PHS AP Euro Unit 12 Ch. 13 - Mass Society in an "Age of Progress"

Second Industrial Revolution

(1871-1914) Involved development of chemical, electrical, oil, and steel industries. Mass production of consumer goods also developed at this time through the mechanization of the manufacture of food and clothing. It saw the popularization of cinema and radio. Provided widespread employment and increased production.

Advertisment & mass consumption

- Advertising in mass newspapers introduced Europeans to the new products, while department store catalogs enabled people living outside the cities to also purchase the new goods - Advertisements mostly directed towards women, but men also took part in the new consumer culture of the late 19th century

Social structure of mass society: the Lower Classes

- Almost 80% of Europeans belonged to the lower classes; many of them were landholding peasants, agricultural laborers, & shopkeepers, especially in eastern Europe (this was less true in western & central Europe — about 10% of the British population worked in agriculture, & 25% in Germany) - Many prosperous, landowning peasants shared the values of the middle class — military conscription brought peasants into contact with other groups of society & state-run elementary schools forced the children of peasants to speak the national dialect & accept the national loyalties - Urban working class consisted of different groups, including skilled artisans in such trades as cabinetmaking, printing, & jewelry making Semiskilled laborers (carpenters, bricklayers, many factory workers, etc.) earned wages that were about 2/3 of those of highly skilled workers - At bottom of working-class hierarchy were unskilled workers (largest group of workers) — included day laborers, who worked irregularly for very low wages, & large numbers of domestic servants; in Britain 1 out of every 7 persons in 1900 was a domestic servant (most were women) -Urban workers did experience a real betterment in the material conditions of their lives after 1871 — for one thing, urban improvements meant better living conditions - A rise in real wages accompanied by a decline in many consumer costs (especially in the 1880's & 90's) made it possible for workers to buy more than just food & housing - Workers' budgets now provided money for more clothes & even leisure at the same time that strikes & labor agitation were winning shorter (10 hour) workdays & Sat. afternoons off

Mass consumption in the late 19th century

- Earlier, most people's purchases had been limited — some kitchen utensils, bedding, furniture, & a few select pieces of tailor-made clothing - Now, middle & upper-class Europeans were able to purchase & enjoy a wide variety of material goods - The new mass consumption was made possible by improvements in the standard of living, the factory system, population growth, expanded transportation, urbanization, & new modernized retailer, which sold standardized merchandise in large volumes - When European cities were reconstructed in the late 19th cent. space was made for department stores — constructed of the new industrial materials (iron columns & plate-glass windows), department stores such as Paris' Le Bon Marché offered consumers an endless variety of goods in large spaces - in 1860 its merchandise included shawls, cloaks, bedding, & fabrics; by the 1880s its stock had expanded to include women's, men's, & children's clothing, accessories, furniture, rugs, umbrellas, toothbrushes, stationery, perfume, toys, shoes, & cutlery — sales at Le Bon Marché in 1877 registered 73 million francs - Omnibuses carried people throughout Paris, enabling them to travel beyond their neighborhoods to shop at new stores

Problems with Ireland

- Gradual reform failed to solve the problem of Ireland — the Irish had long been subject to British rule - The Act of Union of 1801 had united the English & Irish Parliaments - Like other unfree ethnic groups in Europe, the Irish had developed a sense of national self-consciousness — they detested the absentee British landlords & their burdensome rents - In 1870 William Gladstone attempted to alleviate Irish discontent by enacting limited land reform, but as Irish tenants continued to be evicted in the 1870s, the Irish began to make new demands - 1879 — a group called the Irish Land League, which advocated independence, called on Parliament to at least institute land reform - Charles Parnell calls for home rule of Ireland - Soon Irish peasant were responding to British inaction with terrorist attacks; when the British government reacted with more force Irish Catholics began to demand independence - The liberal leader Gladstone, continuing to hope for a peaceful solution to the Irish Question, introduced a home rule bill in 1876 that would have granted an Irish Parliament without granting independence — even this compromise was voted down in Parliament, especially by Conservatives who believed that concessions would only result in more violence - Gladstone tried again when he was prime minister in 1893 but experienced yet another defeat — Irish Question remained unsolved

Chemicals (2nd Industrial Revolution)

- Great Britain fell behind in the new chemical industry - A change in the method of making soda enabled France & Germany to take the lead in producing alkaline used in textile, soap, & paper industries - German laboratories soon overtook the British in the development of new organic chemical compounds, such as artificial dyes & nitrates for fertilizer - By 1900, German firms had cornered 90% of the market for dye-stuffs & also led in the development of photographic plate & film

Other motivations for emigration from Europe

- Migrants from Austria & Hungary were not the dominant nationalities but mostly the oppressed minorities (Poles, Slovaks, Serbs, Croats, Romanians, Jews, etc.) - Between 1880 & 1914 some 3.5 million Poles from Russia, Austria, & Germany went to the U.S. - Jews who were severely persecuted constituted 40% of the Russian emigrants to the US between 1919 13 and only 12% of all emigrants to the US during the first five years of the 20th century

Men & mass consumption

- Not only did men consume goods such as alcohol & tobacco, but they were also the chief purchasers of ready-made clothing in the late 19th century - In the US in 1890, men bought 71% of all ready-made clothing; as work & leisure were separated, men needed to expand their wardrobes to include both clothes for work outside the home & clothes to be worn for entertaining at home or other leisure activities - Men also consumed such goods as shaving soaps, aftershave lotions, hair dyes, & sporting goods

Population growth from 1850 to 1910

- Rose from 270,000,000 to 460,000,000 by 1910 - between 1850 and 1880 than main causes of population increase largely in Western Europe was a rising birth rate - After 1880 and noticeable decline in death rate largely explains the increase in population Causes/Factors - Two major causes of the decline in death rates — medical discoveries, and environmental conditions - Importance of developments in medical science — smallpox compulsory smallpox vaccinations in many European countries by the mid-1850s - More important were improvements in the urban environment in the 2nd half of the 19th century that greatly reduced fatalities from such diseases as diarrhea, dysentery, typhoid, fever, & cholera, which had been spread through contaminated water supply and improper elimination of sewage - Improved nutrition made a s significant difference in the health of the population the increase in agricultural productivity, combined with improvements in transportation, and facilitated the shipment of food supplies from areas of surplus to regions with poor harvest - Better nutrition and food hygiene were especially instrumental in the decline an infant mortality by 1900; the pasteurization of milk reduced intestinal disorders that had been a major cause of infant deaths

Women & sports

- Sports cult of the 19th century was mostly male-oriented; many men believed females were not particularly suited for "vigorous physical activity" although it was permissible for middle-class women to indulge in less active sports like croquet & lawn tennis - Women's attempt to play soccer during the 1880s was met with violent opposition, although by 1885 the British Ladies Football Club played throughout England - Eventually, some athletics crept into women's colleges & girls' public schools in England

Team sports

- Sports were no longer chaotic in spontaneous activities, but became strictly organized with written rules and officials to enforce them; - the rules were products of organized athletic groups, such as the English Football Association (1863) & the American Bowling Congress - New sports not just for fun; like other forms of middle-class recreation, they were intended to provide training for people, especially adolescents — not only could the participants develop individual skills, but they could also acquire a sense of teamwork useful for military service - These characteristics were already evident in the British public schools (which were really private boarding schools) in the 1880s & 1860s when some schools placed sports at the center if the curriculum - The new team sports became rapidly professionalized — Britain had its Football Assoc. in 1863 its Rugby Football Union in 1871, U.S. had the 1st national association to recognize professional baseball players in 1863 - Development of urban transportation systems made possible the construction of stadiums where thousands could attend, making mass spectator sports a big business; in 1872 ~2000 people watch the British Soccer cup Final; by 1885 the crowd had increased to 10,000 and by 1901 to 100,000 - Professional teams became objects of mass education by crowds of urbanites who compensated for their lost sense of identity in mass urban areas by developing these new loyalties, could reflect class differences

