Reading Journal 2

Grant Wengeler

Dr. Torgensen 

1/29/2020

Reading Journal #2

On Harriet Martineau’s Illustrations of Political Economy including Demerara

This work as a whole was quite a daunting amount of reading and the sheer amount led me into immediate panic. I already have hours of reading required by other classes, plus a job I must work in order to keep a roof over my head. Yet, I still managed to finnish this reading at the cost of much sleep. Due to intense sleep deprivation my memory of these works is shrouded as if a hallucination, but some scenes really stuck with me. 

First of all, I was particularly drawn to the tale of Demerara and the strife of the slaves. It reminded me heavily of the journals of Fredrick Douglass and Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin- both of which I’ve read before. Strangely enough I felt as though the writing style of Demerara was different in many ways from Martineau’s other works. Primarily the diction stood out. I felt as though the use of words was less prolific than in her other works. Illustrations of Political Economy, as a whole, used a lot of perverse language and technical terminology to convey Martineau’s points in a political manner. Due to the use of language within Demerara I actually found it easier to read than the rest of Martineau’s works. Perhaps this is also because the version I read had larger print, and this may have influenced my perception. 

Second, A Manchester Strike sticks in my mind because of the emotional toll it draws from the heart. This is not to say that the rest of Martineau’s works don’t do this, just that I related to the struggles of the factory workers more. I myself have been working since a very young age, and when I saw the struggle Martha was exposed to I began to feel as though I had it easy. She was subjected to mindless repetitive labor in a horrible factory for hours upon hours each day. The work I did at a young age mostly included being outdoors, replacing shingles and trimming trees. I would’ve hated to be stuck in a factory like poor Martha, it really pulled at my heartstrings. I could also see how characters such as Sally grew bitter from their overexposure to hardship. I found that in many ways I myself had become similarly bitter from the struggles I’ve perceived to be unfair. So in all, this entire short story acted as an extreme example of emotions I’ve experienced in a smaller capacity. 

Overall I find Martineau’s writings to be centered around solid and justifiable arguments. I have no issue with the power struggles she exposes through her writing. I’m personally against the idea that Capitalism is inherently evil, but it doesn’t seem to me that she is making that argument. She critiques the concept of over-monopolizing certain industries and the inequality of pay among the employed, both of which are important changes needed to achieve a healthy capitalist economy. If anything, she wants to improve capitalism- not throw it out. At least, that was my interpretation. She definitely points out the drawbacks of radical capitalism, which took place within the existence of slavery. Slavery, after all, is essentially capitalism applied to human labor in the absence of fairness, equality, or morality. However, in A Manchester Strike it was the factories which provided for everyone and supported the community with employment and essentials. As with most things, capitalism is shown by Maritneau to be a vast grey area which may exhibit both positive and negative traits depending on how it is implemented. 

Despite the heavy load of coursework, I’m still glad I read this work. Martineau is actually very interesting as a writer and I’m surprised she’s not taught more often. 

Work Cited

Martineau, Harriet. Illustrations of a Political Economy. Boston. 1832. Print.