Cultural Revolution
Mr. White’s World History
Big Questions


The Industrial Revolution, the various
political revolutions, and Enlightenment ideas
combined to create a modern, complex
society in Europe
After we finish this section, we should be
able to answer these questions:
◦ How did ideas of economics change during this
time period?
◦ How did new scientific ideas attempt to describe
and understand the world?
◦ How were different classes of society affected by
different living conditions?
Part I
ECONOMICS
Capitalism

Many countries had adopted capitalism
◦ Main motivator is profit
◦ Means of production are owned privately
◦ Government avoids intervention

Adam Smith, an economist, supported
laissez-faire capitalism – “let them alone”
◦ Act on their own self-interest
◦ Businesses would compete to produce as cheaply
as possible – consumers would benefit
◦ Efficient businesses would make more profit, hire
more workers, and expand – benefits all
Problems With Laissez-Faire
Capitalism

What could be some problems with
unrestricted competition and profit
motivation?
Problems With Laissez-Faire
Capitalism

Many people criticized laissez-faire
capitalism for problems it created
◦ Poor working and living conditions for the
industrial workers
◦ Women and children paid differently than
others
◦ Children missed out on education, stunted
growth, injuries, etc.
◦ Growing gap between the rich and the poor
Socialism

Many people began to argue for socialism
◦ Means of production (factories, land, raw
materials, capital) should be owned and
controlled by society, directly or through the
government
◦ Wealth could be distributed equally among
the citizens

Early attempts at socialism generally failed
Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels



Karl Marx – German
philosopher, studied
history and philosophy
Friedrich Engels –
wrote a book called
“The Condition of the
Working Class in
England”, describing life
for English factory
workers
Marx devoted his life
to writing about
economics
Marx’s Theory

Marx believed that…
◦ Ideas were the major forces of history
◦ History advanced through conflict

Society was divided into classes
◦ The class that controlled production was the
ruling class
◦ The only way to take power away was
through revolution
Marx’s Theory, Part 2
Marx believed Europe had moved through
four stages of economic life – primitive,
slave, feudal, and capitalist
 Capitalism did several things:

◦ Kept workers low by keeping them from
owning the means of production
◦ Made the capitalists richer and helped
perpetuate the system

As the makers of goods, the working class
or proletariat were the productive class
Revolution!
The proletariat could seize power,
through revolution, from the bourgeoisie,
or capitalist middle class
 Proletariat would then set up a society
where the people, not capitalists, owned
everything
 After this, the government would whither
away - communism
 “From each according to his ability, to
each according to his need”

The Communist Manifesto
Marx and Engels published their ideas in
The Communist Manifesto
 Working men and women of different
countries should unite to overthrow the
capitalists in their societies
 This would happen later – the Soviet
Union

Part II
SCIENCE
New Biology



Cell theory (1838) – All
living things were made
up of tiny units of matter
called cells
Evolution (1831, Charles
Darwin) – Life evolved
through natural selection
of species fittest for
survival
Genetics (1860s, Gregor
Mendel) –
Characteristics are
passed on through
genetics
Medicine
Vaccination (1796) – Technique developed
to prevent illnesses among people
 Germ theory (1850s) – Louis Pasteur
discovered that germs caused illnesses,
could be killed
 Anesthesia (1840s) – Patients could be
operated on while unconscious
 Medical sterilization – Medical
instruments could be sterilized to prevent
infection

Physics
Atomic theory (1800s) –
Matter was divided into
small parts known as
atoms
 X-rays (1890s) – Made up
of electrons, which are
parts of atoms
 Radium (1898) – Marie and
Pierre Curie discovered
this radioactive element
 Theory of relativity –
Albert Einstein developed
new ideas about time,
space, mass, and motion

Social Sciences and Psychology
Many people believed that since science
and the world were governed by natural
laws, how human beings acted could be
understood by natural laws, as well
 Sociology – The study of people
interacting in groups
 Psychology – The study of the human
mind
 These were known as the social sciences

Part III
CULTURE
Urbanization and Immigration

What types of problems does a city run
into when its population grows quickly?
Urbanization and Immigration


As industry grew, and as new methods of
agriculture made more food, cities grew
As cities grew, city problems grew with it
◦
◦
◦
◦
◦
◦

Sanitation
Over-crowding
Clean water and sewage
Fire prevention
Transportation
Energy
As cities grew, many people immigrated out
of their country to others, especially the
U.S.A.
Growth of Education

Education grew during this time for many
reasons
◦ People saw education as an opportunity
◦ As more children went to school longer, there
was a growing demand for teachers, so many
colleges began to train new teachers
◦ Industrialists needed educated employees who
could read, write, had scientific or other
specialized training
◦ People needed to be educated to participate in
public affairs
Education for Women

Education for women was a hotly debated
topic in the 1800s
◦ Some believed women didn’t need an
education for their roles as wives and
homemakers
◦ Others felt women should have the same
opportunities

Some people began to open colleges and
secondary schools for women
New Literate Society



With the growth in education, reading, and
writing, reading materials increased
dramatically
Lending libraries grew and lent books to
regular people
Mass-circulation newspapers were more
available
◦ Rapid communication of news over telegraphs
◦ Cheaper, faster printing
◦ Improved distribution
Which of these old men has the
coolest facial hair?