Factory & Mill Life

The Industrial Revolution introduced massive machinery to assist in the production of materials.  Such machines could not be located in cottages but in large factories or mills.  The creation and construction of factories would come to symbolize the Industrial Revolution.  

Karl Marx and the Way of Factories

By: Rachel

There is only one real working class in this country¹ and the Queen has no right to take credit for that work. In fact the Queen knows nothing about work. When it comes to work,  “her powerful majesty” is not the one who suffers or works her fingers to the bone. Why, it is difficult for her to even bathe without help! The Queen is not a horrible or inept person² but her only knowledge of work is how to control and use the workers. It is wrong that her workers suffer under such an uncaring ruler.³ 

The way factories are being run is a disgrace to this land. Capitalism ⁴ is a horrifying way to run a government. Workers are abused and treated like idiots ⁵ by the wealthy. This is especially true in factories. Employees have to work 12 to 14 hours a day in dirty and unsafe conditions. Also, with new machines workers must work faster and have less time to rest. Sometimes, a worker does the same task over and over all day. The job is very monotonous. Finally, the worst and most abrasive condition is the low pay. Wages are terrible and a factory worker does not even make enough money to support a family. This exploitation must end! This is the reason that the great Karl Marx is here talking about communism.⁶ Marx is a great proponent of the working class. Karl Marx’s⁷ political work has been for the peasants, the lower class, and the clergy. Communism gives fair treatment to all people. The factory workers should resolve to embrace communism and get rid of the royals of England. The suffering of the workers must end! It breaks the heart and soul of working people to see their children suffer under such astringent conditions. A long workday with beatings is not the life for a child. It is very sad to see our children wither in the factories when they should be out running, jumping, having fun, and learning. But no, it is only the higher class that gets to have fun in this country. The life of the rich abounds with pleasure and elation. The wealthy do not understand the adversities of the workers. However, the royals must be made to understand the dire straits of the working class. The future of our country depends on the death of capitalism and the birth of communism. If we want the country to improve, we must first improve our children, our lower class and our government. So, let us overthrow this government that seems to abhor fair treatment for all classes. We are the future and we must remain resolute in our efforts for freedom and equality for all! 

            This is a great land with a great history and maybe a great future. When people study and analyze the British Empire, we do not want them to think that its greatness was built on the suffering of its workers. We cannot allow the shameful life and conditions of factory workers to continue. We must act today! Do not avert your eyes to the tragedy of the workers! Join the communist movement and help subvert this oppressive government. Not because you hate this country, but because you love it. The future of England and her people depend on you and your tenacity!

- Karl Marx

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[2]The strength and wealth of England rested on the backs of the poor working class.
²The Queen of England had not ever done any physical work herself. Also, she had never been in a factory to see the working conditions of the lower class.

³ The relationship between the Queen and her subjects was very one-sided. The Queen of course felt superior to the peasants and believed that they should be happy to work for her. The Queen loved her country more than she did her people.

⁴Captialism is an economic system in which the means of production and distribution are privately owned rather than by state control. Production, price, and distribution are determined by competition in the free market.

⁵Factory workers were not treated very kindly. If they had special talents or abilities, they could not express them. Workers were not encouraged to read or write because employers were afraid they would not stay in the low-paying jobs.

⁶Communism is a society without class distinctions or private property.

⁷ Karl Marx was great man of his time. He was a German philosopher, social scientist, and professional revolutionary. He has had a great impact upon the world with his ideas of socialism and communism. He believed that everyone was equal and should be treated the same. Marx also believed that society was a constant class struggle of the haves and have-nots.

Robert Owen [i]

Kevin Kline

 Fractured Factory Life From Factory Owner Who’s Friendly

            This world, this industrial world, it is full of poverty, plutocrats[ii], and overproduction. Even though it helps the economy of England grow, it is bad on the working class people of Great Britain.

