The Long 19th Century

Long Nineteenth Century

The "Long nineteenth century" is the time between 1789 and 1914 in which progression was second nature. Western Civilization seemed to prosper economically with its rise in industrial revolution. An Enlightenment was started with new scientific revolutions, religious movements, and political separations. Social order was advanced through a series of nations that gained independence. Inventions, ideas, and theories created during that time are still used in society today, which is why I believe that the "long nineteenth century" was a time in which the western civilization prospered.

The first area in which I believe it prospered was in Economics. With the Industrial Revolution many inventions were created that would change the way western society worked. The invention of the railroad for example, did way with horses, and created a more convenient way of trading across the continent. This made trade faster and cheaper, this helped businesses run without the worry of running out of products. In the area of agriculture, Eli Whitney helped to industrialize the field with the invention of the cotton gin. By doing this, it increased productivity of farmers, which in return meant they could buy more slaves. This meant an even bigger increase in productivity.

Although these technologies helped make life simpler, other ideas that were not so advanced held workers back. The lack of workers compensation, made labor hard for individuals.Along with these ideas came the Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations. Division of Labor was an idea in which, different people would be set aside to do different jobs. Instead of one worker making a whole shoe, one person would be in charge of the sole, another the heel, another the laces, and so on.If one was to get hurt at work, he would just be sent home and would be replaced by someone who could. Later on during this era, machines started to replace men in the work place, this increased productivity, but also increased unemployment. As a result of these horrible working condition, labor unions began to form. This would be a group of people who would join together to stand up to their employer. This made it hard for the companies they were working for, because it is easy to replace one person but not your entire workforce. This helped to increase the treatment of employees, while also keeping the company in tact. After hearing of these labor unions, slaves began to strive for the same idea. Freedom for the slaves would set the stage for a Civil War which would ultimately get the slaves the freedom they desired. Many of the slaves became sharecroppers who would eventually work long enough to buy their own land. These economic advances helped make the "long nineteenth century" one where the working man was able to make a name for himself.

An Enlightenment in the western world was also