Summary Of The Jungle By Upton Beall Sinclair Jr.

American author, Upton Beall Sinclair Jr. wrote nearly 100 books in several genres. His work was popular in the first half of the twentieth century, and he won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1943. His novel, “The Jungle,” depicted the grim conditions and oppressed lives in the meatpacking industries in the United States. The industry was a tough, dangerous, and filthy place, but it was a job. The Jungle was about a couple who immigrated to Chicago in search of work and a better life. As soon as the couple arrived in Chicago they had gotten married. Soon after, they bought a house, not knowing about all the secluded costs of it. Their debts soon began to intensify and they were in desperate need of work. Not only were the jobs offered in Packingtown backbreaking labor, but also were unsafe. Jurgis, the husband, found a job in a slaughterhouse. He would risk his life every day he went to work, but it was a job and they needed the money. As a matter of …show more content…
She recently told me a story about how she used to work in this kitchen in Philadelphia. The dishwasher there was an immigrant from Portugal who came to the U.S. because we are known as the land of opportunity. He came all the way to the U.S. just so he could get a dishwashing job just so he could support his parents back home. Every month once he received his check, he would send almost the entire thing home. He would only keep about twenty dollars for himself to live off of for the next month. My teacher said he had been doing that for almost five years.
Personally, I loved that example because it really compared to what I read from, “The Jungle.” Almost identically, it showed how people have done the grunt work for years just so they can make a living and support their families. In the same fashion, some people are willing to risk their lives just so their families do not starve and they keep clothes on their back. Some people dream of success, while others wake up and work for