Changes with working-class parents & their children

- Strikes & labor agitation led to laws that reduced work hours to 10/day by 1900 & eliminated work on Sat. afternoons, which enabled working-class parents to devote more attention to their children & develop deeper connections with them - Even working-class fathers became involved in their children's lives; ex from French town in Belleville: "the workingman's love for his children borders on being an obsession"

Transportation & cities

- The construction of streetcar & commuter train lines by the turn of the century enabled both working-class & middle-class populations to live in their own suburban neighborhoods far removed from their places of work - Cheap, modern transportation essentially separated home & work for many Europeans

Social structure of mass society: the Upper Classes

- Top of European society, constituted only 5% of the population but controlled between 30 & 40% of the land - In the course of the 19th cent. aristocrats coalesced with the most successful industrialists, bankers, & merchants to form this new elite — big businesses had produced this group of plutocrats while aristocrats (whose income from landed estate had declined) invested in railway shares, public utilities, government bonds, & businesses, sometimes on their own estates - Gradually the greatest fortunes shifted into the hands of the upper middle class, more middle class millionaires - Increasingly, aristocrats & plutocrats fused as the wealthy upper middle classes purchased landed estates to join the aristocratic pleasures of country living & the aristocrats bought lavish houses for part-time urban life - Common bonds were also forged when the sons of wealthy middle-class families were admitted to the elite schools dominated by the children of the aristocracy — this educated elite, whether aristocratic or middle class in background, assumed leadership roles in government bureaucracies & military hierarchies - Marriage also served to unite the 2 groups — daughters of tycoons required titles, while aristocratic heirs gained new sources of cash; wealthy American heiresses were especially in demand

Problems after the Paris Commune's defeat

- the brutal repression of the Commune bequeathed a legacy of hatred that continue to play French politics for decades - the split between the middle and working classes began in the revolutionary hostilities of 1848-1849 had widened immensely - the harsh punishment of women who had participated in the revolutionary activity also served to discourage any further efforts by working class women to improve their conditions

Improved living conditions

1840s- Edwin Chadwick in Brit and Rudolf Virchrow + Solomon Neumann pointed out that filthy living conditions caused epidemic disease, urged sanitary reforms to correct the problem - Soon the legislative acts created boards of health that brought government action to bear on public health issues — urban medical officers and buildings inspectors were authorized to inspect dwellings for public health hazards; new public building regulations made it more difficult for private contractors to build shoddy housing; - Public Health Act of 1875 (Britain) — prohibited construction of buildings without running water & an internal drainage system - Municipal gov had a bigger role — for the first time in western history, the role of municipal governments had expanded to include detailed regulations for the improvement of the living conditions of urban dwellers - Late 19th century, construction of dams, reservoirs to store clean water & aqueducts & tunnels to carry it from the countryside to the city into individual dwelling — people could use water that isn't contaminated with typhoid, cholera, etc. - Waste water was carried through mammoth underground sewage pipes for disposal, went into (now highly polluted) lakes and rivers, or chemically treated - Creation of parks combated air pollution and created green space/ a place for city dwellers to enjoy fresh air & sunshine

Why did Germany replace Great Britain as the industrial leader of Europe?

3 major reasons 1. Since Britain had the early lead in industrialization, they had already established industrial plants & found it difficult to shift to the new techniques of the Second Industrial Revolution, while Germany could build the latest & most efficient plants starting out (example: British chemist William Henry Purkin discovered artificial dyes in 1856 while attempting to synthesize quinine, used for the treatment of malaria, but it was Germany that capitalized on the discovery — by 1900 around 19% of the world's dyes were made in Germany) 2. British entrepreneurs tended to be suspicious of innovations & reluctant to invest in new plants & industries, while German managers were accustomed to change, & the formation of large cartels encouraged German banks to provide enormous sums for investment 3. Germany encouraged more formal technical & scientific education — after 1870 the relationship between science & technology grew closer, & newer fields of industrial activity such as organic chemistry & electrical engineering required more scientific knowledge than the commonsense tinkering employed by amateur inventors; companies began to invest capital in laboratory equipment for their own research or hired scientific consultants for advice - Nowhere was the relationship between science and technology more apparent than in Germany — in 1899, German technical schools were allowed to award doctorate degrees, and by 1900, they were turning out three to four thousand graduates a year; many of these graduates made their way into industrial firms

Reform Act of 1884

A British legislation act passed during the 2nd ministry of William Gladstone that gave the vote to all men who paid regular rents or taxes; by largely enfranchising agricultural workers (a group previously excluded), this act added another 2 million male voters to the electorate; women were still denied the right to vote

Louise Michel (1830-1905)

A French schoolteacher, emerged as one of the leaders of the Paris Commune, proved tireless in informing committees for the defense of the Commune Was ultimately shipped to the French penal colony of New Caledonia in the South Pacific after the Commune's defeat

What was taught in elementary schools (19th century mass education)

A nation's motives for universal elementary education largely determined what was taught in its elementary schools - indoctrination in national values took on great importance — at the core of the academic curriculum were reading, writing, arithmetic, national history (from a patriotic perspective), geography, literature, & some singing 7 drawing - Education of boys & girls differed — were possible the sexes were separated, girls did less mass & no science but concentrated on such domestic skills as sewing, washing, ironing, & cooking, all prerequisites for a good home for husband & children - Boys were taught some practical skills, such as carpentry & even some military drill - Most of the elementary schools also inculcated the middle-class virtues of hard work, thrift, cleanliness, & respect for the family - For most students, elementary education led to apprenticeship & a job

Challenges to Spain in the late 1800s

A new constitution drafted under King Alfonso XII established a parliamentary government dominated by 2 political groups (Liberals & Conservatives) who members stemmed from the same small social group of great landowners allied with a few wealthy industrialists - Because suffrage was limited to the propertied classes, Liberals & Conservatives alternated in power but followed basically the same conservative policies - Spain's defeat in the Spanish American War in 1898 & the loss of Cuba & the Philippines to the US increased the discontent with the status quo - When a group of young intellectuals known as the Generation of 1898 called for political & social reforms, both Libs. & Cons. attempted to enlarge the electorate & win the masses' support for their policies - The attempted reforms did little to settle the unrest, however, & the growth of industrialization in some areas resulted in more workers being attracted to the radical solutions of socialism & anarchism - When violence irrupted in Barcelona in July 1909 military forces brutally repressed the rebels — the revolt and its repression made clear that reform would not be easily accomplished because the Catholic Church, the large landowners & the army remained tied to the conservative social order

Mass politics

A political order characterized by mass political parties and universal male and (eventually) female suffrage - within the major European states, considerable progress was made towards achieving such a liberal practices as constitutions and parliaments, but it was largely in western European states that mass politics became a reality - reforms encouraged an expansion of political democracy through voting rights for men in the creation of mass political parties; at the same time, however, these developments were strongly resisted in parts of Europe where the old political forces remained strong

The telephone/communication & the 2nd Industrial Revolution

A revolution in communications was fostered when Alexander Graham Bell (1847-1922) invented the telephone in 1976 & Guglielmo Marconi (1874-1937) sent the first radio waves across the Atlantic in 1901

Nationalism as a threat to socialist unity

A second divisive issue for international socialism was nationalism - Marx & Engels had said that "the working men have no country" & that "national differences and antagonisms between peoples are daily more and more vanishing, owing to the development of the bourgeoisie" - They proved drastically wrong — congresses of the the Second International passed resolutions in 1907 & 1910 advocating joint action by workers of different countries to avoid war but provided no real machinery to implement the resolutions - In truth, socialist parties varied from country to country and remained tied to national concerns and issues - Socialist leaders always worried that in the end, national loyalties might outweigh class loyalties among the masses — when World War I came in 1914, not only the working-class masses but even many of their socialist party leaders supported the war efforts of their national governments - Nationalism had proved a much more powerful force than socialism.

