Why Is The Market Revolution More Important Than The American Revolution

921 Words4 Pages

Sarah Mitchell
Dr. Burns
US History 207
February 25, 2023
Between 1820 and 1840, a Revolution occurred in American life. In what ways was the "Market Revolution" more or less important than the American Revolution?

The Market Revolution was a huge factor to what our world is like today. The way in which we work, how much money we get paid, and how long we work for all stem from the Market Revolution. We also can look at how the American Revolution affected our world today. How our entire system of government would be different, the simple ways we live our lives and the rules we are expected to uphold as American citizens. When asked the question of whether or not I believe the Market Revolution was more or less important than the American …show more content…

When we got free labor we also got slavery, with wealth came inequality, and with endless promise came untold perils. Slavery was probably the biggest problem that came with the increase of production, because with the ability to process stuff like cotton very fast, we had more time that could be spent in the fields collecting the cotton to be processed and sold. So every man that owned a plot of land wanted to take part in the gold mine of cotton, thus making a need for more manual labor so slaves who you only had to put down an initial payment for were the prime candidates to perform this exhausting task. With the wealth that was made by these land owners came great wealth, but it always has a chain reaction of there being a minority people who are suffering in poverty creating an inequality among men, those who owned land and slaves, and those who did not. As with every action we perform there are the untold ripple effects that no one can predict and this was no different for the Market …show more content…

The market Revolution enabled men to be able to become part of a higher class, they had more opportunities to make more money, but it also brought the aspect that there would be people who would end up at the bottom of the class system. The market Revolution also brought about the middle class in which men and women who worked day to day jobs could earn a wage that would help them support their families. Instead of growing and making everything for themselves, families began spending their earnings on products produced by other working men and women. Work moved from quality of products to quantity produced. There were no longer people who would spend hours upon hours making a quilt or sewing clothes but the fast production of far less quality. In this way the Market Revolution had a major effect on what small businesses are fighting against to remain afloat. They must constantly change and adjust what they are selling and for how much because the big corporate companies can make what they are making in a matter of minutes in most cases. The Market Revolution took away the aspect of having a family heirloom by the decrease of specialized high quality products that lasted for eternity. Though it was now cheaper to buy clothes and other various needs around the house, it was less likely to last long enough to make it worth the