In Europe between 1815 to 1914 there was an economic growth, technological change and economic development which was making the rich richer, and the poor poorer.
For the majority of the labouring class the result of this growth was inadequate wages, long work hours and work under terrible conditions. The large-scale employment of women and children destroyed body and soul. Such harsh conditions like the coal mills, the cotton houses affected the people of Europe, change had to be made with new policy put in place.
The English poor laws, beginning with the statute of laborers of 1349-1350 and proceeding to the reforms of 1834 regulated both the working and non-working poor. With the beginning of the industrial revolution. This drew a large number of poor into the cities to make a better life for themselves. Out of 500 years of English poor laws grew many legislative principles regulating the working and non-working.
Jennifer.
I totally agree that urbanization and industrialization in the history of Europe drew people into towns and cities to find work. You are right when you say that this caused the rich to become richer and the poor to become poorer. This is still happening today in our country and many others. We are all in a power struggle, and the workers are in conflict with the owners and we are all constantly fighting for our own share. Owners own everything and have all of the power, and we have to struggle and be in competition with other workers to sell our labour to try and evade poverty, causing poverty to other workers who cannot find jobs. Our world operates in extremely messed up ways and inequality is so common that it is normal to us. Its interesting to see that this is not only happening now, it happened in the early centuries of Europe as well.
ReplyDelete-Lyndsay
Hello Jennifer,
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with you. It looks like that system was designed to give more power to who is already powerful by taking it from the ones who did not have it in first place. I mean, to take whatever is left from the marginalized party.
I find it very interesting that although there was a huge growth in economy and politics in the European society at that time, things just got worse. Which I think proves that everything is interconnected. For instance, lets say that a government's economy is great, but a percentage of its people still live in poverty or unemployed. Then, its economy has failed to address its purposes.
-Farah