Mass Society

A society whose members are characterized by having segmentalized, impersonal relations, a spectator relation of events, & pronounced tendency to conform to external popular norms

German industrial leadership

After 1870 Germany surpassed Great Britain as the industrial leader of Europe, & within 2 decades Germany's superiority was evident in new eras of manufacturing, such as organic chemicals & electrical equipment & increasingly apparent in its ever-growing share of worldwide trade -Leaders in Chemicals and electronic equipment

Universal elementary education

After 1870 the functions of the state were extended to include the development of mass education in state-run schools - Most western governments began to offer at least primary education to boys & girls between the ages of 6 & 12 - States also assumed responsibility for the quality of teachers by establishing state-run school; by 1900 many European states esp. in northern & western Europe were providing state-run schools, salaried & trained teachers, & free, compulsory education for the masses - Liberal reason for mass ed. — thought education was important to personal & social improvement & also sought (as in France) to supplant Catholic education with moral & civic training based on secular values - Conservative reason for mass ed. — education a means of improving the quality of military recruits & training people in social discipline Economic reason for mass ed. — New firms of the 2 Industrial Revolution demanded more skilled labor than the unskilled labor of the 1st in order to meet factory needs, mass education furnished the trained workers industrialists needed; both boys & girls with an elementary education had new possibilities of jobs beyond their villages or small towns, including white-collar jobs in railways, subway stations, post offices, banking & shipping firms, teaching, & nursing - Political motive (chief motive) — expansion of voting rights necessitated a more educated electorate, mass education also instilled patriotism & nationalism in the masses, providing an opportunity for even greater national education

Women & white-collar jobs

After 1870, new job opportunities for women became available; although the growth of industry in mining, metallurgy, engineering, chemicals, & electrical sections meant fewer jobs for women in manufacturing, the development of larger industrial plants & the expansion of government services created a larger number of service or white collar jobs - The increased demand for white-collar workers at relatively low wages coupled with a shortage of male workers led employers to hire women - Big businesses & retail shops needed clerks, typists, secretaries, file clerks, & sales clerks; the expansion of government services created opportunities for women to be secretaries & telephone operators & to take jobs in health & social services - Compulsory education necessitated more teachers & the development of modern hospital serviced opened the way for an increase in nurses - Many of the new white-collar jobs were unexciting — the work was routine &, except for teaching & nursing, required few skills beyond basic literacy - Although there was little hope for advancement, these jobs had distinct advantages for the daughters of the middle classes & especially the upward-aspiring working classes — for some middle-class women, the new jobs offered freedom from the domestic patterns expected of them - Nevertheless, because middle-class women didn't receive education comparable to that of men, the careers they could pursue were limited — thus they found it easier to fill the jobs at the lower end of middle-class occupations (teaching civil & service jobs, especially in the postals services - Most of the new white collar jobs were filled by working-class women who saw them as an opportunity to escape from the "dirty" work of the lower-class world

Austria-Hungary & the nationalities problem

After the creation of the Dual Monarchy in 1867 the Austrian part received a constitution that established a parliamentary system with the principle of ministerial responsibility - Emperor Francis Joseph largely ignored ministerial responsibility & proceeded to appoint & dismiss his ministers & rule by decree when parliament wasn't in session - Problem of minorities continued to trouble the empire; the ethnic Germans (only 1/3 of Austria's population) governed Austria but felt increasingly threatened by Poles, Czechs, & other Slavic groups within the empire - Difficulties in dealing with this problem especially evident from 1879 to 1893 when Count Edward von Taaffe served as prime minister - Taaffe attempted to "muddle through" by relying on a coalition of German conservatives, Czechs, & Poles to maintain a majority in parliament; but his concessions to national minorities, such as allowing Slavic languages as well as German to be used education & administration antagonized the German-speaking Austrian bureaucracy & aristocracy, the 2 basic pillars of the empire - Opposition to Taaffe's policies brought his downfall in 1893 but did not solve the nationalities problem; while the dissatisfied non-German groups demanded concessions, the ruling Austrian Germans resisted change - What held the A-H Empire together was a combination of forces Hungary - Unlike Austria, Hungary had a working parliamentary system, but it was controlled by the great Magyar landowners who dominated both the Hungarian peasantry and the other ethnic groups in Hungary - The Hungarians attempted to solve their nationalities problem by systematic Magyarization The Magyar language was imposed on all schools and was the only language that could be used by government and military officials

Establishment & structure of the Third French Republic

Although a majority of the members of the monarchist-dominated National Assembly wished restore a monarchy to France, inability to agree on who should be king caused the monarchists to miss their opportunity & in 1875 to an impoverished constitution that established a republican form of government as the least divisive compromise - This established a bicameral legislature with an upper house (the Senate, elected indirectly) & a lower house (the Chamber of Deputies, chosen by universal male suffrage - A president, selected by the legislature for a term of 7 years, served as executive of the government - The Constitution of 1875, intended only as a stop gap measure, solidified the Third French Republic, which lasted 65 years - New elections in 1876 & 1877 strengthened the hands of the republicans, who managed by 1879 to institute ministerial responsibility & establish the power of the Chamber of Deputies — the prime minister/premier & his ministers were nor responsible to the Chamber of Dep., not the president

The Contagious Diseases Acts & Josephine Butler (1828-1906)

Although the British government provided minimal regulation of prostitution, in the 1870s & 1880s it did attempt to enforce this act by giving authorities the right to examine prostitutes for venereal disease - Prostitutes found to be infected were confined for some time to special institutions called lock hospitals where they were given moral instruction - Opposition to the Contagious Diseases Acts soon arose from middle-class female reformers — their leader was Josephine Butler, who objected to laws that punished women but not men who suffered from venereal disease - Known as the "shrieking sisters" because they discussed sexual matters in public, Butler & her fellow reformers were successful in gaining the repeal of the acts in 1866

Opposition to the Third French Republic

Although the government's moderation gradually encouraged more & more middle-class & peasant support, the position of the Third Republic remained precarious because monarchists, Catholic clergy, & professional army officers still opposed it; A major crisis i the 1880s, however, actually served to strengthen the republican government - General George Boulanger (1837-1891) was a popular military officer who attracted the public attention of all who favored a war of revenge against Germany - Boulanger appeared as the strong man on horseback, the savior of France, but in 1889 just when his strength had grown to the point when many expected a coup d'état, he lost his nerve & fled France, a completely discredited man - In the long run, the Boulanger crisis served to rally support for the resilient republic

Mass leisure

An aspect of the later Industrial Revolution; decreased time at work and offered opportunities for new forms of leisure time, such as vacation trips and team sports

The Second International

As the socialist parties grew, agitation for an international organization that would strengthen their position against capitalism also grew - In 1889, leaders of the various socialist parties formed the Second International, which was organized as a loose association of national groups - Although the Second International took some coordinated actions (ex: May Day on May 1 was made an international labor day to be marked by strikes & mass labor demonstrations), differences often wreaked havoc at the organization's congresses; 2 issues proved particularly divisive — revisionism & nationalism

Redesigning the cities

As urban populations expanded in the 19th century, the older layout confining the city to a compact area, enclosed by defensive walls, seemed restrictive and utterly useless - In the 2nd half of the 19th century many of the old defensive walls (worthless anyway from a military standpoint) were pulled down, & the areas were converted into parks & boulevards Vienna - In Vienna, the great boulevards of the Ringstrasse replaced the old medieval walls; while the broad streets served a military purpose (the rapid deployment of troops to crsuh civil disturbances) they also offered magnificent views of the city hall, the university, & the parliament building, all powerful symbols of middle-class social values Paris - Reconstruction of Paris after 1850 by Napoleon III was perhaps the most famous city redesign project & provided a model for other cities - Paris was reshaped along wide boulevards, twice the width of previous streets & 12% longer to accommodate the new city structures - The old residential districts in the central city (many of them working-class slums) were demolished & replaced with town halls, government office buildings, retail stores including the new department stores, museums, cafés, & theaters, all of which provided for the shopping & recreational pleasures of the middle class Overall - Many European urban centers were redesigned during the 2nd half of the 19th century - As cities expanded & entire groups of people were displaced, from urban centers by reconstruction, city populations spilled over into the neighboring villages & country sides, which were soon incorporated into the cities

