William Cobbett's 'A Letter To The Luddites'

During the 18th century the Industrial Revolution had begun to take over to common way of life. Machines and factories had gone from being a futuristic concept to becoming a reality. Yet, these machines and advances that society was taking was not making everyone happy. In all honestly, the majority or hard labor workers were quite frightened. These new machines could produce products faster, more efficiently, and they did not have to be paid hourly for their work. How was the average man to compete with the production of a machine? Workers began to protest that these new machines were starting to take away potential jobs. Yet, many workers were too busy fuling their hatred for machines that they did not even care to take the time to look at the upside to

During this time a workers began destroying machines all over their towns. These violent and chaotic riots were lead by workers who called themselves the “Luddites”. Cobbett lectures the Luddites by explaining how they are only making the problem worse by making their hometowns a violent place to live. He later explains how machines will actually be able produce more materials and food for everyone to share. The machines will also are able to produce items at a much quicker rate than a worker can without ever getting tired. This new abundance of supply would allow for more development in society and cultures. Another point that Cobbett was trying to make was that people are afraid of machines, yet they never complained about tools like shovels. In reality they all do the same thing. Tools help us build and create things, along with providing us with the room to create something new. All machines are, are extensions or improvements of the human hand to help us complete tasks that we would not normally be able to