Why is The Jungleby Upton Sinclair Considered a Primary Source?

An outburst in growth of America’s big city population, places of 100,000 people or more jumped from about 6 million to 14 million between 1880 and 1900, cities had become a world of newcomers (551). America evolved into a land of factories, corporate enterprise, and industrial worker and, the surge in immigration supplied their workers. In the latter half of the 19th century, continued industrialization and urbanization sparked an increasing demand for a larger and cheaper labor force. The country's transformation from a rural agricultural society into an urban industrial nation attracted immigrants worldwide. As free land and free labor disappeared and as capitalists dominated the economy, dramatic social, political, and economic

The gap between the rich and the poor was big and there were a lot of immigrants coming into cities.

Upton Sinclair's Purpose in Writing The Jungle Upton Sinclair wrote this book for a couple of reasons. First and foremost, he tries to awaken the reader to the terrible living conditions of immigrants in the cities around the turn of the century. Chicago has the most potent examples of these conditions. Secondly, he attempts to show the advantages of socialism in helping to remedy the problems of a society such as the one that exists in Chicago at this time. Sinclair accomplishes his objectives with an extremely powerful story.

As workers moved to cities to work in factories, and progress in medical and sanitation practices improved, urban crowding became a huge issue. Additionally, where industry was taking over production in markets that had previously been dominated by small business owners, these skilled workers, weavers and the like, were now being forced to take jobs working for capitalist ventures-- often working in the industry coinciding with their master skill, but

Using primary sources allowed me to put the document in perspective to what I had learned about Roanoke. It helped me organize everything into historical context. I value primary sources because they help me create my own judgment based on what was read. Reading the primary sources allowed me as the reader to get into character. To think about the feelings and thoughts about the person who wrote it.

The United States grew at a dramatic rate between the years 1880 and 1900, within the cities. U.S. cities grew by approximately 15 million people in the two decades before 1900. Many historians claim that most of the population growth was due to the expansion of industry. It is also believed that the majority of the population explosion was immigrants that were arriving from all over the world. A good amount of people from the rural areas of America also moved to the cities during this period in the search of work. Between 1880 and 1890, it is suggested that almost 40 percent of the townships in the United States lost population because of migration.

As a larger number of immigrants began to move to the United States from eastern and southern Europe, cities began to increase. Due to these patterns of global migration, between 1870 and 1900, cities increased by at least eleven million people from these immigrants (p.507). While the idea of a growing city benefits big businesses in hiring low-waged workers, this opportunity for work in large industries opened the flood-gates for multiple waves of immigrants. The first wave, those known as the skilled workers “…criticized the newcomers. One Irish worker complained, ‘There should be a law…to keep all the Italians from comin’ in and takin’ the bread out of the mouth of honest people’” (American

Most eighteenth century Americans lived in self-maintaining rural areas. The Industrial Revolution saw the advancement of large urban hubs, such as Boston and New York City, and impelled an enormous migration of workers. “From the beginning, cities formed part of the western frontier. Western cities like Cincinnati and St. Louis that stood at the crossroads of inter-regional trade experienced

Since working on the land wasn’t the most guaranteed way to make money families quickly uprooted and left with what they could to the surrounding areas of textile mills and other forms of factories. After some time with the general consensus being that working in the factories was a stable way to make money more and more people moved out to these areas causing the population to grow higher and higher by the minute, giving birth to what we now know as cities. Not only did America progressing heart those located in rural areas here, but on a global

As the economy grew the hopes and dreams of million of people did as well. During this era the United States welcomed a lot of immigrants looking for jobs in factories. Most of the people migrating were from lower classes looking for jobs opportunities. These people settled near the factories and created small communities with people that shared their same culture. As document A illustrates there were millions of workers supporting different industries. The arrival of many immigrants allowed the interaction of

To determine whether a book is a primary source or a secondary source, a person needs to know what a primary and secondary source is. First, a primary source, define by Princeton, “is a document or physical object which was written or created during the time under study.” Also, “these sources were present during an experience or time period and offer an inside view of a particular event. While a secondary source interprets and analyzes primary sources. These sources are one or more steps removed from the event.” (Primary vs Secondary) Next thing to consider is the background about the author and how he is involved with the story. Upton Sinclair was writing about a meat packing company and had a firsthand account of the terrible things that company did to the animals and the workers. Since Sinclair was there during that time and documented the experience of workers and their condition, his book would be declared a primary source. What Sinclair saw was his inspiration to write about his most famous and moving book, The Jungle. Upton Sinclair was not a famous writer until his release of the book and his book caused major reform in the food industry around the country.

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines a jungle as, “a harsh or dangerous place or situation in which people struggle for survival or success. ” The Jungle, by Upton Sinclair, is a dramatized portrait of an immigrant family enduring the turmoil that existed within the jungle of the early 20th Century. The family has difficulty staying afloat due to high living expenses, low wages, cyclical employment, and unending setbacks. These conditions within ‘the jungle’ break their family apart, strip away their values, and in some cases even take their lives. The Jungle provides an impactful depiction of the appalling conditions of the labor forces, abysmal living conditions, and plight of the working class during the early 20th Century.

Upton Sinclair was a popular and prolific American author, who wrote nearly 100 books. His work was honored with the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1943. He was born in Maryland on September 20, 1878, and died in New Jersey on November 25, 1968. Sinclair's parents were poor but his grandparents were wealthy. This opportunity to live in two social settings gave him insight into how both the rich and poor lived during the late 19th century. This contrast greatly influenced his writing and set the stage for his socialist beliefs. Sinclair had a passion for education, was a prolific American novelist and a champion for socialism, health, worker rights, and many other social causes, and he made an impact in politics.

Upton Sinclair came from a life of struggle. He did not start school until after he was ten years old, but was in college by the age of fourteen. He attended City College of New York until he was eighteen, and then he attended Columbia postgraduate. He studied literature, music, history, and philosophy. Sinclair’s childhood was a rough one. He saw two different sides to social class. Since his father was an alcoholic and would only work some of the time, he experienced the life of poverty. His mother wanting more for him, would send him to spend time with her upper middle class family. Sinclair grew up both wealthy and in poverty. This is a big reason, he was influenced

A novelist and a political writer. I am also referred as Muckrakers, reform-minded American journalists who wrote magazines or books during Progressive era.