Upton Sinclair's The Jungle And Socialism

Jokubas, Jurgis’ old friend from Lithuania who also immigrated to America, explained to Jurgis’ the meticulous process the pigs went through in the slaughterhouses. Every tangible part of the job had a purpose: the hooves made glue, the bristles made paintbrushes, the hide made leather products; nonetheless, the squeal could not be contained. Moreover, a squeal is not profitable, therefore the sound was not useful. In the same way, according to Sinclair, capitalism used everything about the lower class except their squeal. Sinclair depicted capitalism in the same light- the hogs were the lower class, while the butchers were the profiteers. The lower class toiled laboriously for little pay; dwelled in poor and unsanitary homes; and were swindled

The Jungle is a novel written in 1906 by journalist and writer Upton Sinclair. The novel was written with the purpose of describing the plight of immigrant workers in the meat packing houses of Chicago. Sinclair’s purpose for the novel was to improve the working conditions of the meat packing industry but; while his efforts resulted in improved meat sanitation standards relief for the workers themselves would take much longer. To document the conditions of the workers, Sinclair chooses to narrate the lives and struggles of Jurgis Rudkus, a Lithuanian immigrant and his extended family. The novel begins in the middle of the storyline with the scene of a lively wedding celebration in honor of Jurgis and his new young bride Ona.

Analysis with textual evidence: Chapters 22-26 of The Jungle unravels the vulnerability of those who have lost everything, as they are easily influenced by the temptations of corruption. Sinclair emphasizes in his novel how even if one has clear morals, it will certainly waver if the individual confronts conditions he/she is not familiar with. This is noticeable through the actions of Jurgis after the death of his child when he transitions from barely surviving to living a life full of crime and wrongdoing all in the city of Chicago. “A month ago Jurgis had all but perished of starvation upon the streets; and now suddenly, as by the gift of a magic key, he had entered into a world where money and all the good things of life came freely” (Sinclair

Jurgis and his family arrive to America with hope that they will find a job and be able to have a home of their own. Like millions of other families in that time Jurgis and his family face enormous difficulties. For Sinclair the blame for all this is the prejudiced economic and social system which demonstrates the effect of capitalism on the working class. Many of the effects are the exploitation of workers, and women, corruption, the sale of contaminated meat, and adulteration of consumer products all

Upton Sinclair published his novel, The Jungle, in 1906 using elements of naturalistic fiction, with the idea that ordinary people cannot overcome the system, to convey his political agenda. He did this by writing about a fictional family that comes to Chicago from Lithuania with the promise of guaranteed work where they “might earn three roubles a day” and be “rich m[en] in the bargain” (Sinclair 24-25). He used the meatpacking industry to show the extreme affects a large scale industry can have on an individual and on a family and to draw sympathy from the reader for typical families in capitalist America, choosing to focus on the immigrant experience. The Jungle, however, not only describes the horrific working conditions and the failures

There were unsanitary working conditions. Through vivid details, Sinclair was quite informative, and nauseating at the same time. Food safety and personal hygiene were practices of little importance. It was common for employees to have severed fingers, lost limbs, diseases such as Tuberculosis and blood poisoning. There were several cases in which men would fall into the vats, “There were men in the pickle rooms, for instance…worst of any, however, were the fertilizer men.” Through these examples, Sinclair was easily able to address the evils of capitalistic government. It was evident Sinclair’s point of view on capitalistic government was not favorable, as he was a socialist himself and leaked the evils of the government to the public. Socialism offers more opportunities for the public and acts in favor of the public. Sinclair’s novel shows that capitalism works against the public, and this is what causes decline in

The Jungle by Upton Sinclair was a novel written to display the crudeness of Chicago’s big business. It tells the life of Jurgis Rudkus, who moves to Chicago, Illinois from Lithuania. He faces many health and employment related issues in his new life. Upton Sinclair uses capitalism as a symbol of evil, and corruption, he does this by telling the health, and employment related issues Jurgis and his family have, while socialism is symbolized as angelic and bright. What should have been a clear beginning after Jurgis’ wedding, was actually great turmoil.

