1.9 The Enlightenment, Part IV - The Industrial Revolution

In the last few episodes we have been talking about the scientific, religious, philosophical and political aspects of the Enlightenment. Today we will cover the Industrial Revolution. The Scientific Revolution, the Enlightenment and the Industrial Revolution were each distinct movements that overlap so significantly that it is hard to imagine one without the others. The Scientific Revolution lasted from 1543 with Copernicus’s earth-centric model to 1687, ending the historical age with Newton’s laws of motion and gravity. Many call out Descartes’ Cogito Ergo Sum in 1637 as the beginning of the Enlightenment, and the beginning of the French Revolution in 1789 as the end. Today’s topic, the Industrial Revolution, especially in England, is tied to the social changes occurring as science, technology and a growing capitalist class emerged unlike anytime before in human history, from about 1780 to 1840. There is no immediate causal relationship between the Enlightenment and the Industrial Revolution. Gramsci believed the Enlightenment was the moment in history when the capitalist intellectuals built solidarity and laid the foundation for a successful capitalist revolution. The capitalist class dethroned the aristocracy throughout Europe as the ruling class, and then stretched out to all ends of the earth. Concluding the Industrial Revolution and the coming to power of the capitalist class as the ruling class was the consequence of all of this is reasonable. The actual events of history are not so transparent, but I find Gramsci’s narrative to be quite plausible. He returns to it over and over throughout his writings, so we will spend a lot more time on it in the future. Today we will discuss the economic significance of the Industrial Revolution, and then spend some time critiquing the Enlightenment from the perspective of class analysis, and then talk about how socialism seeks to overcome capitalism’s failed attempt to fulfill the promises of the Enlightenment.