In an analogy, what pairs with the cotton gin?

The cotton gin, invented by Eli Whitney in 1793, revolutionized the production of cotton by significantly reducing the amount of labor required to separate cotton fibers from seeds. This invention directly influenced the economic dynamics of the American South, leading to an increased demand for cotton as a cash crop. As a consequence, the profitability of cotton cultivation led to the expansion of slavery in order to meet the growing labor demands on plantations.

The expansion of slavery is directly correlated to the cotton gin's impact on the agriculture industry; as cotton production soared, so did the reliance on enslaved labor for its cultivation. Therefore, recognizing the relationship between the cotton gin and the expansion of slavery helps to understand the historical context of both the technology's impact and the socioeconomic structures of the time.

Other options, while relevant to the industrial era, do not as directly capture the specific historical relationship forged by the cotton gin specifically leading to the increased reliance on slavery.