            The working class is nearly killing itself and is getting ten pence a week[iii]. A typical day would be starting at the o’clock of five[iv], and if you ask a factory worker when he was coming home what o’clock was it, he would answer 9 o’clock. If you were two minutes late, you lose ½ hours pay, and if you are there more that two minutes late, you lose the pay equivalent to the time until the next break. From 5 to noon they work without stop. And at noon they had only a 40-minute break. They had no time off for breakfast[v]. Some places have supper breaks. In addition, many of these workers are uneducated, homeless, and hungry. They need more respect.

 The factory owners live lavishly and richly, and the working class live like rats. The overseers are harsh, stringent, abrasive, and most boldly, more then any thing else, bad.  In the factories the stench of pollution, and the odour of the machines is putrid. Dust is flying everywhere. Food spoils, and people become dirty. You know it makes you want to die. These working class people sometimes have to man 1-5 machines at a time. Many lose lives and arms. It is no wonder that the middle class and upper class is not handless. This plutocracy must be put down. A factory owner should treat his workers fairly. He should give better living conditions, better benefits, and better pay.  These mean factory owners are eating all of the money, instead of letting others get chances to get any thing out of this industrial age.

            The great empire of England must stand up and say, what are we doing? We must unify, socialise, and communise. We must open our eyes and see the truth of the factory life. This way of aristocracy and plutocracy is taking the real meaning of industrialization away. The working class should not be shot down because they did not get in on the ground floor. They deserve to be treated better. One group of people should not get all of the money of the world. This entire industrial revolution currently is “a miserly, selfish system.”

Robert Owen’s Views on Working Conditions

Though there is no doubt in anyone’s mind that Great Britain is the greatest nation in the world, we have a very serious problem before us. British factories have been very productive, and continue to make great amounts of goods and money. However, those who are making the money neglect the fact of how poorly factory workers are being treated, specifically the children. There has been some research on this topic and Great Britain seriously needs to take action.²

Of all the people that are working in factories more than forty percent are children. Many factories take away parent’s children as early eight years old and put the children to work. Children never even go to school and many are illegitimate until they are eighteen.

How can Britain advance forward if none of the children are going to school! It is true that middle and upper class children go to school but there are so few of them, and they are bred to take over their parent’s title whether it be a duke, earl, or the head of a factory.  These people are not expected to invent new objects or create new theories of science. This industrial boom may last a few more years but what after that, if there is no one who is educated? ³

            The life these children and adults lead is miserable. They wake up as early as three a.m. and work to as late as ten p.m.⁴, often with only one short forty-minute break⁵. They cannot look forward to the next day or even year because they know it will be exactly the same as it is now, and exactly the same as it was in the past. For all these people’s hard work they get paid next to nothing, the absolute minimum. The houses the factories build for them are overcrowded and ugly, women are paid half as much as men are for the same job, and to top it all off the workers are not allowed to talk while in the factory unless it is related to the business!

            Now ask yourself, is this really fair? Put yourself in the position of one of these factory workers. This is wrong and needs to be changed now! The only reason that the middle and upper classes are wealthy is because of the blood and sweat of the working class.

Endnotes

1. Robert Owen was a famous utopian thinker and wealthy manufacturer. His main goal was to turn the world into a perfect society, where everyone was equal. In 1800 he set up his first colony, which was in his mind perfect. Its name was New Lanark, located in Lanarkshire. Years later, in 1825 he set up another of these colonies called New Harmony in the U.S., it soon failed, mostly because of corruption among the owners.    
2. In 1832 a parliamentary committee chaired by Michael Thomas Sadle investigated the situation of British working class children in factories. They interviewed many children and adults; this is the main point at which it was discovered how harsh the working conditions were in the factories.
3. Later on going to school became mandatory for children. At first children were all taught in the same room, no matter what age they were. Later on, however, the system of moving from one grade to another was introduced. Finally between 1870 and 1914 governments began to take action in helping pay for the schools, and creating public schools.    
4. In 1802 the first factory act limits the number of hour’s children can work, but was widely ineffective from lack of enforcement. In 1819 the second factory act limits employment, so that children must be over eight years old to work in a factory.
5. This was the worst-case scenario, some factories allowed up to 3 breaks for a total of an hour and a half, and even a cup of tea! Most factories however, allowed two breaks for a total of and hour break time.