Emigration from Europe

Between 1846 and 1932, approximately 60 million Europeans left Europe, half of them bound for the US and the rest for Canada & Latin America - Although growing agricultural and industrial prosperity supported an increase in European population, it could not do so indefinitely, especially in areas that have a little industrialization and severe rural overpopulation - Some of the excess labor from underdeveloped areas migrated to the industrial regions of Europe — by 1913 more than 400,000 polls were working in the heavily industrialized, Ruhr region of western Germany, and thousands of Italian laborers had migrated to France - Industrialized nations unable to absorb the full "surplus" populations from the heavily agricultural regions (southern Italy, Spain, Hungary, Romania, etc.) where the land could not support the larger population - The booming economies of North Amer. after 1898 & cheap shipping fares after 1900 led to mass emigration from southern & eastern Europe to North Amer. at the beginning of the 20th century - in 1800 ~500,000 people left ear each year on average between 1906 and 1910 annual departures increase to 1.3 million many of them from southern and eastern Europe

Birthrates & birth control in the 19th century

Birthrates dropped significantly during the 19th century - A very important factor in the evolution of the modern family was the decline in the number of offspring born to the average woman - Contraceptive technologies (condoms & diaphragms thanks to the invention of vulcanized rubber in the 1840s) existed but were not necessarily the cause of this decline, were not widely used as contraceptives until after WWI - Family planning — change in attitude led parents to deliberately limit the number of offspring was the more significant factor - Methods included a more widespread use of Coitus interruptus, but most importantly the ability of women to limit their family size through abortion, infanticide, or even abandonment - Change in attitude apparent in the emergence of a movement to increase awareness of birth control methods; authorities prosecuted individuals who spread information about contraception for "depraving public morals" but were unable to stop them — in 1882 in Amsterdam Dr. Aletta Jacobs founded Europe's first birth control clinic - Initially, "family planning" was the suggestion of reformers who though that the problem of poverty could be solved by reducing the number of children among the lower classes - This practice actually spread quickly among the propertied classes rather than amongst the impoverished, a good reminder that considerable difference still remained between middle-class & working class families

Boy Scouts (child-raising & the Middle Class Family)

Boy Scouts established in Britain in 1908 — provided organized recreation for boys between the ages of 12 & 18 - Adventure was combined with the discipline or earning merit badges & ranks in such a way as to instill ideals of patriotism, self-sacrifice, & masculinity - Emphasis on manliness stemmed from military concerns & conceptions of masculinity formed during the late 19th century as the middle & upper class looked for way to control sexual licentiousness in the form of venereal disease or prostitution - Sought to uphold the Victorian & Edwardian ideals of masculinity in an effort to counter the possible "danger" that female domination of the home supposedly posed for male development

The success of trade unions

By 1899, even the socialist German trade unions had accepted the practice of collective bargaining with employers - As strikes and collective bargaining achieved successes, German workers were increasingly inclined to forgo revolution for gradual improvements; by 1914, its 3 million members made the German trade union movement the second largest in Europe, after Great Britain's - Almost 85 percent of these 3 million belonged to socialist unions - Trade unions in the rest of Europe had varying degrees of success, but by 1914, they had made considerable progress in bettering the living and working conditions of the laboring classes

The two economic zones of Europe

By 1900, Europe was divided into 2 economic zones 1. Great Britain, Belgium, France, the Netherlands, the western part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, & northern Italy constituted an advanced industrialized core that had a high standard of living, decent systems of transportation, & relatively healthy & educated populations 2. Southern Italy, most of Austria-Hungary, Spain, Portugal, the Balkan Kingdoms, & Russia constituted the other part of Europe, the backwards & little-industrialized part that was still largely agricultural & relegated by the industrial countries to the function of providing food & raw material The presence of Romanian oil, Greek olive oil, & Serbian pigs & prunes in western Europe served as reminders of an economic division of Europe that continued well into the 20th century

French government after Prussian defeat in 1870

Defeat by the Prussian in 1870 brought the downfall of Louis Napoleon's Second Empire - French republicans set up a provisional government, but the victorious Otto von Bismarck intervened & forced the French to choose a government by universal male suffrage - The French people rejected the republicans & overwhelmingly favored the monarchists, who won 400 out of the 630 seats in the new National Assembly

Challenges to Italy in the late 1800s

Despite its new united status by 1870, Italy had plenty of internal issues that served to weaken it - "We have made Italy; now we must make Italians" - Many Italians continues to put loyalty to their families, towns, and regions above their loyalty to the new state - Social differences (a poverty-stricken south & industrializing north) also weakened any sense of community - Most of the Italian leaders were northerners who treated southern Italians with contempt - The Catholic Church, which had lost control of the Papal States as a result of unification, even refused to accept to existence of a new state - Chronic turmoil btwn workers & industrialists undermined the social fabric - Few Italians felt empowered in the new Italy — only 2.5% of the population could vote for the legislative body; in 1882 this number was increased, but only to 10% - The Italian government was unable deal effectively with these problems because of the extensive corruption among government officials & the lack of stability created ever-changing government coalitions

Women & prostitution

Despite the new job opportunities, many lower-class women were forced to become prostitutes to survive — the rural, working-class girls who flocked into the cities in search of new opportunities were often naive & vulnerable, employment was unstable & wages were low; no longer protected by family or village community & church, some girls faced only one grave alternative: prostitution - In Paris, London, & many other large cities with transient populations, thousands of prostitutes plied their trade; one journalist estimated that there were 60,000 prostitutes in London in 1885 - Most prostitutes were active for only a short time, usually from their late teens to through their early 20s — many eventually joined the regular workforce or married when they could - In most European countries, prostitution was licensed & regulated by government & municipal authorities

Anarchism

Despite the revolutionary rhetoric, socialist parties & the trade unions gradually became less radical in pursuing their goals — indeed, this lack of revolutionary fervor drove some people from Marxist socialism into anarchism, a movement that was especially prominent in less industrialized & less democratic countries - Initially, anarchism was not a violent movement — early anarchists believed that people were inherently good but had been corrupted by the state & society, true freedom could be achieved only by abolishing the state & all existing social institutions - However in the 2nd half of the 19th century anarchists in Spain, Portugal, Italy, & Russia began to advocate using radical means to accomplish this goal - Ex: the Russian Michael Bakunin believed that small groups of well-trained fanatical revolutionaries could perpetuate so much violence that the state & all its institutions would disintegrate — the revolutionary anarchists, that would usher in the anarchist golden age - After Bakunin's death in 1876, anarchist revolutionaries used assassination as their primary instrument of terror — their victims included a Russian tsar (1881), a president of the French Republic (1894), the king of Italy (1900), & a president of the U.S. (1901); despite anarchist hopes, these states did not collapse

Divisive issues after German unification

Despite unification, important divisions remained in German society that couldn't simply be papered over by the force of nationalism — these divisions were already evident in the new German constitution that provided for a federal system w/ a bicameral legislature - The Bundesrat (upper house) represented 25 states that made up Germany; Individual states such as Bavaria & Prussia kept their own kings, their own post offices, & even their own armies in peacetime - The Reichstag (lower house) was elected on the basis of universal male suffrage, but it did not have ministerial responsibility — ministers (including the chancellor) were responsible to the emperor, not to parliament - Emperor also commanded the armed forces & controlled foreign policy & internal administration - Though the creation of a parliament elected by universal male suffrage presented opportunities for the growth of a real political democracy, it failed to develop in Germany before World War I; The army and Bismarck were two major reasons why it did not - The German (largely Prussian) army viewed itself as the defender of monarchy & aristocracy & sought to escape any control by the Reichstag by operating under a general staff responsible only to the emperor - Prussian military tradition was strong, and military officers took steps to ensure the loyalty of their subordinates to the emperor, which was easy as long as Junker landowners were officers; As the growth of the army made it necessary to turn to the middle class for officers, extreme care was taken to choose only sons "of honorable bourgeois families"

