One individual who expressed this view and promoted socialism was American author Upton Sinclair. Sinclair witnessed poverty in his lifetime in the aftermath of the Civil War and sought to strengthen the power of the working class. He exemplifies these economic beliefs in his fictional novel called The Jungle. The novel traces the journey of a Lithuanian immigrant named Jurgis, who faces unemployment, poverty, and discrimination as a working class man in a capitalist society. Sinclair emphasizes that capitalism is detrimental to the working class, and he proposes that socialism is the solution to economic inequality and the lack of power among the working class.
Revealing the harsh treatment of meatpacking workers and showing the reality of the disgusting conditions found in butchery shops to the public, Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle became an enduring classic by American readers throughout the early twentieth century the prompted the later creation of the Federal Drug Administration. In the early 1900s, America was explosively transitioning from an agricultural society to a thriving manufacturing-based nation. As production demand in factories grew throughout the country, the work force needed to run those factories also expanded. A new type of demanding and dangerous work became prevalent throughout the nation, as immigrants coming into the “Land of Opportunity” found themselves desperate
The contempt he had developed for the upper class as a youth had led Sinclair to socialism in 1903, and in 1904 he was sent to Chicago by the socialist newspaper Appeal to Reason to write an exposé on the mistreatment of workers in the meatpacking industry. After spending several weeks conducting undercover research on his subject matter, Sinclair threw himself into the manuscript that would become The Jungle. Initially rejected by publishers, in 1906 the novel was finally released by Doubleday to great public acclaim—and shock. Despite Sinclair’s intention to reveal the plight of laborers at the meatpacking plants, his vivid descriptions of the cruelty to animals and unsanitary conditions there caused great public outcry and ultimately changed the way people shopped for food. Upon its release, Sinclair enlisted his fellow writer and friend Jack London to help publicize his book and assist in getting his message across to the masses.
The Unfair Treatment of Immigrants in The Jungle by Upton Sinclair Imagine going somewhere new, far away and ending up in a bad situation with no way out. That’s how Jurgis and his family felt when they left their home country of Lithuania to come to America to pursue their dreams of wealth. Their world was quickly turned upside down when they realized that the deck was stacked against them in Chicago’s unfair system, which was designed to leave them trapped. The Jungle by Upton Sinclair will bring you into the world of manipulation and poverty in Chicago during the 1900s. The big bosses of Chicago were suspected of sending agents to Europe to spread the tales of how much money immigrants could earn by going to America to work, “and so he had sent his agents into every city and village in Europe to spread the tale of the chances of work and high wages at the
In Upton Sinclair's The Jungle, Jurgis and his family attempt to survive in a malicious society. In this jungle of a town, rotten meat is being packaged in order to save money. Throughout the novel, the immigrants are faced with greedy capitalists who take advantage of the family’s ignorance and naivety in order to make money. The symbols of corruption, a jungle-like setting, and the tension between family and a work-based lifestyle transparently contribute to the unifying theme of anti-capitalism. In other words, this book is not art; this book is propaganda.
The Cruel Conditions of A Jungle Upton Sinclair’s novel The Jungle, introduces Jurgis Rudkus, a Lithuanian immigrant who enters America with his wife Ona. Jurgis is a strong individual who is eager to learn more about the American dream, but the miserable working and living conditions in Packingtown starts to make an impact in his life that will cause him to struggle in supporting his family. Firstly, this story takes place in the twentieth century, and depicts a Lithuanian family who decides to move to Chicago trying to find a better life. They soon realize that the conditions of the factory work environment are very harsh. In order to show Jurgis’s emotions towards the city of Packingtown Sinclair uses the metaphor “... all life, was to
The following book design is on The Jungle by Upton Sinclair. The picture I drew on the on the cover represents the dark city and factories in the book. It relates to how the working conditions were. I chose gray and black because it was a harsh time, as well as blue and green, which stands for the sadness and the greed of money. The theme is capitalism, it depicts how everyone was effected during this era.
In the beginning of the Jungle, Upton Sinclair implies that Jurgis and his family did not expect to move from the jungle in Lithuania to another allegorical one. Jurgis repeatedly assures his wife that “Leave it to me; leave it to me. I will earn more money-I will work harder” (Sinclair, 20). But the constant repetition of this throughout the novel cannot help but make one wonder whether it was true that hard work is valuable, or he wanted to convince himself that it was. It soon proved to be the latter, because as the novel progressed he loses his spirit and he even became more selfish and “went home half ‘piped’” (Sinclair, 134).
Sinclair’s book The Jungle shows the hard situations that people in the time period unfortunately had. With many families coming into America, people were coming from all over to work in these jobs. The story follows Jergis, an immigrant who gets married and gets a new job at the meat packaging plant in Packingtown. His entire family moves out of a very small apartment and into a bigger and nicer house. Once they miss a payment however, they get evicted from this house and have to return to living in very harsh conditions.
In The Jungle, Upton Sinclair utilizes syntax, imagery, and figurative language to prove that hard work and desire can result in the lack of potential for success through the infinite struggles endured by foreigners with strong ambition. Upton Sinclair’s application of syntax highlights that even though individuals have strong determination, they may have been set up to fail by society. The author’s use of rhetorical questions emphasize how foreigners’