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Summary Of Stories That Changed America By Carl Jensen

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Summary Of Stories That Changed America By Carl Jensen
Stories that Changed America written by Carl Jensen is a compilation of historic novels written by 19 century authors’ dubbed “muckrakers”, Muckrakers are journalists who informed the public about issues of the time. Some of these issues included government corruption, unsafe working condition, and social issues such as child labor. The author Carl Jensen during his youth read “Horatio Alger and Tom Swift”. In addition Jensen lived in through America through its tough times experiencing the nation’s worst economic depression and the greatest war. Through these experiences Jensen gained a sense of “modicum of optimism with which to observe life”, and like muckrakers during the time it gave confidence he says, “I believe it is possible to overcome …show more content…
Upton Sinclair was raised alternating between bouts of extreme wealth and poverty. He attributed this to his outrage over the vast discrepancies between social classes. His nights would alternate between sleeping on a, “vermin-ridden sofa” the next night would be, “under silken coverlets in a fashionable home”. Sinclair’s most famous work was The Jungle published in February 1906. In writing The Jungle, Sinclair disguised himself as a worker in a meat production factory. During his visit Sinclair witnessed horrifying and unsanitary conditions. The Jungle did not receive a good response from publishers and it was difficult for Sinclair to publish due to censorship at the time. Sinclair responded to this and said, “I had to tell the truth and let people make of it what they could.” Later, President Roosevelt would recognize The Jungle, and thus became the beginning of numerous reforms in the food industry. After reading the jungle there was an overwhelming national outcry demanding food protection laws. In response to the national unrest towards the meat packing industry created by the exploitation in the meat industry, Roosevelt passed the Pure Food and Drug Act. The Pure Food and Drug Act passed in 1906, instituted food inspection regulation effectively changing the lives of Americans for the

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