# The Irish — The Condition of the Working Class in England character guide

> The Irish in The Condition of the Working Class in England by Friedrich Engels.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Irish

**First appearance:** 0007-irish-immigration

## Snapshot

Displaced, desperate, and willing to work for less, they arrive in England's industrial cities and reshape the bottom of the labor market.

## Who they are

They are the cheapest hands in every unskilled trade, crowded into cellars and lodging-houses, their presence used by masters to drag English wages downward. Engels describes them as degraded by poverty and drink, yet he also sees them as the hot blood that inflames English workers into passion and revolt. Their competition is a wound, but their example is a spark, and the fusion of Irish and English misery becomes central to his account of class formation.

## Relationships

### [The English](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_condition_of_the_working_class_in_england_se/characters/the_english)

_rivalry_

The English view the Irish as a competitive, disruptive labor force that lowers wages and living standards.

### [Thomas Carlyle](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_condition_of_the_working_class_in_england_se/characters/thomas_carlyle)

_psychological_

Thomas Carlyle's writings on the Irish condition influence and reflect the Irish workers' sense of alienation.

## In the story

### [The Condition of the Working Class in England](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_condition_of_the_working_class_in_england_se/chapters/the-condition-of-the-working-class-in-england)

The Irish are identified as a major factor in the depression of wages and the worsening of living conditions for the English working class.

### [The Great Towns](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_condition_of_the_working_class_in_england_se/chapters/the-great-towns)

Irish families are noted as occupying damp cellars and crowded dwellings, contributing to the overcrowding and poor conditions in the slums.

### [Competition](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_condition_of_the_working_class_in_england_se/chapters/competition)

Irish immigrants are noted as competitors who, by accepting lower standards, force down wages and the level of civilization of English workers.

### [Irish Immigration](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_condition_of_the_working_class_in_england_se/chapters/irish-immigration)

The central subject of the chapter, depicted as a reserve army of labor, bringing 'brutal habits' and depressing wages through their willingness to live in extreme poverty.

### [Results](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_condition_of_the_working_class_in_england_se/chapters/results)

Irish immigration is noted for degrading English workers but also for deepening the chasm between workers and bourgeoisie, and for softening the English character.

### [Labour Movements](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_condition_of_the_working_class_in_england_se/chapters/labour-movements)

Their 'hot Irish blood' is noted as contributing to the passionate nature of the English working-class protest.

### [The Mining Proletariat](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_condition_of_the_working_class_in_england_se/chapters/the-mining-proletariat)

Imported as strike-breakers to restore competition among workers and collapse the strike.

### [The Agricultural Proletariat](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_condition_of_the_working_class_in_england_se/chapters/the-agricultural-proletariat)

Not explicitly mentioned in this chapter, but the context of agricultural labor and wage depression may relate to broader immigration themes.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_condition_of_the_working_class_in_england_se/characters/the_irish
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_condition_of_the_working_class_in_england_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_condition_of_the_working_class_in_england_se/characters