A closer look
Progress apparently requires dragging everyone through a temporary nightmare. The Kuznets curve hypothesizes that as an agrarian society transitions into an industrial powerhouse, inequality aggressively spikes. The early factory owners amass astronomical fortunes while everyone else breathes soot. However, after the pain peaks, wealth eventually trickles outward, creating a solid middle class. It is the academic equivalent of saying you have to completely trash the kitchen before you get to eat the cake.
