Parallels have been drawn between the impact of the Industrial Revolution and increasing use of artificial intelligence and robotics. Many concerns regarding employment, economic inequality, environmental and social issues voiced today are similar to those discussed during that period. When seeking answers to the challenges confronting us in the twenty-first century, we might learn something by having a better understanding of what people experienced in the past.
Life Before The Industrial Revolution
Prior to The Industrial Revolution, everything that people used and owned was either a product of the natural world, or made by artisans, using the knowledge, skills and tools passed on through the generations. Most people lived in villages or small towns and followed a way of life that changed little from generation to generation. They expected to live in a manner similar to their parents and grand parents before them, within a world dominated by the natural world, ancient traditions and social structures that were often strictly enforced.
History of The Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution began in Britain during the late eighteenth century and accelerated during the nineteenth century. Machines began to replace the physical labour and skilled trades and crafts that had provided an income and way of life for millions of people. Forced to move to growing industrial towns and cities in search of work in the new factories, people often lived in crowded slums and did repetitive, soul destroying, poorly paid work. Although they tried to maintain a sense of community, many felt lost and missed the old way of life.
As early as the late eighteenth century, skilled workers began to fear the impact of machinery on their jobs. In the north of England a group of artisans called the Luddites destroyed machines used in textile production. Authorities responded with oppressive laws and some of those involved in the protests lost their lives. Their fears regarding loss of skilled jobs due to new technology proved to be well founded, as during subsequent decades factories were built that produced items sold at prices with which artisans could not compete.
The Impact of The Industrial Revolution
While many celebrated the growing wealth of Britain, some were critical of the poor living and working conditions within industrial towns and cities. Artisans unable to compete with factory prices, struggled to earn a living. Many lost the sense of self-respect, identity, meaning and purpose their work had provided. Concern about loss of tradition, the old social order and declining moral values led to social movements and calls for reform in areas such as education, health care and the environment. Writers, including Charles Dickens, portrayed the lives of people living in industrial towns and cities.
The Great Exhibition of 1851
Held at The Crystal Palace in Hyde Park London, between May and October 1851, The Great Exhibition was intended to showcase great achievements of culture industry, art and design. However, many visitors were disappointed by the quality of factory made objects, critical of excessive use of ornamentation and lack of practicality. Some writers, artists and designers, concerned about the perceived declining standards, published books describing what they considered to be good design principles. There was also renewed interest in the traditional arts and crafts of previous centuries.
Responses To The Industrial Revolution
Idealised portrayals of Classical or medieval art and culture frequently ignored the inequalities and conflict in such societies. These imagined worlds portrayed people living in harmony with the natural world, according to traditional values. Philosophers discussed characteristics of an ideal society, leading to the rise of various social movements. Some sought escape from their difficult life through forms of addiction, while others looked for ways to remake society. There are parallels in our modern world, such as calls to use more sustainable technology, while others lose themselves in social media and virtual worlds.
The Arts and Crafts Movement
Emerging in Britain during the nineteenth century, in response to the impact of The Industrial Revolution, The Arts and Crafts Movement sought to improve living and working conditions for the industrial working class. The social values and creative vision of John Ruskin and William Morris played an important role in the movement. Critical of the soul destroying nature of mass production work in factories, they promoted the use of traditional skills and natural materials in workshops, although machines could be used to complete some repetitive tasks.
It was recognised that handmade arts and crafts could not replace the range of more affordable mass produced objects. However, there were calls to improve factory conditions for workers and their living conditions. Workshops producing high quality, but more expensive items, provided artists, designers and artisans with a greater sense of meaning and purpose. Customers purchasing their work valued the qualities of handmade items. A minimalist approach was suggested in the famous William Morris quote: ‘Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful’.
The Twentieth Century
During the nineteenth century and into the twentieth century, the rate of technological change accelerated. The disposable income of middle class and working class people increased and the modern world we recognise today began to emerge. Education and training were required to provide workers with the knowledge and skills needed to carry out the new technical, administrative and creative jobs. Many people worked long hours doing jobs they disliked to pay their bills and buy material goods, but their was widespread optimism about the future.
A more prosperous working class and growing middle class gave rise to the consumer society and a world of increased social freedom and mobility. Working people were able to afford to buy their own home, raise a family and enjoy holidays abroad. Business owners used marketing and sales to promote products and services designed to meet increasing customer demand. Shopping districts, with stores offering a wide variety of items sourced from around the world appeared in towns and cities. This convenience and variety enabled people to develop a taste for new things, expand their mental horizons and aspire to material success.
Consumer Society
Vast shopping centres began to appear in locations outside of the major towns and cities, made it possible for people to view and try items that they might have previously only have seen in advertisements. Consumers could window shop in stores selling expensive brands and buy more affordable products in less expensive stores. The expansion of media entertainment through movies and television, air travel and globally recognised commercial brands created a sense of an increasingly global culture.
