Ever since the start of the industrialization of Manchester people have had many varying opinions on how it is affecting the city. Some people say that the rapidly expanding textile industry is good for the city. Other people think the Industrial Revolution is moving too fast and that its negatively impacting society. There are also opinions stating that it was both good and bad, not just one or the other.
Plenty of people think that the expanding industry in Manchester is a good thing. One person who thinks that is Macaulay. He expressed his beliefs in his essay “Southey’s Colloquies”. In that essay he responded to Mr. Southey (a romantic poet) and wrote about the industrialization of Manchester and how it has helped it’s citizens wellbeing. He also thinks that the sight of cottages having been replaced by factories has been no downgrade.
Considering that the English peasantry life had never really been in fairy tale conditions to begin with. Another supporter of the industrial revolution is Wheelan and Co.. They say that industrialization has made the city grow immensely. The energy in Manchester because of the factories has also changed. Now the city is fast paced, and they believe that the city has gotten more beautiful than before. Wheelan and Co. believe that the rest of the world has been influenced because of what’s happening in Manchester.
On the opposite end of the spectrum are the people who are against the industrialization of Manchester. One argument an English romantic poet has is that the city is being heavily polluted with smoke. Mr. Southey also says it’s extremely crowded with people and buildings and that it has gotten to the point where it’s never silent. A differing reason for why the industry is negative is from a woman named Flora Tristan.
Ms. Tristan says one reason the industry is bad is because of the intense toll it takes on the workers’ health. In her journal she talks about how the factory owners have no concern for the workers because of the harsh conditions they keep them in and the lack of resources they need. A local weekly magazine in Manchester also has a similar opinion in that the pollution is getting out of hand. In their magazine The Graphic they show a picture from of crowded factories polluting into both the air and water.