Cartels & the 2nd Industrial Revolution

During the same period when tariffs were being returned to, cartels were being formed to decrease competition internally - In a cartel, independent enterprises worked together to control prices & fix production quotas, thereby restraining the kind of competition that led to reduced prices - In the U.S., US Steel produced around two-thirds of the industry's steel, while in Germany the Rhine-Westphalia Coal Syndicate controlled the majority of coal production - Cartels were especially strong in Germany, where banks would protect their investments by eliminating the "anarchy of competition;" German businesses established cartels in potash, coal, steel, & chemicals

Electricity in the 2nd Industrial Revolution

Electricity was a major form of energy that proved to be of great value since it could be easily converted into other forms of energy (such as heat, light, & motion) & moved relatively effortlessly through space over wires - In the 1870s the first commercially practical generators of electrical currents were developed - By 1881 Britain had its first public power station; by 1910 hydroelectric power stations & coal-fired steam generating plants enabled entire districts to be in to a single power distribution system that provided a common source of power for homes, shops, & industrial enterprises - Electricity spawned a whole series of inventions, including the lightbulb, telephone, & telegraph - Although most electricity was initially used for lighting, it was eventually put to use in transportation — the first electric railway was installed in Berlin in 1879 - By the 1880s, streetcars & subways had appeared in major European cities & had begun to replace horse-drawn buses - Electricity also transformed the factory — conveyor belts, cranes, & machine tools could all be powered by electricity & located anywhere - In the 1st Industrial Revolution coal had been the major source of energy — countries without adequate coal supplies lagged behind in industrialization; thanks to electricity, they could now enter the industrial age

French socialist efforts

France had a variety of socialist parties, including a Marxist one - The leader of French socialism, Jean Jaurés (1859-1914), was an independent socialist who looked to the French revolutionary tradition rather than Marxism to justify revolutionary socialism - In 1905, the French socialist parties succeeded in unifying themselves into a single, mostly Marxist-oriented socialist party

Unifying factors for the Austro-Hungarian Empire

Francis Joseph was unifying factor of the A-H Empire - Although strongly anti-Hungarian, the cautious emperor made an effort to take a position above the national differences - Loyalty to the Catholic Church also helped keep such national groups as Czechs, Slovaks, & Poles loyal to the Catholic Habsburg dynasty - Finally, although dominated by German-speaking officials, the large imperial bureaucracy served as a unifying force for the empire

Persistence of the Old Order in Central & Eastern Europe

Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Russia pursued political policies that were quite different from those of the western European nations. The central European states (Germany & Austria-Hungary) had the trappings of parliamentary government, including legislative bodies and elections by universal male suffrage, but authoritarian forces, especially powerful monarchies and conservative social groups, remained strong. In eastern Europe, especially Russia, the old system of autocracy was barely touched by the winds of change.

The Working Class Family

Hard work standard for women in working-class families - Daughters in working-class families were expected to work until they married, even after marriage they often did piecework at home to help support the family - Children to work in odd jobs/apprentices by 9 or 10 Between 1810 & 1914 family patterns among the working-class began to change - High-paying jobs in heavy industry & improvements in the standard of living made it possible for WC families to depend on the income of their husbands & wages of grown children - By early 20th century some working-class women could afford to stay at home like middle-class women; women's work patterns still varied by country — married French women were twice as likely to work outside the home as their British counterparts; in France, married women made 20% of new agricultural labor force & contributed almost 15% of total family income - WC women overall increasingly able to focus more on family life & to work only sporadically to supplement family income - Working classes also began limiting the sizes of their families; children began to be viewed as dependents, not potential wage earners as child labor laws & compulsory education moved children out of the workforce & into schools - Improvements in public health + advances in medicine & a better diet led to a decline in infant mortality rates for the lower classes (esp. noticeable in cities after 1890), made it easier for WC families to choose to have fewer children

How did Bismarck deal with socialism?

In 1878 Bismarck abandoned the liberal & began to persecute the socialists; when the Social Democratic Party elected 12 deputies to the Reichstag in 1877 Bismarck grew alarmed — he genuinely believed that the socialists' anti-nationalistic anti-capitalistic, and anti-monarchial to stance represented a danger to the empire - In 1878 Bismarck got parliament to pass a stringent anti-socialism law that outlawed the Social Democratic Party & limited socialist meetings & publications, although socialist candidates were still permitted to run for the Reichstag - Bismarck also attempted to woo workers away from socialism by enacting social welfare legislation (the first European welfare program!) — btwn 1883 & 1889 the Reichstag passed laws that established sickness, accident, & disability benefits as well as old-age pensions financed by compulsory contributions from workers, employers, & the state - Bismarck's social security system was the most progressive the world had ye seen, although even his system had left much to be desired — A full pension was payable only at age seventy after forty-eight years of contributions; in the event of a male worker's death, no benefits were paid to his widow or children

Change in European diets

In Germany, meat consumption doubled between 1873 and 1914, & in France bread fell from 20 percent of the diet to 9 percent in 1900

Russia under tsars Alexander III (r.1881-1894) & Nicholas II (.1894-1917)

In Russia, no concessions whatever were made to liberal & democratic reforms, eliminating altogether any possibility of a mass politics Alexander III - Assassination of Alexander II had convinced his son & successor Alexander III that reform had been a mistake, & he quickly instituted what he said were "exceptional measures" - Powers of the secret police were expanded, advocates of constitutional monarchy & social reform along with any revolutionary groups were persecuted - Entire districts of Russia were placed under martial law if the government suspected the inhabitants of treason - Powers of the zemstvos were sharply curtailed - Alexander III also instituted a radical Russification program of the numerous nationalities that made up the Russian Empire — Russians themselves only constituted 40% of the population, which did not stop the tsar from banning the use of all languages except Russian in schools - The policy of Russification served primarily to anger the national groups & create new sources of opposition to the tsarist policies Nicholas II - Son & weak successor to Alexander III - Adopted his father's conviction that the absolute power of the tsars should be preserved: "I shall maintain the principle of autocracy just as firmly and unflinchingly as did my unforgettable father." - But conditions were changing, especially with the growth of industrialization, & the tsar's approach was not realistic in view of the new circumstances he faced

What happened in France on March 26, 1871

In response to the favoring of the monarchists by the French people, radical republicans formed an independent republican government in Paris known as the Paris Commune

Women/gender roles in the 19th century

In the 19th century, women remained legally inferior, economically dependent, & largely defined by family & household rules - Many women still aspired to the ideal of femininity popularized by writers & poets (women as subordinate, protected and men as protectors) - This traditional characterization of the sexes, based on gender-defined social roles, was elevated to the status of universal male & female attributes in the 19th century, largely due to the impact of the Industrial Revolution on society - As the chief family wage earners, men worked outside the home while women were left with the care of the family, for which they were paid nothing - Of course, the ideal did not always match reality, especially for the lower classes, where the need for supplemental income drove women to do sweat work

Mass leisure overview

In the preindustrial centuries Play or leisure activities, have been closely connected to work patterns, based on the seasonal or daily cycles typical of the life of peasants and artisans - the process of industrialization in the 19th century had an enormous impact on those traditional patterns — the factory imposed new work patterns that were determined by the rhythms of machines and clocks and removed worktime completely from the family environment of farms in workshops - work and leisure became opposites as leisure came to Butte as what people do for fun when not on the job; in fact, the new leisure hours created by the industrial system (evening hours after work, weekends, and later a week or two in the summer), largely determined the contours of the new mask leisure - new technology and business practices also determined the forms of leisure pursuits - gas street lamps & open boulevards enabled many urban dwellers to escape their craft working and living conditions to promenade for pleasure - new technology also created novelties such as the Ferris wheel at amusement parks - the mechanized urban transportation systems of the 1880s meant that even the working classes were no longer dependent on neighborhood taverns but could make their way to athletic events, amusement parks and dance halls; likewise railroads could take people to the beaches on weekends

Newspapers & literacy

Increase literacy was the most immediate result of mass education — in Germany, Great Britain, France, and the Scandinavian countries adult illiteracy was virtually eliminated by 1900 - where there was less schooling the story with different — adult literacy rates were 79% in Serbia, 78% in Romania 72% in Bulgaria and 79% in Russia; all of these countries only made a minimal investment compulsory education - with the dramatic increase in literacy after 1871 came rise of mass circulation newspapers — The Evening News (1881) and Daily Mail (1896) in London, which sold millions of copies a day - "yellow press" in the US, written in an easily understood style tended to ward the sensational - magazines, women's magazines, & pulp fiction