During the closing decades of the twentieth century some of the negative consequences of consumerism and the loss of a sense of community began to emerge. Automation led to increasing unemployment in regions that had been at the forefront of the Industrial Revolution. The widespread adoption of computers and then the Internet, changed the lives of millions of people. However, much of the techno optimism of previous decades was replaced by a growing sense of alienation. While some sought a deeper sense of meaning and purpose, rather than lives dominated by consumerism, others struggled financially as industries declined and millions of well paid jobs disappeared.
In some parts of the world industrialisation took place in a single generation and people are still attempting to adapt. New technologies emerged and displaced millions of workers, forcing them to train for the new jobs. Younger workers often found it easier to adapt, as older workers found their skills and experience acquired across decades no longer matched the demands of the job market. Industries that had provided generations of people with employment closed, resulting in communities across the industrialised world experiencing a decline in living standards. Long term secure employment and home ownership became a thing of the past for many working people and social inequality increased.
The Twenty-First Century
During the nineteenth and twentieth century technology changed society over decades. This allowed time for governments, businesses and individuals to adjust. Technology also created new jobs, such as programming, marketing and design. The emergence during the first decades of the twenty-first century of social media, and technologies such as increasingly powerful virtual reality, artificial intelligence and robotics could cause rapid change in just a few years. Similar concerns to those of the Luddites are expressed by millions of people, who fear the impact on the lives.
Some claim that new jobs will be created, just as in the past when new more efficient technology replaced older technologies. For example, factory jobs being replaced by knowledge and service jobs in sectors created by computers and the Internet. However, if AI and robotics are able to carry out most human tasks more efficiently and cheaper than people, it is not clear what those new job roles will be. The consequences of teachers, lawyers, doctors, accountants and other professionals being replaced by AI, while robots replace skilled trade workers, could cause huge societal disruption.
Managing the rapid loss of many career paths, along with the educational and training programmes designed to support them would be a challenge for governments across the world. Some businesses might prefer to employ people rather than use AI and robotics, but they could be put out of business by more efficient and profitable rivals. It has been suggested that some form of Universal Basic Income (UBI) should be provided and financed by taxing increasingly profitable businesses that have replaced human employees with machines. This could support people as they try to find alternative career paths, that provide them with an income, along with a sense of meaning and purpose.
Learning From The Arts and Crafts Movement
Responses to the psychological, social and economic impact of the Industrial Revolution provide our best model as we plan for an uncertain future. The work of John Ruskin, William Morris and others within The Arts and Craft Movement inspired generations of artists, designers, craft makers and architects. Ideals of the movement regarding social and environmental issues influenced government policies in education, health care, housing and environmental regulations. This has parallels with challenges confronting our world today. Failing to respond effectively could lead to loss of social cohesion, as millions of people struggle to find paid work, leading to growing despair, alienation, resentment and decline.
The Arts and Crafts Movement sought a practical approach to building a better society. They idealised a world in which people live in a beautiful environment and enjoy a quality of life that inspires them to be creative and humane. It was recognised that poor living and working conditions can undermine physical and psychological health and well being, causing people to loose interest in issues not directly related to their immediate survival needs. In our modern world the negative impact of loss of community, loneliness and virtual rather than real life engagement are of growing concern. Businesses that use AI and robotics might outperform those that do not, but incentives could be provided to encourage the growth of businesses that are both sustainable and provide meaningful employment to people.
Adapting To The Rise of AI and Robots
People who were born during the first decades of the nineteenth century grew up in a world where technology would have been recognisable to those living centuries earlier. However, within their lifetime they could have witnessed the invention of railways, telephones, photography, cinema, cars, aircraft and radio. We are surrounded by such technology in modern forms, but for people living through such change it inspired astonishment and excitement in some, but fear and concern for their future in others. These technologies shaped the history of the twentieth century and we are living with many of the consequences.
If we are living through a similar period of rapid change to that of the Industrial Revolution, we cannot know what technology will be developed. However, it is likely the human response will be similar to that of those who lived in earlier periods of technological change. Governments consist of people, who might struggle to understand what is happening and how to respond. Our schema, or mental models of the world, can fail when change is too rapid, but if we do not respond appropriately to emerging challenges, the impact will be global.
The pace of the Industrial Revolution allowed governments, businesses and individuals some time to adapt, even if with difficulty and some mistakes along the way. However, it is possible the rate of change caused by AI, robots and increasing automation will begin to exceed the ability of even the most capable human beings to understand and adapt. The Arts and Crafts Movement encourages us to place human flourishing, rather than efficiency, productivity and profit, at the centre of decision making. This could be a guide as the world around us is transformed by technology. The path we choose will shape human society for decades and possibly centuries to come.