city and expel sewage from it (dams/reservoirs along with vast sewage systems relying on huge underground pipes met the need)
middle-class reformers who denounced the unsanitary living conditions of the working class also focused on their housing needs
early efforts to attack the housing problem emphasized the middle-class, liberal belief in the efficacy of private enterprise
reformers believed that the construction of model dwellings renting at a reasonable price would force other private landlords to elevate their housing standards
reformer Octavia Hill’s housing venture was designed to give the poor an environment they could use to improve themselves (Leverhulme’s Port Sunlight & Howard’s garden city movement are other examples of private housing reform efforts)
in 1890, the British Housing Act empowered local town councils to collect new taxes and construct cheap housing for the working classes (London and Liverpool were the first cities to take advantage of the legislation)
Redesigning the Cities housing was but one area of urban reconstruction after 1870
in the 2nd half of the 19th Century, many of the old defensive walls, worthless from a military standpoint, were pulled down
these areas were converted into parks and wide boulevards
as cities expanded and entire groups of people were displaced from urban centers by reconstruction, city populations spilled over into the neighboring villages and countryside, which were soon incorporated into cities
the construction of streetcars and commuter trains by the turn of the century enabled both working-class and middle-class populations to live in their own suburban neighborhoods The Social Structure of Mass Society historians generally agree that after 1871 the average person enjoyed an improving standard of living (real wages doubled between 1871 and 1910 for British workers)
in western and central European countries most affected by industrialization, the richest 20% of the populations received between 50% and 60% of the national income
The Elite at the top of European society stood a wealthy elite, constituting only 5% of the population but controlling 30% to 40% of the wealth
in the course of the 19th Century, landed aristocrats blended sometimes grudgingly with the most successful industrialists, bankers, and merchants to form a new elite
4. The Middle Classes
a. the middle classes consisted of a variety of groups: upper middle class (wealthy industrialists and merchants)
middle level (lawyers, doctors, government bureaucrats, engineers, accountants, architects, moderately well-to-do merchants and industrialists)
lower middle class (small shopkeepers, traders, manufacturers, prosperous peasants)
bank tellers, sales clerks, secretaries, telephone operators
b. the moderately prosperous and successful middle classes shared a common lifestyle, one whose values tended to dominate much of 19th Century society the 19th Century middle classes were very concerned with propriety and shared values of hard work and Christian morality
5. The Lower Classes the lower classes of European society constituted almost 80% of the European population
the largest segment of European society in the 19th Century was composed of peasant landholders, unskilled day laborers, and domestic servants who worked for very low wages (less true in western and central Europe)
the elite of the working class were skilled artisans (cabinet makers, printers, jewelry makers)
semi-skilled laborers were below the skilled artisans (carpenters, bricklayers, and many factory workers)
urban workers did experience a real improvement in the material conditions of their lives after 1871
a rise in real wages, accompanied by a decline in many consumer costs, especially in the 1880s and 1890s, made it possible for workers to buy more than just food and housing The “Woman Question”: the Role of Women in the 19th Century, women remained legally inferior, economically dependent, and largely defined by family and household roles
throughout most of the 19th Century, marriage was viewed as the only honorable and available career for most women
the lack of meaningful work and the lower wages paid to women made it difficult for single women to earn a living
the number of offspring born to the average woman decreased during this time (1st family planning clinic opened in Amsterdam in 1882) The Middle-Class Family
1. the family was the central institution of middle-class life men provided the family income while women focused on household and child care
the reduction in family size allowed women to devote more time to their children and leisure activities
an ideal of togetherness was fostered by the 19th Century middle-class families
European middle-class families during the late 19th Century stressed functional knowledge for their children to prepare them for their future roles
Elizabeth Poole Sanford in her essay, Women in Her Social and Domestic Character, advised women to avoid being self-sufficient The Working Class Family
1. changes in the standard of living from 1890 to 1914 in Europe affected the working-class family by allowing working-class parents to devote more attention to their children (higher pay in heavy industry)
2. for the children of the working classes, childhood was over by the age of nine or ten when they worked as apprentices or were employed in odd jobs
3. daughters in working-class families were fully expected to work until marriage
G. Education and Leisure in an Age of Mass Society
mass education was a product of the mass society of the late 19th Century
after 1850, secondary education was expanded as more middle-class families sought employment in public service and the professions or entry into elite scientific and technical schools
between 1870 and 1914, most Western governments began to offer at least primary education to both boys and girls between the ages of six and twelve
most European educational systems were free and compulsory at least the primary level
several motives drove European states to develop systems of mass public education for their citizens including: political, to produce more informed voters in expanding electorates and to heighten patriotism producing more integrated nations (CHIEF REASON)
liberals believed that education was important to personal and social improvement and also sought to supplant religious education with moral and civic training based on secular values
conservatives were attracted to mass education as a means of improving the quality of military recruits and training people in social discipline
new firms of the 2nd Industrial Revolution demanded skilled labor which in turn caused a need and demand for mass education