The Jungle written by Upton Sinclair in 1906 portrayed the harsh realities endured by millions of immigrants and working-class people during the Gilded Age. The book is centered around a Lithuanian immigrant named Jurgis and his wife Ona and their family. In the beginning, Jurgis and Ona have just moved to Chicago and neither speak English; yet, they have a sense of optimism about what their life in America will look like. In fact, when Ona tells Jurgis about her concerns that their wedding costs more than they can afford, Jurgis simply shrugs her off and states “Leave it to me; leave it to me. I will earn more money-I will work harder” [1]. This optimism found in the beginning; however, does not remain relevant throughout the rest of the novel. Numerous tragedies strike Jurgis and Ona’s family and soon, the happy couple loses their sense of optimism they struggle to even survive. Although, The Jungle is a fictional novel; the situations encountered by Jurgis and Ona is likely similar to what many immigrants faced during this time period. Sinclair uses his novel to make the argument for socialism and blames American capitalism for most of Jurgis and Ona’s

Battles over power are constantly fought in societies. Inevitably, one group will find a way to rise up and assume authority over the others.As exemplified by Upton Sinclair in The Jungle, economy in twentieth century America was determined by power struggles between the wealthy capitalists and the impoverished proletariat. On a more individual level, the character of Jurgis is portrayed with the unceasing desire to free himself from the power of others and in turn gain power for himself.

Upton Sinclair the author of The Jungle a self proclaimed socialist. Wanted to show what the meatpacking industry was like from an outside perspective. Novelist have free rein when writing a novel but in this case Sinclair did not have the proper evidence to back up his version of the meat packing industry. The version that Sinclair portrayed in The Jungle was of appalling working conditions. The way he described it was diseased and rotten. The community of these workers were as misrepresented as packers and packinghouse products. He portrays Jurgis as a helpless animal that is wounded, the target for unseen enemies.

Throughout The Jungle, by Upton Sinclair, he portrays that capitalism is the cause of all evils in society. No matter how hard Jurgis and his family worked and tried, they were still stuck in the same squalor. Sinclair uses the life of Jurgis’s family, an immigrant family, to indicates that capitalism is bad, unfair, deceitful, untrust, inhuman, and violent. In Sinclair’s point of view, socialism is as remedy for the evils of capitalism. Jurgis’s family would have fared better under socialism than under capitalism.

Additionally, Sinclair uses imagery of predators and prey to illustrate the predatory nature of the capitalist system, with wealthy factory owners preying on the desperate laborers who are forced to work under dangerous and unsanitary conditions. Overall, Sinclair's use of animal imagery serves to strengthen the novel's themes of exploitation and oppression, making a powerful statement about the inhumane treatment of workers in the early 20th century industrial landscape. “The Jungle'' by Upton Sinclair holds immense significance as its title covers the dual nature of the narrative. On one level, the title alludes to the harsh physical environment of the meatpacking industry in change, where Jurgis and his family struggle to survive. The metaphorical jungle symbolizes the brutal and unforgiving conditions of the early 20th-century industrial society, portraying the exploitation of immigrant workers and the dehumanizing impact of

The Jungle is the book that reflect the reality of the capitalism, it was written by Upton Sinclair. It basically talk about how a couple with their family is struggling with their life in Chicago because of the society; the way how it is ruining people life. Capitalism is considered as a evil because of the meat packaging factory. Jurgis Rudkus and Ona Lukoszaite are the two main character in the story; they are immigrant that move from Lithuanian to America to have a better life, but it seems hopeless because they become victim of the Capitalism's social; it takes away a right to live of people.

The Jungle is a novel that focuses on a family of immigrants who came to America looking for a better life. The novel was written by Upton Sinclair, who went into the Chicago stockyards to investigate what life was like for the people who worked there. The book was originally written with the intent of showing Socialism as a better option than Capitalism for the society. However, the details of the story ended up launching a government investigation of the meat packing plants, and ultimately regulation of food products. It gave an informative view of what life was like in America at the time. Important topics like immigration, working conditions and sanitation issues of the time were all addressed well in the novel.

In his novel Sinclair begins with the story of Jurgis and his family, how they struggled to find money for their own home. Because of their money problems they were not able to keep the house rented to them. Many people of higher rankings and sometimes even those who were just like Jurgis’ family often took advantage of them. Simply because they thought they were better than them. They also discriminated against them because of their background and took advantage of their “American Dream”.