Page 171 - DENG402_HISTORY_OF_ENGLISH_LITERATURE

History of English Literature Jayatee Bhattacharya, Lovely Professional University

Notes Unit 22: The Nineteenth Century (Reflection of

Changes in the English Society Due to Industrial
Revolution in the Nineteenth Century Novel)

CONTENTS
Objectives
Introduction
22.1 Women and Child Labour
22.2 Growth and Profit
22.3 Transition for Rural to Aristocratic
22.4 Origin and Rising of Merchant Class
22.5 Plotting of Disobedience
22.6 Class Struggle
22.7 Summary
22.8 Keywords
22.9 Review Questions
22.10 Further Readings

Objectives
After studying this unit, you will be able to:
Define women and child labour.
Describe growth and profit.
Explain transition for rural to aristocration.
Describe origin and rising of merchant class.
Define plotting of disobedience.
Explain class struggle.

Introduction

There were many artistic movements during the period of Britain’s industrialization, each of
which was a reaction to the feelings of the time, as well as to the movement which had preceded it.
By the time that the Industrial Revolution really took hold, some artists were at differences with
the ideals which it espoused, such as those of discipline, temperance, structure, and views of the
Enlightenment. These feelings translated into the Romantic Movement, which encouraged
individualism, freedom, and emotion.
During the Industrial Revolution, the social structure of society changed dramatically. Before the
Revolution most people lived in small villages, working either in agriculture or as skilled craftsmen.
They lived and often worked as a family, doing everything by hand. In fact, three quarters of
Britain’s population lived in the countryside, and farming was the predominant occupation. With
the advent of industrialization, however, everything changed. The new enclosure laws—which
required that all grazing grounds be fenced in at the owner’s expense—had left many poor farmers
bankrupt and unemployed, and machines capable of huge outputs made small hand weavers
redundant. As a result, there were many people who were forced to work at the new factories. This
required them to move to towns and cities so that they could be close to their new jobs. It also

164 LOVELY PROFESSIONAL UNIVERSITY