1. Rausell 1
Álvaro Rausell
Christian Prendergast
English 10
2 February 2015
Historical and geographical influences on The Jungle
Written by Upton Sinclair in 1906, The Jungle is a novel meant to describe the
social and political situation of the time, having as a basis his undercover investigation
in a meatpacking plant in Chicago for the socialist newspaper Appeal to Reason. The
story, set in the Chicago of the time, describes the life of a group of immigrants that,
persuaded by the idea of the American Dream, embarked themselves on the most
important journey of their lives. In the city, they would have to overcome the many
challenges that an industrial city holds, such as a meatpacking industry that sells spoiled
meat and oppresses workers, having to work long hours for a minimum wage. The book
soon became one of the most influential books of its time. It turned out to be so socially
significant that the president of the time Theodore Roosevelt subsequently signed the
Meat Inspection Act and the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906. In addition, the spark of
Socialism in the beginning of the XX century would have a serious role in the outcome
of the story. Gradually, all these realities would affect the how the novel displays us the
story, form the beginning to the end.
2. Rausell 2
From mid- XIX century to the Great Depression, there was a massive migratory
movement from Europe to America, due to the European economic decline and the
American Dream. The Jungle shares the life of Jurgis Rudkus, a Lithuanian who wanted
to seek a prosperous life in the Land of Opportunities.
In the early 1900’s, the economic differences among classes led to the
foundation of socialism in the United States, that supported reforms against social
abuses, labor issues and social subjugation of the lower class. It would not be strange
that this ideology takes an important role in the outcome of the story, as part of Jurgis’
“solution” and new source of hope. For Sinclair, who was a member of the Socialist
party, the American Dream was just a mirage, directing millions of immigrants into
poverty and oppression. As in most industrial cities, workers had a very tough life. They
mostly lived in tenements, small flats that could hold several families, located in very
poor places, and holding unsanitary conditions. This was not their only threat to their
lives. Workers had to spend the whole day, sacrificing their vitality, working in
dangerous places, just to gain a minimum wage and being later demoted to eat the
spoiled meat they produce. The author took advantage of the harsh climatic conditions
of Chicago to accentuate the extreme working conditions of immigrants. Although
noticeable, Jurgis belated to understand that “there was no justice, there was no right,
anywhere in it--it was only force, it was tyranny, the will and the power, reckless and
unrestrained!”(Sinclair 161).
Another subject exposed in the book is the meatpacking industry and the harsh
conditions workers had to face daily. In the beginning of the 20th century, the
meatpacking industry was unregulated and incredibly dangerous. Simple habits, such as
washing hands and the use of hairnets, were unknown. This, together with other
3. Rausell 3
unhealthy practices, contaminated the resultant meat with dirt, human hair and sweat.
However, this was not the only issue concerning that industry. In the end, the meat
produced would rarely be appropriate for intake. This occurs, because:
“[t]here was never the least attention paid to what was cut up for sausage; there
would come all the way back from Europe old sausage that had been rejected,
and that was mouldy and white—it would be dosed with borax and glycerine,
and dumped into the hoppers, and made over again for home consumption”
(Sinclair 136).
The Jungle, in conclusion, was written to be a social muckraking and make
proselytism of the socialist ideology through a story inspired in the author’s
investigation as a journalist. He accurately described the tough life and labor conditions
of the working class of his time, mainly composed by immigrants looking for the
American Dream. A dream that was a lie for him, an ambition that could never be
accomplished without socialism. During the novel, the reader is able to appreciate how
the mood and style changed as all events took place and made Jurgis understand how
society works. The reader can be aware of the feelings of the millions of working
immigrants, from the optimism they feel when they arrive to the sorrow and uncertainty
foreigners experienced when they found their place in society. However, the book not
only achieved its main objectives, but it also was able to promote the change of the laws
that regulated the food industry.
4. Rausell 4
Works Cited
Sinclair, Upton. The Jungle. Cambridge, Mass.: R. Bentley, 1971. 161;136. Print.
"The Jungle." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Web. 1 Feb. 2015.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Jungle>.
"Early Socialism in the United States - HowStuffWorks." HowStuffWorks. Web. 1 Feb.
2015. <http://money.howstuffworks.com/socialism3.htm>.
"Upton Sinclair." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Web. 1 Feb. 2015.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Upton_Sinclair>.
"Digital Collections for the Classroom." The Jungle and the Community: Workers and
Reformers in Turn-of-the-Century Chicago:. Web. 1 Feb. 2015.
<http://dcc.newberry.org/collections/the-jungle-and-the-community-workers-
and-reformers-in-turn-of-the-century-chicago#living-back-of-the-yards>.
"Tenements." Tenements. Web. 1 Feb. 2015.
<http://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/1240.html>.
"Los Movimientos Migratorios Del Siglo XX En Europa." Los Movimientos
Migratorios Del Siglo XX En Europa. Web. 1 Feb. 2015.
<http://sauce.pntic.mec.es/jotero/Emigra1/intro.htm>.
