When the sewing machine was introduced to German Society in the 1850's it changed society. The sewing machine was originally an American invention. It was improved in Germany and was put into widespread use. The sewing machine was such an efficient machine that it could sew, " 300 stitches a minute, proved faster in a sewing contest that five practised seamstresses." This machine played a vital part more so in the lower classes but also a strong part for upper class seamstresses. The middle to upper class women used the device to mend and make clothes for the family but they were not working long hours on the machine. On the other hand, the lower class women were making clothes not only for the family but for other commissions in order to make extra money during the very difficult time economically. These women would either work at the house or go to the factory. The women that had to work at the factory had to leave the children at home, which was a very different development socially in Germany. Usually the women were always at home minding the household and kids. The fact that they would have to go to work, like the men was very strange. These factories were growing very fast because so much profit could be made from these new machines. For example, "The same leading firms which had had twenty to thirty employees in the 1860s had by the the 1870s developed into large concerns with more than a hundred employees." By 1907 the factories employed roughly 500 seamstresses. These figures really allow one to see how big of an influence the machine had on businesses and the economy. By 1907 I wonder how many tailors were still operating.
I never expect a machine in the future to have as large of an impact as the sewing machine had on German society during this time period.
Certainly the sewing machine impacted German society as Hausen demonstrates. Her chief concern is how the sewing machine, rather than benefitting women, actually contributed to their growing misery by drawing more workers into the competition for dwindling numbers of jobs. I like how you pick up on her argument about how capitalism contributed to the break-down of the family by separating family members from each other during 'working hours' and helped convince women to take poorly paid work in order to be able to remain with their children.
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