▶ Your Answer :
In the lecture, the lecturer
cast doubts on the idea of the reading that there were
three clear reasons why the development of the factory system was first made
possible in England. The
lecturer argues that the reasons mentioned in the reading are not convincing.
First of all, the
lecturer disagrees with the idea of the reading that the factory system first developed
in England because of the advent of new technologies. Specifically, whereas the
reading indicates that the introduction of steam engines made it possible to generate
a great amount of energy, the lecturer argues that steam engines had as many
problems as benefits, such as the high risk of explosion and frequent
breakdowns. In this line of thought, the lecturer asserts that there were not actually
many noticeable breakthroughs to accelerate the rise of factory system.
Second, the idea of the reading that the
introduction of property rights helped investors to invest more in new
factories resulting in the development of the factory system is rebutted by the
lecturer. The lecturer gives an example of Germany to contradict the idea. According
to the lecturer, the fact that Germany also had well-organized policies on the
protection of property rights at that time tells that there is no clear
evidence to support the reason why England was the first country to experience
the rise of the factory system.
Finally, the lecturer contradicts the idea of
the reading that the decrease of transporting cost of raw materials and goods encouraged
manufacturers to develop the factory system. To elaborate, the lecturer argues
that since manufacturers had to spend the same amount of money in building
factories and hiring supervisors to oversee their laborers, there was hardly
any causal relationship between the reduction of transportation costs and the
rise of the factory system.
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