The Destruction Of Capitalism In Upton Sinclair's The Jungle
Upton Sinclair was born in late September of 1878 in Baltimore, Maryland. His family relocated to New York City when he was ten years old. At the age of twenty, after completing his schooling, he decided to become a serious novelist. In 1904 Sinclair was sent to Chicago to write an exposé on the mistreatment of workers in the meatpacking industry. He spent several weeks undercover gathering the research that greatly contributed to The Jungle.
The Jungle depicts a Lithuanian family that slowly meets its demise due to the evils of capitalism. Upton Sinclair makes his views on capitalism evident by depicting Jurgis’s family as victims of the cruel and unjust economic and social systems. As immigrants, this family believed in the idealistic ‘American Dream’ only to get a first-hand experience of the destruction of
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He wants to be able to provide for his wife and make a better future for the next generation. His overall challenge is trying to win against the face of capitalism. He wants to be able to move up the social and economic ladder. Eventually he gives up all hope of a better life and embarks on a journey of criminal activity before stumbling upon a Socialist Party meeting.
Sinclair’s purpose for the novel becomes evident towards the end of the book. It is clear that the author’s blatant attack of capitalism is a means to persuade readers of the socialist alternative. Socialism is introduced as capitalism’s counterpart; where capitalism is evil and destructive, socialism is good and beneficial.
The publication of The Jungle in 1906 had a powerful affect on America, though not quite the affect that Sinclair had hoped for. His novel was meant to open people’s eyes to the poor conditions that workers are put through and the destructiveness of capitalism. However, reader’s main concern after reading this was the conditions of the meat packing plants and how their food was
Book Summary: The Jungle, By Upton Sinclair
1552 Words | 7 PagesThe Jungle by Upton Sinclair The Jungle by Upton Sinclair truly exemplifies the difficulties immigrant’s families run into when pursuing the “American Dream.” The Jungle can be evaluated as a primary source as it uses direct evidence in Chicago in PackingTown district. PackingTown District is known to be Chicago’s biggest meatpacking industry. Written during the Progressive Era it revealed the many dangerous and horrible conditions that are in the meatpacking industry. It uses vivid description of diseased, rotten, and contaminated meat, which ultimately shocked the public.
Role Of Upton Sinclair's Living And Dying In Packingtown
1346 Words | 6 PagesSinclair explains, “all of their sausage came out of the same bowl, but when they came to wrap it they would stamp some of it ‘special,’ and for this they would charge two cents more a pound” (pg. 79). Sinclair’s detailed exposure of the production of products being consumed by society caused a strong public reaction, and is what The Jungle is commonly known for describing. While his work may be more commonly known for exposing the meatpacking industry, Sinclair also successfully exposed the horrific working conditions and their effects. His purpose was to improve working conditions and expose the immorality and indecency of industry and capitalism. Sinclair easily convinced society of this motive through gruesome detail of the Rudkus’ experiences.
Theme Of Corruption Of The Industrial Age In The Jungle, By Upton Sinclair
244 Words | 1 PagesIn The Jungle , Upton Sinclair shows The corruption of the Industrial Age through his depiction of working conditions, wages, and living conditions. The working conditions were considered extremely bad in the industrial age. One was that no one could take a day off and if you didn’t go to work you job might not be there the next day. Another example of terrible working conditions was the danger that jurgis was in the Jungle.
The Role Of Capitalism In Upton Sinclair's The Jungle
616 Words | 3 PagesCapitalism bred corruption in both police department, government and the voting process, and bred ethnic tensions that had a major effect on class relations during that period. The unions and socialist movements that came out during this time period showed to the world how problematic capitalism is, and blossomed in the 20th century as a savior of the working class. Upton Sinclair conveyed to the world the problems of capitalism in a progressive reform impulse way, and was extremely successful in showing to the world how problematic capitalism was. Capitalism bred horrible working conditions, and the
Socialism In Upton Sinclair's The Jungle
1082 Words | 5 PagesUpton Sinclair’s “The Jungle” advocates for socialism by depicting the story of a young immigrant who is manipulated and cheated time and time again by sadist business men in a capitalist society. Throughout the novel, the idea that socialism is a more Biblically sound economic system is asserted through evidence of Jesus’ teachings in which He condemns the wealthy for their attachment to the world. However, capitalism implements more Biblical ideas than socialism does because of the rewards that come from hard work and the means of production being privately owned, which are both ideas taught throughout Jesus’ teachings. Shortly after Jurgis is introduced to the idea of socialism, he finds Lucas, an evangelist, who argues that socialism is
Analysis Of Muuckraker Upton Sinclair's The Jungle
834 Words | 4 PagesThe Jungle follows a young Lithuanian immigrant named Jurgis Rudkis and his teenage wife Ona. Together, the couple struggles to provide for themselves and for Ona’s family. Jurgis maintains a job
Upton Sinclair's The Jungle And The Meatpacking Industry
601 Words | 3 PagesIn early 1900, specifically, 1906, The Jungle by Upton Sinclair was written. This novel told the story of a Lithuanian immigrant who worked in a filthy Chicago meatpacking plant. It exposed the meatpacking industry by stating their vile practices not only towards their meat but their workers as well. This was a result of the combination of many immigrants in the United States to pursue a better life, and the fact that many big industries were looking for ways to maximize their profit.
