In Andrew Ure’s Philosophy of Manufacturers, the professor details how this new system of manufacturing is actually pushing society forward instead of holding it back. This document gives historians a glimpse into just how divided this society was. Ure seems to believe that industrialization is some sort of “god send” that will help thrust society into the future. However, for many people, industrialization was believed to be a great evil that was holding society back due to the replacement of men with machines. What historians can assume about the society in which the document was written, is that there was great debate and turmoil surrounding the new wave of industrialization. Through this document, historians can see how out of touch people of the upper middle class were with the plights of lower class workers.

Documents such as the Leeds Workers Petition detail the struggles of “normal folk” who work in the factories that Ure discusses in his work. The workers petition describes the unfair treatment of laborers and how the working wage is not nearly sustainable enough to live a comfortable life. Andrew Ure addresses this in his work. The professor states that the goal of all manufacturers is to bring down cost while also keeping the quality of a product. While this may seem more like a optimistic outlook than a fact, Ure follows it up by discussing how industrialization calls for more skilled workers. He says that the cultivation of such machines actually requires artisans of all different forms. Ure posits that industrialization needs more than just factory workers. It needs ship makers for fast and efficent distribution of product. It needs miners to dig up the materials needed for the machines as well as the goods. By detailing the different things needed to make industrialization effective, Ure puts forth the idea that manufacturing creates more jobs than it destroyed. What the professor fails to address, however, is the terrible working conditions and wages that were a very real part of this new manufacturing system.

This document is one of the few that actually defends industrialization and therefore puts forth an obviouls bias. Especially considering that Ure was not a part of the working class. What historians can assume about this society is that the contrast between classes was so stark that many “upper class” individuals do not even understand the plights of hard laborers. Although Ure puts forth many good points, they still come from the mind of a professor who never worked in the factory. Ure faced much scrutiny but still maintained that factories were doing more good than harm. This is also furthered by the fact that Ure has made outlandish claims. The professor once posited that cotton mill workers were less liable to cholera than the normal population. The entirety of The Philosophy of Manufacturers is a perfect example of just how out of touch people of the upper or middle class were. They did not understand the difficulties that hard laborers faced. The Leeds Workers Petition was a far more reliable source when it comes to the actual difficulties that laborers faced. Upper classes did not and could not understand the conditions that were a part of factory workers’ daily lives. As history will show, factories had some of the worst working conditions. This document gives historians a glimpse into how divided the society was.