Drinking and the Temperance Movement
Alcohol consumption in the United States was a major social practice in the pre-industrial age. However, the growth of a commercialized competitive economy triggered the need for a reduction in alcohol consumption among the population. In this line, social changes, such as industrialization, the collapse of the traditional apprentice system, the growth of the middle class, and women’s desire for moral responsibility fuelled the spread of the temperance movement.
The rise of industrial production significantly contributed to increased control and prohibitions against the consumption of alcohol. The growth of industrialization and economic competition triggered the need for re-ordering society. This need was informed by the perception that the adverse impacts of drinking caused industrial inefficiency (Singer and Page 154). For this reason, drinking prohibitions targeted alcohol consumption practices among workers. Advocates of the temperance movement argued that barring drinking would guarantee social peace to masters, create a disciplined and docile workforce, and establish an opportunity for masters to assert their authority over their workforce (Singer and Page 154). In the ensuing development, employers implemented strict measures to contain alcohol consumption in the workplace. While passing a jug of alcohol in work premises had become a time-honored practice of easing work-related fatigue, large factories required an increasingly disciplined, sober workforce. Despite early opposition, the Panic of 1837 prompted workers to embrace the temperance movement, stating that the changing times necessitated temperance and frugality (Boyer, Clark and Hawley 234). Therefore, the demands of industrialization exacerbated the spread of the temperance movement.
The collapse of the apprenticeship system also led to the expansion of the temperance movement. The evangelical religion, which majorly entailed crusaders of the temperance, published books that documented the previously “secret” aspects of numerous crafts, thus, enabling young people to gain skills without the need of masters’ training (Brennan 32). In addition, the evangelical religion emphasized the need for the development of personal responsibility which further dissociated young people from the apprenticeship system (Brennan 32). This aspect made the evangelical religion with its temperance movement attractive, thus, promoting the prohibition of alcohol.
Social class, particularly the middle class also supported the growth of the temperance movement. According to Singer and Page, temperance ideology was a common feature of self-discipline in the upper class (154). Self-discipline became a desirable social status and those who desired to be identified with this segment had to shun alcohol as an exercise of personal responsibility, thus, bolstering the temperance movement.
In addition, women were strong supporters of the temperance movement because they were responsible for social change at home. According to Kramarae and Russo, women were allowed to exercise control over the home in the early nineteenth century, thus, responsible for ensuring the moral fiber of their families and communities (193). For this reason, Kramarae and Russo opine that women had a central role in the social reform because they were asked to decline serving alcohol at meals and social gatherings (193). Women supported the temperance movement because they desired social reforms. Furthermore, they are the worst affected by the adverse effects of drinking practices, such as domestic violence and irresponsible husbands, thus, quick to support any agenda that promotes social reform.
In summation, the growth of industrialization was the primary factor that promoted the spread of the temperance movement. Factories and masters desired a sober, disciplined workforce that would enhance productivity. Industrialization also led to the emergence of a distinct social working class that espoused the aspect of self-discipline. Therefore, the need for more responsible laborers led to the spread of the temperance movement.
Works Cited
Boyer, Paul S, et al. The Enduring Vision: A History of the American People, Concise. Cengage Learning, 2008.
Brennan, Denis. The Making of an Abolitionist: William Lloyd Garrison’s Path to Publishing The Liberator. McFarland, 2014.
Kramarae, Cherise, and Ann Russo. The Radical Women’s Press of the 1850s: Radical Women’s Press of the 1850s. Routledge, 2013.
Singer, Merrill, and J Bryan Page. Social Value of Drug Addicts: Uses of the Useless. Left Coast Press, 2014.