Q and Ans: The Age of Industrialisation

Chapter: The Age of Industrialisation

Q. What is meant by ‘proto-industrialization'? How did it affect the rural peasants and artisans?

Ans.

Proto-industrialization refers to the system of industries that existed in Europe before the arrival of modern machine run factories. Large-scale industrial production took place for an international market. It was based in the countryside not in factories.

Effects :

i . Open fields were disappearing and commons were being enclosed so common people had no alternative sources of income.

ii Many had small plots of land which could not provide work for all family members.

 iii Merchants offered them advances to which they agreed.

iv They got a source of income which supplemented their shrinking income from cultivation.

Q. What were the roles of trade guilds?

Ans. The roles of trade guilds are enumerated as follows:

a. Trained craftsmen, maintain control over production, regulate prices.

b. Enjoyed monopoly rights to produce and trade to certain products.

c. Had the right to restrict entry of outsiders.

Q. What does publisher E.T. Paul wants to convey by the picture ‘Dawn of the Century’ on the cover page of his music book?

Ans.

Publisher E.T. Paul wants to convey the ideas as mentioned below.

a. Glorification of machines and technology

b. At the center of the picture is a goddess-like figure, the angel of progress, bearing the flag of the new century. She is gently perched on a wheel with wings, symbolizing time.

c. Her (Goddess) flight is taking her into the future. Gloating about behind her, are the signs of progress-railway, camera, machines, printing press and factory. This figure thus gives us a triumphant account of the modern world that is associated with rapid technological change and innovations, machines, factories, railways and steamships and computers.

Q What are the features of Proto-industrialization?

Ans.

a. It was a decentralized system of production. It was part of a network of commercial exchanges.

b. Control of production was in the hands of merchants.

c. Goods were produced by a vast number of producers working in their family farms, not in factories.

d. Whole of the family was involved. It allowed peasants a fuller use of their family labor resources.

e. At each stage of production-spinning, dying etc. 20-25 workers were employed by each merchant. This meant that each clothier was controlling hundreds of workers.

f. By working for the merchants, workers could remain in the countryside and continue to cultivate their small plots; income from proto-industrial production supplemented their income from cultivation.

Q. How rapid was the process of industrialisation? Does industrialisation mean only the growth of factory industries?

 Ans. 

First: The most dynamic industries in Britain were clearly cotton and metals. Growing at a rapid pace, cotton was the leading sector in the first phase of industrialisation up to the 1840s. After that the iron and steel industry led the way. With the expansion of railways, in England from the 1840s and in the colonies from the 1860s, the demand for iron and steel increased rapidly. By 1873 Britain was exporting iron and steel worth about £ 77 million, double the value of its cotton export.

Second: the new industries could not easily displace traditional industries. Even at the end of the nineteenth century, less than 20 per cent of the total workforce was employed in technologically advanced industrial sectors.

Third: the pace of change in the ‘traditional’ industries was not set by steam-powered cotton or metal industries, but they did not remain entirely stagnant either. Seemingly ordinary and small innovations were the basis of growth in many non-mechanised sectors such as food processing…

Q. Describe the condition of the workers in 19th century in England.

Ans.

a. Labor was in abundance. Job seekers who came from villages had to spend the night under bridges or in night shelters and they had no place to stay in the city.

b. Much of the work was seasonal in nature such as book binding.

c. Wages were low and life was difficult when prices of goods in the city rose sharply.

d. Workers had to look for odd jobs when they could not find proper employment in factories.

Q. What was the importance of Surat port in the 16th century?

Ans.

a. A vibrant sea trade operated through Surat on the Gujarat coast.

b. It connected India to the Gulf and Red Sea Ports.

Q. Explain how the condition of workers steadily declined in the early 20th century in Europe.

Ans.

a. Abundance of labor and waiting for jobs- there was abundance of labor in the market, job-seekers had to wait for weeks. They had to spend nights under bridges or in the night shelters or in Night Refugees maintained by the poor law authorities. One could get a job quickly if he had social connections.

b. Seasonal work-work in many industries such as gas work, breweries was seasonal. There were, therefore, long periods without work. As a result of this, some returned to the countryside while others did add jobs.

 

c. low wages and less period of employment-wages were increased to some extent in the early mid-nineteenth century but as the period of employment was less, the average income was low. About 10 percent of the urban population was very poor. In periods of economic slump, like the 1830s, the proportion of unemployed went up to between 35 and 75 percent in different regions.

d. introduction of new technology- the workers were against due to fear of unemployment. So, when the spinning jenny was introduced in the woolen industry, women workers attacked the new machines.

e. The condition of workers was, therefore, not satisfactory. However, after 18402 employment opportunities increased due to building activities and the transport industry.

