The World System: The Bourgeois In The 19th Century

269 Words2 Pages
The capitalist infrastructure of the world system has allowed the bourgeois to operate under a guise of an equal society. In the 19th century Europe’s engagement in liberalism led to two significant changes to society, the creation of the welfare state and the expansion of suffrage. These changes were highly welcomed by the working class and it was accepted throughout Western Europe that these changes were legitimately to create a fairer society. However, the boost of political and economic power of the working class was to curb their anger and discontent without jeopardising the activity of capitalism in the world economy. The bourgeois distracted the working classes from their exploitation through intra-European nationalism and nationalist