Tariffs & the 2nd Industrial Revolution

Increased competition for foreign markets & the growing importance of domestic demand led to a reaction against free trade — to many industrial & political leaders, protective tariffs guaranteed domestic markets for the products of their own industries; that's why after a decade of experimentation with free trade in the 1860s, Europeans returned to tariff protection

Pre-conditions of mass education in the 19th century

Interest in educating children as a way to improve their future grew Being "educated" for elites in the early 19th century meant getting a secondary, possibly even university education - Secondary schools emphasized a classical education based on the study of Greek & Latin - secondary & university education was primarily for the elite sons of government officials nobles, or wealthy or middle-class families - after 1850 secondary education was expanded as more middle class family sought employment in public service and the professions or entry into elite scientific and technical schools

Mass education & nationalism/patriotism

Mass education instilled patriotism & nationalism in the masses - As people lost their ties to local regions & even to religion, nationalism supplied a new faith - The use of a single language created greater national unity than loyalty to a ruler did

Social structure of mass society: the Middle Classes

Middle classes consisted of a wide variety of groups - Just below the upper middle class were such traditional groups as professionals in law, medicine, & the civil service as well as moderately well-to-do industrialists & merchants - Industrial expansion of the 19th century also added new groups to this segment of the middle class — these included business managers & new professionals, such as engineers, architects, accountants, & chemists who formed professional associations as the symbols of their newfound impotence - A lower middle class of small shopkeepers, traders, manufacturers, & prosperous peasants provided goods & services for the classes above them - Standing between the lower middle class & the lower classes were new groups of white-collar workers who were the product of 2nd Indus. Rev. — traveling sales reps, bookkeepers, bank tellers, telephone operators, department store salesclerks, secretaries, etc. - Although largely propertyless & often paid little more than skilled laborers these white collar workers were generally committed to middle-class ideals & optimistic about their improving status

Female teachers in the 19th century

Most elementary teachers were women, many men viewed teaching as an extension of women's "natural role" as nurturers of children - Female teachers lower salaries, which was in itself an incentive for governments to encourage the establishment of teacher-training institutes for women — the first colleges for women were really teacher-training institutes - in Britain, the women's colleges of Queen's and Bedford establish an 1840s to provide teacher training for middle class principles who needed to work - Barbara Bodichon, a pioneer in the development of female education established her own school were girls were trained for economic independence as well as to domesticity - however, not until the beginning of the 20th century where women permitted to enter, the male-dominated universities — in France 3% of university students in 1902 were women by 1914 their number had increased to 10% of the total

Revisionism/Evolutionary Socialism & Eduard Bernstein (1850-1932)

Most prominent among the evolutionary socialists was Bernstein, a member of SPD who had spent years in exile in Britain, where he had been influenced by moderate English socialism & the British parliamentary system - In 1899, Bernstein challenged Marxist orthodoxy with his book *Evolutionary Socialism* in which he argued that some of Marx's ideas had turned out to be quite wrong — the capitalist system had not broken down - Contrary to Marx's assertion, the middle class was actually expanding, not declining; at the same time, the proletariat was not sinking further down, instead its position was improving as workers experienced higher standards of living - In the face of this reality, Bernstein discarded Marx's emphasis on class struggle & revolution — the workers, Bernstein asserted, must continue to organize in mass political parties & even work together with other advanced elements in a nation to bring about change; with the extension of the right to vote, workers were in a better position than ever to achieve their aims through democratic channels - Evolution by democratic means, not revolution, would achieve the desired goal of socialism - German & French socialist leaders, as well as the Second International, condemned evolutionary socialism as heresy & opportunism, but man socialist parties (including SPD), while sporting revolutionary slogans, followed Bernstein's revisionist, gradualist approach

Music and dance halls

Music & dance halls appeared in the 2nd half of the 19th century; the first public music hall in London was constructed in 1849 for a lower-class audience - Music halls were primarily for men - By the 1880s there were 500 music halls in London; promoters gradually made them more respectable & broaden their fare to entice both women & children to attend the programs - The new dance halls, which were all the rage by 1900, were more strictly oriented towards adults; the sight of young people engaged in sexually suggestive dancing often shocked contemporaries

General aspects of the new Mass Society

New patterns of industrial production, mass consumption, and working class organization identified with the second industrial revolution; a larger and vastly improved urban environment, new patterns of social structure, gender issues, mass education, and mass leisure

Urbanization/Changes to the urban environment

One of the most important consequences of industrialization & the population explosion of the 19th century was urbanization - In the course of the 19th century urban dwellers came to make up an ever-increasing % of the European population — in 1800 they constituted 40% of the population in Britain, 25% in France & Germany, & only 10% in eastern Europe - By 1914, urban inhabitants had increased to 80% of the population in Britain, 45% in France, 60% in Germany, & 30% in eastern Europe - Size of cities also expanded dramatically, especially in industrialized countries — in 1800 there were 21 European cities with populations over 100,000; by 1900 they were 147 - Between 1800 and 1900 London's population grew from 960,000 to 6.5 million and Berlin from 172,000 to 2.7 million -Urban populations grew faster than the general population primarily because of the vast migration from rural areas to cities; people were driven from the countryside to the cities by sheer economic necessity — unemployment, land hunger, & physical want - Urban centers offered something positive as well, usually mass employment in factories & later service trades & professions - Cities also grew faster in the 2nd half of the 19th century because health & living conditions in them were improving

Changes to housing

Overcrowded disease, ridden-slums were viewed as a danger is not only to physical health, but also to the political and moral health of the entire nation - V.A. Huber (1800-1869), foremost early German housing reformer — believed that good housing was a prerequisite for a stable family life & hence a stable society; housing was a political & moral issue of the nation - Early efforts to attack the housing problem emphasized the middle-class, liberal belief in the efficacy of private enterprise; reformers such as Huber believed that the construction of model dwellings renting at a reasonable price would enforce other private landlords to elevate their housing standards - Octavia Hill (1838-1912), granddaughter of a celebrated social reformer — with the financial assistance of s friend, she rehabilitated some old dwellings & constructed new ones to create housing for 3,500 tenants - As the # & size of cities continued to grow, by the 1880s governments reluctantly came to the conclusion that private enterprise could not solve the housing crisis - In 1890 a British law empowered local town councils to collect new taxes & construct cheap housing for the working-classes — London & Liverpool were the first communities to take advantage of their new powers; similar things happened in Germany by 1900 - Across Europe, the lukewarm measures failed to do much to meet the real housing needs of the working classes — in housing as in so many other areas of life in the late 19th century, the Liberal principal that governments that govern the least govern best had simply pooped and true; more & more governments were stepping into areas of activity that they would never have touched earlier

Charles Parnell (1846 - 1891) & home rule

Parnell, a leader of the Irish representatives in Parliament, called for home rule, which meant self government by having separate Parliaments but not complete independence

Socialism in other European states

Socialist parties also emerged in other European states, although none proved as successful as the German Social Democrats - Social democratic parties on the German model were founded in Belgium, Austria, Hungary, Bulgaria, Poland, Romania, & the Netherlands before 1900 - The Marxist Social Democratic Labor Party had been organized in Russia by 1898

Marxist socialism

Some Marxists believed in a pure Marxism that accepted the imminent collapse of capitalism & the need for socialist ownership of the means of production - The guiding light of the German Social Democrats, August Bebel, confided to another socialist that "every night I go to sleep with the thought that the last hour of bourgeois society strikes soon." - Earlier, Bebel had said, "I am convinced that the fulfillment of our aims is so close, that there are few in this hall who will not live to see the day." - A severe challenge to this orthodox Marxist position arose in the form of evolutionary socialism, also known as revisionism

