In my opinion, I think it's neutral. There are good and bad consequences.
The Industrial Revolution (1820-1870) was of great importance to the economic development of the United States. However, there were actually two Industrial Revolutions. The first occurred in Great Britain during the late eighteenth century, and the second began during the mid-nineteenth century. The Second Industrial Revolution centered on the United States and Germany.
Living conditions during the Industrial Revolution varied from the splendour of the homes of the owners to the squalor of the lives of the workers.Poor people lived in very small houses in cramped streets. These homes would share toilet facilities, have open sewers and would be at risk of damp. Disease was spread through a contaminated water supply. Conditions did improve during the 19th century as public health acts were introduced covering things such as sewage, hygiene and making some boundaries upon the construction of homes. Not everybody lived in homes like these. The Industrial Revolution created a larger middle class of professionals such as lawyers and doctors. The conditions for the poor improved over the course of the 19th century because of government and local plans which led to cities becoming cleaner places, but life had not been easy for the poor before industrialisation. However, as a result of the Revolution, huge numbers of the working class died due to disease spreading through the cramped living conditions.
As for work, industrial revolution changed patterns of work, transformed the social class structure, and even altered the international balance of political and military power, giving added impetus to on-going Western expansion into non-Western lands. The IR also helped ordinary people gain a higher standard of living as the widespread poverty of the pre-industrial world was gradually reduced.// 1 Comments .