During the Victorian period, society was broken down into three distinct classes. There were the Aristocracy, the middle-class, and the working class. Each one of them behaved in society with its own set of characteristics. The Industrial Revolution was responsible for major changes that took place within society during this time of political and economic change. Women and children entered the work force. They worked long hours doing menial jobs and suffered poor living conditions that included a lack of a stable diet. The role of women during this time began to change as they entered the work force and questions began to surface about their rights to own property, have money, and vote. Middle class women generally stayed home and were in charge of taking care of children and taking care of the household. Middle Class men were responsible for earning the money. In upper class homes women that generally had nannies and pursued artistic, intellectual or social pursuits began to look at there own roles and supported efforts towards reaching equality. Ironically, this also was a time where men truly were kings of their castle. A man's worth or success was measured by his home. Extended family no longer shared the same living quarters. A family by definition included a mother, father, and children. The working conditions in the factories attributed greatly to the attitude of rebellion from the working class. The middle class in its quest for status and better living had no problem profiting off of the sweat of the laborers backs. Utilitarianism and Evangelicalism were born in the sense that the working class was pushed to its utter limits without cause for full blown rebellion. The attitude of the middle class was such that any pain caused to the underlings that brought themselves a better life was worthwhile. It was some what of a balancing act between how little wages and how poor of conditions the workers could withstand without uprising.