Mass leisure & the role of amusement

Standardized forms of amusement drew mass audiences; although some authorities argued that the new investments were important for improving people, in truth, they served primarily to provide entertainment and distract people from the realities of their work lives - the new mass leisure also represented a significant change from earlier forms of popular culture; festivals and fairs had been based on active and spontaneous community participation whereas the new forms of mass leisure were businesses standardize for largely passive mass audiences and organized to make profits

White collar jobs & the female labor force

Studies in France & Britain indicate that the increase in white-collar jobs did not lead to a rise in the size of the female labor force, but resulted only in a shift from industrial jobs to the white-collar sector of the economy

Steel in the Second Industrial Revolution

The 1st major change in industrial developments after 1870 was the substitution of iron with steel - New methods of rolling & shaping steel made it useful in the construction of lighter, smaller, & faster machines & engines, as well as railways, & ships, & armaments - In 1860 Great Britain, France, & Belgium together produced 125,000 tons of steel; by 1913 the total was 32 million tons - Whereas in the early 1870s Britain had produced twice as much steel as Germany, by 1910 German production was double that of Great Britain; the U.S. had surpassed them both in 1890

View of women & work in the 2nd Industrial Revolution

The 2nd Industrial Revolution had an enormous impact on the position of women in the labor market; during the course of the 19th century, considerable controversy erupted over a woman's "right to work" — working-class organizations tended to reinforce the underlying ideology of domesticity in which women should remain in the home to bear & nurture children & shouldn't be allowed in the industrial workforce - Working-class men argued that keeping women out of industrial work would ensure the moral & physical well-being of families; in reality, keeping women out of the industrial workforce simply made it easier to exploit them when their husbands were unemployed - The desperate need to work at times forced women to do marginal work at home or labor as pieceworkers in workshops - "Sweating" referred to the subcontracting of piecework usually, but not exclusively, in tailoring trades; it was done at home since it required few skills or equipment - Pieceworkers were poorly paid & worked long hours; the poorest-paid jobs for the cheapest good were called "slop work" - Often excluded from factories & in need of income, many women had no choice but to work for the pitiful wages of the sweated industries

National Assembly vs Paris Commune (late 19th century)

The National Assembly refused to give up its power & decided to crush the revolutionary Paris Commune - When vicious fighting broke out in April, many working-class men & women stepped forth the defend the Commune - At first women's activities were the traditional ones: caring for the wounded soldiers & feeding the troops; gradually their activities expanded to include taking care of weapons, working as scouts, & even setting up their own fighting brigades - Louis Michel emerged as a leader of the Paris Commune, proved tireless in informing committees for the defense of the Commune - All of these efforts by the Commune proved in vain, however — in the last week of May, government troops massacred thousands of the Commune's defenders; estimates are that 20,000 were shot & another 10,000 were shipped to the French penal colony of New Caledonia in the South Pacific

General economic trends of the late 1800s

The Second Industrial Revolution played a role in the emergence of basic economic patterns that have characterized much of the modern European economy - Although the period after 1871 has been described as an age of material prosperity, recessions & crises were still very much a part of economic life — although some historians question the appropriateness of characterizing the period from 1873 to 1895 as a great depression, Europeans did experience a series of economic crises during those years - Prices (especially those of agricultural products) fell dramatically; slumps in the business cycle reduced profits, although recession occurred at different times in different countries — France & Britain, for example, sank into depression in the 1880s while Germany and the United States were recovering from their depression of the 1870s - From 1895 until World War I, however, Europe overall experienced an economic boom and achieved a level of prosperity, many look back to that era as la belle époque

"The woman question"

The debate over the role of women in society

A world economy & Europe

The economic development of the late 19th century, combined with the transportation revolution that saw the growth of marine transport & railroads, also fostered a true world economy - By 1900 Europeans were importing beef & wool from Argentina & Australia, coffee from Brazil, nitrates from Chile, iron ore from Algeria, & sugar from Java - European capital was also invested abroad to develop railways, mines, electrical power plants, & banks; high rates of return, such as 11.3% on Latin American banking shares that were floated in London, provided plenty incentive - Of course, foreign countries also provided markets for the surplus of manufactured goods of Europe - With its capital, industries, & military might, Europe dominated the world economy by the end of the 19th century

The Middle Class Family

The family was the central institution of middle-class life; men provided the family with income while women focused on household & child care - Use of domestic servants in many middle-class homes (made possible by an abundant supply of cheap labor) reduced the amount of time middle-class women had to spend on household work - At the same time, by limiting the number of children in the family mothers could devote more time to child care & domestic leisure — the idea that leisure should be used for constrictive purposes supported & encouraged the cult of middle-class domesticity - Ideal of togetherness — Victorians created the family Christmas with its yule log, Christmas tree, songs, & exchange of gifts - Education of middle-class females in domestic crafts, singing, & piano playing prepared them for their function of providing a proper environment for home recreation

The internal combustion engine & the 2nd Industrial Revolution

The first internal combustion engine, powered by gas & air, was produced in 1878 - It proved unsuitable for widespread use as a source of power in transportation until the development of liquid fuels — petroleum & its distilled derivatives - An oil-fueled engine was made in 1897, & by 1902 the Hamburg-Amerika Line (a shipping company) had switched from coal to oil on its new ocean liners - By the end of the 19th century some naval fleets had been converted to oil burners as well - The development of the internal combustion engine gave rise to the automobile & the airplane - The invention of a light engine by Gottlieb Daimler (1834-1900) in 1886 was the key to the development of the automobile - In 1900, world production stood at 9,000 cars; by 1906, Americans had overtaken the initial lead of the French; it was an American, Henry Ford (1863-1947), who revolutionized the car industry with the mass production of the Model T — by 1916, Ford's factories were producing 735,000 cars a year - Air transportation began with the Zeppelin airship in 1900 - In 1903, at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, Wilbur and Orville Wright made the first flight in a fixed-wing plane powered by a gasoline engine - It took World War I to stimulate the aircraft industry, however, & the first regular passenger air service was not established until 1919

Larger factories in the 2nd Industrial Revolution

The formation of cartels was paralleled by a move toward ever-larger manufacturing plants, especially in the iron & steel industries, heavy electrical equipment, & chemical industries - Although evident in Britain, France, & Belgium, the trend was most pronounced in Germany — between 1882 & 1907 the number of people working in German factories with more than one thousand employees rose from 205,000 to 879,000 - This growth in the size of industrial plants led to pressure for greater efficiency in factory production at the same time that competition led to demands for greater economy; the result was a desire to streamline (make simpler/more effective/more productive) or rationalize production as much as possible — one way to accomplish this was to cut labor costs by mechanizing transports within plants, such as using electric cranes to move materials - Even more important, the development of precision tools enabled manufacturers to produce interchangeable parts, which in turn led to the creation of the assembly line for production - First used in the U.S. for small arms & clocks, the assembly line had moved to Europe by 1850; in the 2nd half of the 19th century, it was used primarily in manufacturing nonmilitary goods, such as sewing machines, typewriters, bicycles, & eventually automobiles - The principles of scientific management were also introduced by 1900 to maximize workers' efficiency

La Belle Époque

The golden age of European civilization from 1895-1914

Markets & the 2nd Industrial Revolution

The growth of industrial production depended on the development of markets for the sale of manufactured goods - After 1870 the best foreign markets were already heavily saturated, forcing Europeans to take a renewed interest in their domestic markets — as Europeans were the richest consumers in the world, those markets offered abundant possibilities - The dramatic population increases after 1870 were accompanied by a steady rise in national incomes — the leading industrial nations, Britain & Germany, doubled or tripled their national incomes; between 1850 & 1900, real wages increased by 2/3 in Britain & 1/3 in Germany - As the prices of both foos & manufactured goods declined due to lower transportation costs, Europeans could spend more on consumer products - Businesses soon perceived of the value of using new techniques of mass marketing to sell consumer goods made possible by the development of the steel & electrical industries; by bringing together a vast array of new products i one place, they created the department store - The desire to own sewing machines, clocks, bicycles, electric lights, & typewriters rapidly created a new consumer ethic that became a crucial part of the modern economy

