Industrialization Dbq Essay

With Industrialization, our civilization improved agriculture techniques, medical procedures, and the steam engine which enhanced lives. People had more food to eat and we're living longer. The steam engine brought faster travel and machines to take over manual labor. But these advances came with a price. While some might argue that Industrialization had primarily positive consequences for society because there were more comforts and conveniences as well as a greater output of goods, it was actually a negative thing for society. Industrialization’s negative effects were child labor, family separation, and poor working conditions.
Since the beginning of time, children have toiled on family farms. When Industrialization came, the children moved

As tenant-farms died out, families left rural life and searched for jobs in the cities. Cities were flooded with workers and there were not enough jobs to go around. Family members had to split up to earn money for survival. (A sixteen year-old girl is away from her family 6-8 months out of the year working at a textile factory in Massachusetts, but she is from New Hampshire.) (Document 1) Along with the distance, families were separated by long working hours. “[Before] dawn my labor drives me forth tis night when I am free…” (Document 2) Besides children, factories also liked women workers because they were cheaper than men and were afraid to complain. Women worked 12-16 hours a day and six days a week. “A stranger am I to my child; and he one to me.” (Document 2) While these mothers are grinding away, their children are left unsupervised and unintentionally neglected. The picture of an Urban Tenement shows only children during the day. (The children have been left alone for many hours to fend for themselves.) (Document 6) Workers of Industrialization did not even make a living wage so there was no one to care for the children. Family members were isolated by their