The emerging middle class reshaped the public sphere as well. Its members formed associations to ameliorate poverty, instill temperance and eradicate vice.
While there is much talk of the middle class shrinking, this research shows that its overall share of American households did not change from 1971 to 2021.
The Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution, sometimes called the First Industrial Revolution to distinguish it from a later period of rapid manufacturing innovation that lasted from the 1870s through World War II, dramatically altered human economies. Industrialization shifted many countries away from agricultural societies and into cities full of factories, mills, railroads and electricity. The new economy created more jobs and higher incomes. The new middle class developed along with it.
The revolution was sparked by inventions such as the steam engine and cotton gin that made it possible to produce more goods, more cheaply. Textile mills proliferated in England, where the Industrial Revolution began, and in America after independence from England. Home-based production and artisan craft traditions were replaced with mass production of cloth for clothing, blankets and other items by large, machine-powered operations.
Workers left the fields and farms to find work in the new factories. As a result, the United States became one of the largest and most powerful industrialized nations in the world in the second half of the 19th century.
As the new industries grew, they required more and more skilled professional workers to manage them. The middle class emerged as a group of people who worked for themselves, managed businesses and provided professional services such as banking, insurance, merchant trades, legal and accounting. The working class became a larger proportion of the population, and its material standards improved with the advent of cheaper manufactured goods.
For millions of factory workers, however, there was a trade-off. Many of the perks of the new economy were lost in the ruthless quest for profit that incentivized long hours, minimal remuneration and poor labor conditions. Urban pollution soared as sewage flowed in the streets and factories dumped waste into rivers and water supplies.
As manufacturing expanded worldwide, new opportunities arose for many who previously had no access to them. The growth of the middle classes and the development of modern industries pushed societies toward global free trade. In turn, the world grew ever richer and more industrialized as it moved away from traditional craft-based manufacturing into high technology industries.
The Middle Class
In America, the middle class is a powerful political force. Its members are generally more likely to vote Republican than Democrats, and it’s harder for a politician to make it to the White House without having the support of the middle class. It’s also important for economic stability, as a growing middle class helps to stabilize the economy and reduce the risk of recessions and depressions.
In fact, it’s the only way that a country can avoid such crises in the long run. Until recently, middle-class Americans were happy to be catered to by politicians of both parties, because they represented the majority of voters and provided the glue that kept a broad coalition together. But over the past decade, it’s become increasingly clear that the elite doesn’t want the middle class to remain in the fold. Instead, it’s trying to destroy it by making the middle class feel like it is under siege from the left’s social-engineering schemes and the right’s rage-driven apocalypticism.
Traditionally, the middle class has been defined as people earning between the bottom and the top of the income distribution. But it’s a fuzzy line that can be hard to pin down. It’s not uncommon for different scholars to define the middle class in slightly different ways. For example, some experts have argued that only those with incomes between $30,000 and $50,000 should be considered middle class, while others have argued that anyone with an annual income above $50,000 is middle class.
It’s also difficult to determine exactly how many people belong to the middle class at a given point in time. That’s because middle-class status is dynamic and constantly shifting. Some occupations have a high proportion of middle-class workers, while others have far more lower-income ones. For example, in 2022, more than nine-in-ten workers in computer, science and engineering, management, business and finance, and professional services jobs were middle-income households. But in construction, transportation, food preparation and serving, and personal care and services, almost four-in-ten workers were lower-income.
Nonetheless, there’s no doubt that the middle class is on the rise in most of the world. That’s largely thanks to China and India, which are responsible for the entry of around 700 million new people into the middle class since 2009, accounting for 40% of all global entrants. These countries’ growth is expected to continue for decades.
The Poor
One of the most important developments during this time was the expansion of the middle class. As the industrial revolution shifted economies from agriculture to industry, it created new jobs that demanded skilled labor and allowed people to move up the socioeconomic ladder. For the first time, working class people could have their own businesses or work as salaried employees. This allowed families to earn steady incomes, build wealth, and escape the cycle of poverty.
It also sparked a boom in home ownership, as more and more people gained access to affordable mortgages. Over the course of 20 years, the share of American households owning their own homes jumped an astounding 20 percentage points.
The rise of the middle class helped to create a more democratic society, as this group was able to advocate for greater political representation and social reforms. This was a crucial development as it provided the foundation for future movements regarding civil rights and labor laws, shaping modern America. It also spawned a consumer culture, as middle class families had enough disposable income to buy goods that were once considered luxuries. This is when department stores were founded, and the popularity of mail-order catalogs exploded.
In addition to expanding the middle class, the economic changes of this time boosted the wealth of the upper class. Families in the top tier saw their median net worth increase from 1971 to 2021 by 33%, while those in the lower-income tier saw theirs decrease by 45%.
As the growth of the middle class accelerated, it took longer for those without at least a college degree to move up the income ladder, while adults with some college but no bachelor’s degree saw a sizable drop in their middle class share and a large increase in their lower-income tier share over this period. It is clear that education remains a crucial factor in moving up the income ladder, and this is especially true for women and minorities. This has been reflected in the growing number of women and minorities in professional careers and in business leadership positions.
The Elite
Throughout much of the 20th century, “middle class” signaled membership in an optimistic, growing group. Its members had risen within memory from physically laborious jobs in agriculture and factory floors to offices and small businesses they ran themselves. They enjoyed long periods of prosperity and stability, and their success fueled the dreams of every politician, on both the left and right. They were the American majority. It was from them that a political coalition could be built and a government formed.
The rise of the middle class helped create a more democratic society as its members advocated for greater political representation and social reforms. It also shaped cultural norms around consumption and lifestyle as they embraced consumerism. Its push for education and equality paved the way for future movements on civil rights and labor laws that continue to shape modern America.
But the idea of a middle class is about more than just being richer than poor or being able to afford things like a house, college tuition for kids, and a retirement comfortable enough to soothe a sore back garnered from years of physical labor. It’s about a group of people who share common values and aspirations, including a belief in hard work, a desire for upward mobility, and the importance of community.
As a result, the concept of the middle class is as much a mental construct as it is a socioeconomic designation. It’s an ideal, a goal that the working class sees as wonderful and achievable—like owning their own home in a safe neighborhood and a pension large enough to provide them with a decent standard of living in their golden years.
Today, the world’s middle class consists of some 5 billion people—a figure that will rise to 6 billion by 2030, according to research by Homi Kharas. This is the biggest middle class in history, and it’s a group that faces some major challenges: globalization and automation, higher incomes that do not translate into life satisfaction, consumerism that drives production of ever more goods at lower prices, and ecological destruction that threatens biodiversity.
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