Agricultural changes & industrialization

The growth on industrial economy also led to new pattern for European agriculture - An abundance of grain & lower transportation costs caused the prices of farm commodities to plummet - Some countries responded with tariff barriers against lower-priced foodstuffs - Where agricultural labor was scarce & hence expensive (as in Britain & Germany) landowners introduced machines for threshing & harvesting - Expensive agricultural labor forced Britain to import most of its food — in the early 19th century Britain had imported 3% of its wheat & by 1895, 79% of Britain's wheat supply came from abroad - The slump in grain prices led some countries to specialize in other food products — Denmark exported eggs, butter, & cheese, sugar beet predominated in Bohemia & northern France, fruit predominated in Mediterranean countries, & wine predominated in Spain & Italy -This age also witnessed the introduction of chemical fertilizers; large estates could make the adjustment easily, but individual small farmers couldn't afford them & formed farm cooperatives that provided capital for making improvements & purchasing equipment fertilizer - Although lower prices had a negative impact on farmers, the decline in prices benefited many working class families in northern Europe — as less money was needed to purchase bread, the consumption of other foods increased during the second half of the nineteenth century

Middle Class attitudes/values

The moderately prosperous & successful middle classes shared a common lifestyle & values that dominated 19th century society; the members of the middle class were especially active in preaching their worldview to their children & to the upper & lower classes of society - Particularly evident in Victorian Britain, often considered a model of middle-class society - It was the European middle classes who accepted & promulgated the importance of progress & science - They believed in hard work, which they viewed as the primary human good, open to everyone & guaranteed to have positive results - Also regular church goers who believed in the good conduct associated with traditional Christian morality; concerned with propriety, the right way of doing things — led to a lot of proper etiquette books

Child-raising (the Middle-Class Family)

The new domestic ideal had an impact on child raising & children's play - Late 18th century though beginning with Rousseau had encouraged a new view of children as unique beings, not small adults, which carried over into the 19th century - Children entitled to a long childhood involved in activities with other children their own age; the early environment in which they were raised would determine how they turned out - Mothers seen as the most important forces in protecting children from the harmful influences of the adult world - New children's games & toys, including mass-produced dolls for girls, appeared in middle-class homes; middle class influence on the functional value of knowledge was also evident in these games — ex: checkers called forth the resources of the mind in the "most gentle as well as the most successful manner - Middle-class sons were expected to follow careers like their fathers — they were sent to schools where they were kept separate from the rest of society until the age of 16 or 17; these schools used sport to "toughen boys up" & their leisure activities centered both national military concerns & character building

Women & the truth of the middle-class family ideal

The new ideal of the middle-class woman as nurturing mother & wife who "determined the atmosphere of the household" through her character, not her work, frequently did not correspond to reality - In France, Germany, & even mid-Victorian Britain relatively few families could actually afford to hire a host of servants — more often, middle-class families had 1 servant, usually a young working-class or country girl not used to middle-class lifestyles - Women, then, were often forced to work quite hard to maintain the expected appearance of the well-ordered household — many middle-class wives caught in a no-win situation - Often for the sake of the advancement of her husband's career, she was expected to maintain in public the image of the "idle" wife freed from demeaning physical labor & able to pass her days in ornamental pursuits; in truth it was frequently the middle-class woman paid the price for this facade in a life of unpaid work, carefully managing the family budget & participating in housework that could never be done by only 1 servant girl - What appeared at first to be idleness was really "difficult & tiresome work"

Other changes to British parliament

The payment of salaries to members of the House of Commons beginning in 1911 further democratized that institution by at least opening the door to people other than the wealthy The British system of gradual reform through parliamentary institutions had become the way of British political life

Germany under Otto von Bismarck as chancellor

The policies of Bismarck, who served as chancellor until 1890, often served to prevent the growth of more democratic institutions - At first Bismarck worked with the liberals to achieve greater centralization of Germany through common codes of criminal & commercial law - Libs. also joined Bismarck in his attack on the Catholic Church, the so called *Kulturkampf* or "struggle for civilization" — like Bismarck, middle-class liberals distrusted Catholic loyalty to the new Germany - Bismarck's strong-aim tactics against the Catholic clergy & Catholic institutions actually proved counterproductive, & Bismarck welcomed an opportunity in 1878 to abandon the attack on Catholicism making an abrupt shift in policy

Mass tourism

The upper & middle classes created the 1st market for tourism, but as waged increased & workers were given paid vacations, tourism became another form of mass leisure - Thomas Cook — British pioneer of mass tourism; was secretary to a British temperance group & had been responsible for organizing a road trip to temperance gatherings 1841 which led him to offer trips on regular basis after he found that he could make substantial profits by renting special trains, lowering prices, and increasing the number of passengers - in 1867 cook offered to talk to Paris and by the 1880s to Switzerland - in Paris, trains cut the travel time to the beaches; by the 1840s, the first "pleasure train" was run from Paris to the Norman coast - by 1850 the railway company sold discounted tickets for third and second classes, allowing working class Parisians too sojourn the coast for the weekend; by 1900 tourism and vacation time became a way of life for the middle and upper classes

Inventors of the lightbulb

Thomas Edison (American) and Joseph Swan — they invented the lightbulb independently of one another, which opened homes & cities to illumination by electric lights

Marriage & Domesticity

Throughout most of the 19th century, marriage was viewed as the only honorable career available for most women; though the middle class glorified the ideal of domesticity for most women, marriage was a matter of economic necessity - The lack of meaningful work & lower wages paid to women made it difficult for single women to earn a living - Convents no longer an option - Many spinsters who couldn't find sufficiently financially rewarding work therefore elected to enter domestic services as live-in servants - Most women chose instead to marry, which was reflected in an increase in marriage rates & a decline in illegitimacy rates in the 19th century

The German Socialist Democratic Party (SPD)

Under the direction of its 2 Marxist leaders Wilhelm Liebknecht & August Bebel, SPD espoused revolutionary Marxist rhetoric while organizing itself as a mass political party competing in elections for the Reichstag (the German parliament) - Once in the Reichstag, SPD delegates worked to enact legislation to improve the condition of the working class; as August Bebel explained: "Pure negotiation would not be accepted by the voters. The masses demand that something should be done for today irrespective or what will happen in the morrow." - Despite government efforts to destroy it, SPD continued to grow — in 1890 it received 1.5 million votes & 35 seats in the Reichstag; when it received 4 million votes in the 1912 elections, it became the largest single party in Germany

How could spectator sports reflect class differences?

Upper class soccer teams in Britain working class teams as vicious and prone to "money-grubbing, tricks, sensational, displays, and utter rottenness"

The role of trade unions

Workers also formed trade unions to improve their conditions; attempts to organize the workers didn't come until after unions had won the right to strike in the 1870s - Strikes had proved necessary to achieve workers' goals — a walkout by female workers in the match industry in 1888 & dockworkers in London the following year led to the establishment of trade union organizations for both groups - By 1900, 2 million workers were enrolled in British unions, & by the outbreak of WWI, this number had risen to between 3 million & 4 million (although this was still less than 1/5 of the total workforce) - Trade unions failed to develop as quickly on the continent as they had in Britain; in France, the union movement was from the beginning closely tied to socialist ideology — as there were a number of French socialist parties, the socialist trade unions remained badly splintered (Not until 1895 did French unions create a national organization called the General Confederation of Labor. Its decentralization and failure to include some of the more important individual unions, however, kept it weak and ineffective.) - German trade unions, also closely attached to political parties, were first formed in the 1860s; although there were liberal trade unions comprising skilled artisans & Catholic or Christian trade unions, the largest German trade unions were those of socialists

Redistribution Act of 1885

eliminated historic borough & counties & established constituencies with approximately equal populations & one representative each

While the wealthiest members of the upper middle class were slowly making their way into the upper classes & the numbers of the middle classes were growing...

most Europeans were still in the lower classes

In the Second Industrial Revolution...

steel, chemicals, electricity, and petroleum led the way to new industrial frontiers

The Irish Question

the question faced by British of giving independence to Irish