Q. Why did industrialists in Victorian Britain want to stick to human labor in spite of the introduction of new technologies and machines?

Ans.

Some industrialists in nineteenth-century Europe preferred hand labor over machines because of the following reasons:

(i) There was no dearth of human labor during this period. Poor peasants and migrants moved to cities in large numbers in search of jobs. They were ready to work at low wages. So, industrialists did not want to introduce machines.

(ii) In many industries such as gas works and breweries, the demand for labor was seasonal. Since, in these industries production fluctuated with the season, industrialists usually preferred hand labor, employing workers for the season.

(iii) A range of products could be produced only with hand labor. Machines were oriented to producing uniforms, standardized goods for a mass market. But the demand in the market was often for goods with intricate designs and specific shapes. In mid-nineteenth-century Britain, several varieties of hammers and axes were produced. These required human skill, not machines.

(iv) In nineteenth-century-Britain, the aristocrats and the bourgeoisie preferred things produced by hand. Handmade products were better finished, individually produced and carefully designed. Machine-made goods were for export to the colonies.

Q. Explain any causes which led to the decline of Indian cotton textiles in the early 19th century.

Ans.

The causes which led to the decline of indian cotton textiles are as follows:

a. The British cotton manufacturers began to expand.

b. British manufacturers pressurized the Governments to restrict cotton imports.

c. Manufacturers began to search the overseas markets for selling their cloth.

d. Indian textiles faced stiff competition in other international markets.

e. There was a decline in the share of the textile

f. Tariffs were imposed on cloth imports into Britain.

Q. Why were there frequent clashes between Gomasthas and weavers in the villages? Explain five reasons.

Ans. There were frequent clashes between Gomasthas and weavers in the villages because of the following reasons:

(i) Earlier supply merchants often belonged to the same villages and had a close relationship with the weavers.

(ii) The company's appointed Gomasthas were outsiders, with no long-term social link with the villagers. 

(iii) They acted arrogantly, marched into villages with sepoys and peons and punished weavers for delays. 

(iv) The weavers could no longer bargain for prices or sell to other buyers in place of the British who paid them low wages. 

(v) In many places, Carnatic (Karnataka) and Bengal weavers deserted villages, migrated or revolted along with the village traders. 

Q. Why was a jobber employed? How did a jobber misuse his position and power? 

Ans. Jobber was employed to get new recruits for the factories or industrialists.

The jobber misused his position and power in the following ways:

(i) Initially jobbers cured people from his village ensuring them jobs. He also helped them settle in the city and lent them money in the times of crisis.

(ii) Gradually, jobbers got position and power. 

(iii) They started demanding money and gifts for all the favours.

(iv) They also started to control the lives of the workers.

(v) Jobbers got people from his own village and restricted entries of others in the mills.

Q. Explain with examples the importance of advertise- ment in the marketing of the goods. 

Ans. (i) Advertisements play a very vital role in the marketing of any product. One way in which new consumers are created is through advertisements.

(ii) Advertisements make products appear desirable and necessary.

(iii) They try to shape the minds of the people and create new needs.

(iv) Today, we live in a world where advertisements surround us. They appear in the newspapers, magazines, hoardings, street wall, and television screens.

(v) From the very beginning of the industrial age; advertisements have played a part in expanding the markets for products and in shaping a new consumer culture.

Q. What measures were adopted by the producers in India to expand the market for their goods in the 19th century?

Ans. (i) The Manchester made cloth carried a label with 'Made in Manchester' written in bold. This assured the buyers of the quality of the cloth.

(ii) The British manufacturers used images of Indian Gods and Goddesses on the labels. It symbolized the divine approval for the commodity. It also created familiarity with the Indian buyers.

iii) Manufacturers got calendars printed with the images of Gods and the advertisement of their products advertisements make products appear desirable and necessary. The calendars were seen on the walls of hotels, tea shops, households, etc. These are used even by people who could not read.

iv) Images of historical characters and heroes from the past were also displayed on calendars thus sending the message that the product was as worthy of respect as were these respectable characters.

(v) The Indian manufacturers printed the image of Bharat Mata and a nationalist message on the labels. They also printed 'Made in India' on the labels thus appealing to the nationalist sentiments. Most of the baby products carried the image of Lord Krishna to appeal to the religious sentiments.