| The assignment is to write a seven page essay draft based on “Impact of the Industrial Age and the Rise of Capitalism”. his should be based on the following 5 annotated bibliography. This is a follow up on order# 81620987. Impact of the Industrial Age and the Rise of Capitalism Hashmi, S., Batalha, G. F., Van, T. C. J., & Yilbas, B. S. (2014). Comprehensive materials processing. Oxford: Elsevier. The author describes industrial revolution as the shift from handicraft to machinery. The industrial age influenced the contemporary society positively. This touched all sectors of their daily activities. In agriculture, for example, mechanization of metallic materials produced stronger tools, which simplified their work and increased their production. The result was a more efficient means of growing food as well as efficient use of the land. With the industrial age, also came the science of chemistry, which made it possible to produce ammonic fertilizers. The use of fertilizers on farms improved the quality of the soil and allowed the production of multiple crops. Another area that improved with the industrial age was transportation. Steam engines, equipped with wheels, were invented and ran on a rail track. The steam locomotives greatly transformed the way of life globally. People could travel to far away destinations. Since the locomotives linked different parts of the world, governing the vast countries was possible, something that extended a sense of unity from the Atlantic to the Pacific oceans. The railroad provided several opportunities. For example, producers in one part of the world would sell off their products to other parts of the world, which was made possible by the reliable transportation method. People could also travel to faraway places to seek jobs and careers; children could travel to faraway places for education. This developed a national sense of communities among citizens. Moreover, the industrial revolution impacted heavily on development of steamship. The steamship powered ships, allowing them to go much faster, something that allowed them to carry goods and people across continents. The significance of the steam engine touched on several aspects of human life, something that ushered in new and better ways of life. The impact extended to other important areas such as health and medicine, thus increasing life expectancy and improved quality of life. Amin, S. (2013). The implosion of contemporary capitalism. NYU Press In this book, the author describes capitalism as an economic system in which capital and inputs are privately owned. The main drivers of this system are the forces of demand and supply. This is to mean that in capitalism, market economy precedes planned economy. According to Amin, other factors such as government participation in production and regulation may differ across different models of capitalism. End of feudal economies gave rise to capitalism, and nowadays, capitalism has become so popular and has dominated most of the developed nations. Advancement in trade, technology, urbanization, and science contributed significantly to the transition to capitalism. Capitalism is closely associated to economic growth, in that; market is a major determiner of prices and production. The author is, however; quick to point out that capitalism has not been without some criticism on its shortcomings. For instance, it seems to place a lot of emphasis on profit. The focus on profit is done at the expense of social and economic equality. Besides, capitalism also focuses so much on consumption simply because services and goods have to be constantly purchased for capitalism to be successful. Capitalism has spread widely especially in the western world. The author notes that capitalism has had positive impact on contemporary societies. For instance, people benefit from this economic system which results in raising their standards of living. Since it advances continuously, it creates enormous wealth, making it easier to improve technological sophistication, thereby higher productivity. Walton, M. (2010). Human Development Research Paper 2010/09, Capitalism, the State, and the Underlying Drivers of Human Development. UNDP. The author of this report argues that capitalism entails an organized form of production where all the elements involved are privately owned. The elements of production, in this case, include the labor, capital and the profits that accrue. The organization of these elements of production is made up of different levels and players who have varying degrees of property rights. The author categorizes capitalism into three distinct classes; state capitalism, oligarchic capitalism and other forms of capitalism he refers to as Schumpeterian creative destruction. All these forms of capitalism have a far-reaching effect on the development of an economy. Human development is closely tied to the social setup of society; this is significantly influenced by the type of policy that they adopt. The primary determinants of these policies in the modern world are capitalism and state. Different states have adopted capitalism in varying degrees. The author argues that there is a correlation between the growths of these nations to levels of capitalism. Nations that were known to be anti –capitalism had to embrace some form of capitalism to achieve human development. According to the author, human development is mainly influenced by the form of capitalism and the size of the state. The growth of economies of the world is attributable to a mix of indigenous capitalism and participation in global markets. This has led to improvement in the living standards of people in these countries. The shortcomings of capitalism are that it has resulted in an increase in inequality of wealth distribution and growth of economic shocks in recent years. Streeck, W. (2012). How to Study Contemporary Capitalism? European Journal of Sociology/Vol 53/ Issue 01, 1-28. Capitalism is presented as a form of institutional actions which has a great effect on the society. According to the author, capitalism should not be viewed from an economic perspective only but should take a society view. A capitalist society is one that has adopted the tenets of capitalism that is wealth accumulation coupled with private property rights and the material provision that takes place are measured in units of money. Capitalism is a dynamic process that touches on the social order and has an effect on the economic state of the society. The author argues that for economic growth to exist there must be a form of greed and fear among the people. This will lead to innovation and restlessness in the economy which will spur competition and growth of business. The capitalist expansion calls for the creation of institutions, policies and markets in areas that they did not exist. In so doing it leads to the growth of not only the economy of the area but also the social welfare of the people. The impact of capitalism is felt in all spheres of the human life. It has led to economic, political and social changes in the society. Some of the benefits of capitalism in the society are the improved women labor force, strong social institutions and improved world economy. The benefits come at the expense of what the author calls a moral economy, which entails the erosion of morals, rising tensions both in the financial sector and the political circles. Philippe Aghion, S.D. (2013). Handbook of Economic Growth, Volume 2. Newnes. The industrial age is described as one of the greatest period to happen to the world economy. The author tries to look at the industrial age through an economic approach. He describes the period as characterized by the growth of many inventions which would later make the world as it is today. The revolution which started in Britain this was due to the introduction of new machines and new methods of production. The author attempts to explain the reasons behind the growth of inventions and innovations. The revolution started in the textile industry before spreading to transport and food processing. The author argues that the development of the inventions and innovations was not because Britain had a good political system but it was a result of a combination of many favorable factors such as education, the agrarian revolution, the wealth of the Vikings and the goodwill of the British people. The growth in these innovations had an effect on the transport, banking and other sectors of the economy of the British people. The living standards of the people increased because of improved healthcare, food production, employment and the overall economy. The economic growth of the British led to the growth of social classes like rich poor, working class and other social classes. The growth in the industrial strength of the society led to the growth of forms of agreements and ideologies such as capitalism and socialism which have had a great effect on the social structure of our societies. |