Working Conditions In The Jungle
634 Words | 3 PagesDuring the 1900’s working conditions were undeniably horrible. In Packingtown everyday got more difficult as the days went on. In the meat packing business things were supposed to be done quick. Inside the factories packing, chopping, inspecting and people actions didn’t mix. Not only did the people in the factories suffered, the people outside of the factory also suffered.
The Economic Tension In Upton Sinclair's The Jungle
1899 Words | 8 PagesUpton Sinclair portrays the economic tension in the United States during the late 19th and early 20th centuries through his novel “The Jungle”. He used the story of a Lithuanian immigrant, Jurgis Rudkus, to show the harsh situation that immigrants had to face in the United States, the unsanitary and unsafe working conditions in the meatpacking plants, as well as the tension between the capitalism and socialism in the United States during the early 1900s. In the late 19th century and early 20th centuries, there were massive immigrants move into the United States, and most of them were from Europe. The protagonist, Jurgis Rudkus, like many other immigrants, have the “America Dream” which they believe America is heaven to them, where they can
Socialism In Upton Sinclair's The Jungle
778 Words | 4 PagesIn 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 Working Class In Upton Sinclair's The Jungle
1419 Words | 6 PagesThe Jungle, written by Upton Sinclair, was created with the purpose of exposing the unsanitary practices of the meat industry but also depicting the culture of the working class. Before laws were enacted protecting workers, mistreatment from employers and companies was a huge issue all over the United States. The Jungle helps put the past into perspective, and through its readings, one can come to the conclusion that life back then, thanks to working conditions, culture, and corruption, was less than enjoyable. First and foremost, the setting and characters in The Jungle reflect the immigration status of the United States during the time. Located in Chicago during the late 19th century, the audience is introduced to a Lithuanian wedding where
The Importance Of Knowledge In Upton Sinclair's The Jungle
1021 Words | 5 PagesWhen Upton Sinclair, a progressive era muckraker, wrote The Jungle in 1906, he was attempting to bring knowledge of the horrific conditions in Packingtown to the average citizen. His revelations on the terrors of Packingtown helped to slowly improve the lives of the immigrants. Sinclair’s pursuit of knowledge relates to the slowly growing knowledge of the characters in The Jungle. Throughout the story the characters find themselves in many tragic circumstances that could have been more easily avoided if they had been more aware of their surroundings. The immigrants are full of a false hope for success that disillusions the reality of their life.
'The Jungle' By Upton Sinclair
601 Words | 3 PagesThe Jungle written by Upton Sinclair was an expose on the life of those who lived in Packingtown, Chicago. Packingtown was where most of the people who was looking for work lived, it was a very crowded city. Job openings were scarce and most of the jobs were very unsafe. Most of the people in this part of town were poor, so they did not really have much doubts of food,. The Jungle exposed the horrific work conditions, the poor food quality, and the deceitfulness of the business owners.
Symbolism In Upton Sinclair's The Jungle
1433 Words | 6 PagesThe Jungle In the literary work, The Jungle, the author, Upton Sinclair makes a commentary on the deceitful and dark truth of the American dream. This was achieved by using the canned meat that was produced in Packingtown as a symbol to represent the dream that all the immigrants had about their new lives in America. As the story progresses, the reader, along with the protagonist, Jurgis will discover that the American dream lies cloaked behind a shroud of beautiful lies that masks the vile truths that are the American dream and the canned “beef” processed by the corrupt meat business in Packingtown.
Meatpacking Workers In Upton Sinclair's The Jungle
1060 Words | 5 PagesHowever, readers at the time were not very concerned about the petty immigrants living on the lower rung of society. Rather, they cared about what affected them most: the condition of the meat they were eating-- and had been eating-- for years, that were produced by some of the very factories mentioned in Sinclair’s novel. For the majority of The Jungle’s readers, the fact that poor immigrants were being exploited was not bothersome. Instead, the fact that the food that readers had been eating for years contained the power to kill them seemed shocking, pushing the nation into a worried frenzy. Readers were disgusted by the facts they were reading, catalyzing the creation of administrations like the FDA.
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