Section 4 New Ways of Thinking Setting the

Section 4 New Ways of Thinking Setting the Scene - In Britain, Thomas Malthus saw the effects of the population explosion— crowded slums, hungry families, unemployment, and widespread misery. Malthus believed that poverty and misery were unavoidable because the population was increasing faster than the food supply. Malthus was one of many thinkers who tried to understand the staggering changes taking place in the early industrial age. As heirs to the Enlightenment, these thinkers looked for natural laws that governed the world of business and economics.

I. Laissez-Faire Economics Middle-class business leaders embraced a laissez-faire, or "hands-off, " approach

A. Adam Smith In The Wealth of Nations, Smith asserted that a free market would come to help everyone, not just the rich

B. Thomas Malthus predicted that the population would outgrow the food supply and the poor would suffer

C. David Ricardo Economist David Ricardo proposed an “iron law of wages, ” and believed the working class would never escape poverty

C. David Ricardo and Malthus felt that the poor had too many children, but opposed any government help for them

II. The Utilitarians Jeremy Bentham preached utilitarianism - the goal of society should be "the greatest happiness for the greatest number" of citizens Bentham also is known for an odd request in his will: he ordered that his remains be preserved and kept in a box, to be displayed on occasion to friends and followers. This "auto -icon, " dressed in Bentham's own clothes, is kept in a special cabinet at University College London to this day.

II. The Utilitarians John Stuart Mill called for giving the right to vote to workers and women and sought reforms in many areas

III. Socialism Socialists condemned the evils of capitalism and believed the people should control the means of production

III. Socialism Socialists wanted a world in which society would operate for the benefit of all members

A. The Utopians Early socialists built communities where work was shared and property was commonly owned

B. Robert Owen insisted that the environment in which people lived shaped their character Owen was convinced that if he created the right environment, he could produce rational, good and humane people. Owen argued that people were naturally good but they were corrupted by the harsh way they were treated.

C. Marxism Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels wrote The Communist Manifesto, claiming economics was the driving force of history

C. Marxism The entire course of history was "the history of class struggles” between the "haves” and the "have-nots”

C. Marxism The "haves” were the bourgeoisie and owned the means of production; the "have-nots” were the proletariat, or working class.

C. Marxism This class struggle pitted the bourgeoisie against the proletariat and in the end the proletariat would triumph

C. Marxism A classless, communist society would emerge and wealth and power would be equally shared

“Workers of the world unite; you have nothing to lose but your chains. ” “The theory of Communism may be summed up in one sentence: abolish all private property” “The production of too many useful things results in too many useless people. ” “From each, according to his ability; to each, according to his need” “The first requisite for the happiness of the people is the abolition of religion”