Final answer:
Inequality during the Gilded Age led to a concentration of wealth among industrialists, while workers faced harsh conditions. This era, marked with superficial prosperity, contrasts starkly with underlying social issues that resonate to present concerns about workers' rights and economic disparities.
Step-by-step explanation:
Inequality during the Gilded Age had profound impacts on American society in the late nineteenth century. While technological advancements and industrialization created immense wealth, this prosperity was not equally distributed. A small number of industrialists and business owners amassed fortunes, while workers faced long hours, unsafe conditions, and minimal pay. Additionally, the gap between industrialized nations and those that were not widened, creating international disparities. The societal problems birthed by the Industrial Revolution included issues surrounding workers' rights, wage protection, and safe work environments, which are concerns that persist today. The term 'Gilded Age,' coined by Mark Twain, accurately reflects the superficial nature of the wealth that masked underlying economic inequalities and pervasive corruption.