the development of compulsory education created a demand for teachers, and most were female
females were paid lower salaries, in itself a considerable incentive for governments to encourage the establishment of teacher-training institutes for women
the most immediate result of mass education was an increase in literacy
adult illiteracy was virtually eliminated by 1900 in Germany, Great Britain, France, and Scandinavia
countries that did not emphasize education had a much different story (illiteracy rates: 79% Serbia; 78% Romania; 72% Bulgaria; 79% Russia)
with the dramatic increase in literacy after 1871 came the rise of newspapers targeting the masses (ex: Daily Mail [London])
Mass Leisure in the preindustrial centuries, play or leisure activities had been closely connected to work patterns based on seasonal or daily cycles typical of the life of peasants or artisans
new leisure hours were created by the industrial system—evening hours after work, weekends, and later a week or two in the summer---which largely determined the contours of the new mass leisure
the influx of rural people into industrial towns eventually caused the demise of traditional village culture, especially the fairs and festivals that had formed such an important part of that culture
new technology created novel experiences for leisure, such as the Ferris wheel at amusement parks (amusement parks and carnivals became very popular during this time)
music and dance halls appeared in last half of the 19th Century (targeted adults)
the upper and middle class first created the market for tourism, but as wages increased and workers were given paid vacations, tourism became another form of mass leisure
Thomas Cook (1808-1892) was considered the “Father of Tourism” in England
by the late 1800s, team sports had also developed into another form of mass leisure (soccer and rugby in Europe—baseball in the US)
primarily male-oriented, sports were not just for leisure or fun, but they were intended to provide excellent training in teamwork and individual skills for participants (youth in particular) THE NATIONAL STATE Western Europe: the Growth of Political Democracy Reform in Britain the growth of political democracy was one of the major developments of British politics between 1871 and 1914
Gladstone’s Reform Act of 1884 gave the vote to all men who paid regular rents or taxes, thus largely enfranchising the previously excluded agricultural workers
in 1885, Parliament passed the Redistribution Act which eliminated historic boroughs and counties and established constituencies with roughly equal populations and one representative each
members of Parliament began receiving pay for their service in 1911 which opened Parliament to people other than the well-to-do
in 1870, Gladstone attempted to alleviate Irish discontent by enacting limited land reform, but as Irish tenants continued to be evicted in the 1870s, the Irish peasants responded with “terrorists” acts (British responded with even more repressive measures; Gladstone did introduce Irish home rule bills in 1886 and 1893 [both failed] )
the Home Rule Act of 1914 bill passed by Parliament which gave independence to all but the northern seven counties (Ulster Ireland) of Ireland
aggravated problems between northern and southern Ireland the Protestant dominated north wanted and received the right to remain part of Great Britain
Catholic majority in the south and minority in the north wanted an undivided Ireland
violence erupted between participants involved The Third Republic in France the defeat of France by the Prussian army in 1870 brought the downfall of Louis Napoleon’s 2nd Empire
Bismarck intervened and forced the French to choose a government by universal male suffrage
the French people rejected the republicans and elected monarchists to 400 of 630 seats
in March 1871, radical republicans formed and independent government known as the Paris Commune
the National Assembly refused to give up its power and crushed the Commune despite stiff resistance (20,000 killed; 10,000 imprisoned overseas)
suppression of the Commune widened the split between the French middle and working classes
although a majority of the members of the National Assembly wished to restore a monarchy to France, an inability to agree on who should be king caused the monarchists to miss their opportunity
in 1875, an improvised constitution established a republican government as the least divisive compromise
the Boulanger crisis actually strengthened republican forces in France despite the opposition of the Church, monarchists, and army officers (Boulanger appeared ready to launch a coup d’etat with the support of many when he lost his nerve and fled the country)
Spain and Italy in the late 19th Century, Spain and Italy remained 2nd rate European powers less transformed by the economic and cultural innovations of the age
in Spain, the Barcelona revolt in 1909 and its repression made clear that reform would not be easily accomplished because the Catholic Church, large landowners, and the army remained tied to a conservative social order
by 1870, Italy had emerged as a geographically united state with pretensions of great power status but rang hollow because of internal weaknesses government corruption
chronic turmoil between workers and industrialists
Central and Eastern Europe: Persistence of the Old Order
Germany despite being unified by 1871, Germany still had important divisions within its society
Germany under Bismarck was characterized by the chancellor forming coalitions to get what he wanted and then dropping them at his convenience
Bismarck passed social welfare legislation to woo workers away from the Social Democrats (EX: social security)
Bismarck was removed in 1890 by Kaiser Wilhelm II before he could finish off the socialist through repressive measures once and for all Austria-Hungary in 1867, Austria-Hungary was theoretically a constitutional government, but in reality was still an autocracy under Hapsburg control
the problem of the minorities continued to trouble the empire
the nationality problem remained unresolved and led to strong German nationalist movements
unlike Austria, Hungary had a working parliamentary system, but one controlled by the great Magyar landowners who dominated both the peasants and various minority groups within that part of the empire
Russia during this period, the government made no concessions what-so-ever to liberal or democratic reforms (assassination of Alexander II)
reformers were persecuted
entire districts were placed under martial law if inhabitants were suspected of treason
the power of the zemstvos was greatly curtailed
Alexander III and later his son Nicholas II would turn a blind-eye to reform