Symbolism In Upton Sinclair's The Jungle
A brief glance at United States history will provide miniscule details of the reality of the American society, and will instead present the United States as a utopia of sorts. Upon through examination, one will find an America that nearly fits the dictionary definition of a dystopia: "an imaginary place where people are unhappy and usually afraid because they are not treated fairly." ("Dystopia") The one difference being, it is actually a reality, not a fantasy, for the majority of the populace. From the revolutionary era where the elite controlled the mass majority of the wealth, through the industrial age where the elite had an even greater concentration, to the present day, where the upper class live in luxury and the lower class still lives
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in shockingly poor conditions. Thankfully, change has been made, but not without significant opposition. This reform (welfare, social security, consumer protection, FDIC, etc) that is discussed did not exist 110 years ago. The life of the impoverished was basically skimmed over in both journalism and literature. Instead, the life of the upper class was detailed and established to the world that this is how all Americans lived. Because of the misleading claims of all-around prosperity, in the late 1890s and early 1900s, immigration skyrocketed to between 10 and 20 million people in the two decades combined. This got the attention of business owners, primarily because they could pay lower wages but require more work. The hardships the immigrants faced is beyond comprehension for a modern America, it was the job of muckrakers (investigative journalists who exposed corruption and questionable practices by both politicians and corporations) such as Upton Sinclair, to bring both attention and justice to the impoverished. Sinclair’s book, The Jungle details a Lithuanian family’s horrifying experience in the stockyard district of Chicago, Illinois. Sinclair’s intention was for the book to bring national attention to the life of the poor, instead, the public took it as a gruesome report on the meatpacking industry. More on that later. This analytical paper contains three parts: the analysis of Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle, a discussion and personal opinions about The Jungle, and lastly, a report on modern day America in regards to poverty and the meatpacking industry with the book, Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser. Sinclair’s craft: a marvelous piece of concrete diction and petrifying imagery immerse the reader into the experience of the characters and the stockyards while the through commentary justify the reader’s reaction to the shocking reality of early 20th century life for immigrants.
After reading the first page, it was apparent that Sinclair had drizzled his book with tasty words, “…with the squeaking of the two fiddles...in intricate and altitudinous gymnastics.” (Sinclair 1). This would occur on every single page, adding a deeper meaning to the text, combined with the early 20th century English that immersed the reader into the time period. Diction is expertly placed to explain certain moments, specifically vile ones, giving the reader a feeling of disgust and shock about the practices of the time as Sinclair writes on page 51 describing Antanas’ profession, “The floor was filthy…with his mop slopping the “pickle” into a hole…” Instead of just using the verb, mopping, slopping is used for a greater reaction of disgust from the reader. When discussing Jurgis’ house condition on page 63, Sinclair notes “the drainage of fifteen years was in a cesspool under it.” This further details the horrors of immigrant housing, where they were persuaded into a deal with a house that lacked or had very poor amenities. Later in the book, where Jurgis had lost everything and was a homeless man, Sinclair describes how he would “get up and shake himself, and stride away again to battle with the world.”(Sinclair 181) This is a perfect example of how Sinclair utilized diction to create a deeper meaning for a sentence. Jurgis is not literally battling the physical world; he is battling the bosses, the corruption, the abusers, the injustice, the inequality, and so much more.
Sinclair’s usage of imagery is only second to commentary in regards to importance in his book. Specifically in passages detailing the appalling practices of the stockyards. One such case was the use of reservoirs for chemical waste where “the banks…are plastered thick with hairs, and this also the packers gather and clean.” (Sinclair 79) or the fertilizer men who “…fell into vats…when they were fished out…never enough of them to be worth exhibiting.” (Sinclair 82). Chapter 14, known for its gruesome imagery of the stockyard practices, is what got national attention. It is in this chapter where the story of smoked meat would be stored in barrels, which would be full of “dirt, rust, old nails, and stale water…would be…dumped into the hoppers of fresh meat.” (Sinclair 112). There are countless other examples of Sinclair’s petrifying imagery, all of which shock the reader and spark thoughts on if these practices still occur today.
The most important aspect of Sinclair’s craft in The Jungle was his commentary, which adds a whole new meaning to the text.
It tells the reality, the meaning behind Jurgis’ actions, and evokes emotions of anger, shock, disgust, and towards the end: happiness from the reader. When Jurgis had thought early on in the book just after he had gotten his first job that Durhams was protecting him and helping him, Sinclair chimed in, “So guileless was he, and ignorant of the nature of business.” (Sinclair 34) Sinclair tells the story from a God-like perspective, where he’s in the mind of Jurgis but seems to not control it, but has a heavy opinion on Jurgis’ actions and especially those of others. Sinclair once again calls out Jurgis’ ignorance on page 50 after he thinks that he will climb the corporate latter by performing hard work, to which Sinclair states, “…he would soon find out his error—for nobody rose in Packingtown for doing good work.” Every time a major incident occurred in the book, Sinclair was certain to comment on the reasoning, especially the covert one. After seeking for jobs and getting numerous rejections, Sinclair pointed out the hidden reason, “—poor devil, he was blacklisted!” (Sinclair 163). Blacklisting was a popular way of keeping out those who went against the company line: union leaders, disturbers, reformers, etc. It was also in his commentary that Sinclair delivered his message in support for socialism and how the corporate machine exploited people. After losing one of countless jobs, Sinclair goes on a long rant about the corporations, “What a hellish mockery it was…slave to make machines…only to be turned out to starve…for doing too well!” (Sinclair 168) Towards the end of the book, when Jurgis is taught socialism, Sinclair notes, “…suddenly a large hand…seized him…and set him high on a mountaintop” so he could see his entire life and how corporations took advantage of him and ruined his life and his family. (Sinclair
264)
in shockingly poor conditions. Thankfully, change has been made, but not without significant opposition. This reform (welfare, social security, consumer protection, FDIC, etc) that is discussed did not exist 110 years ago. The life of the impoverished was basically skimmed over in both journalism and literature. Instead, the life of the upper class was detailed and established to the world that this is how all Americans lived. Because of the misleading claims of all-around prosperity, in the late 1890s and early 1900s, immigration skyrocketed to between 10 and 20 million people in the two decades combined. This got the attention of business owners, primarily because they could pay lower wages but require more work. The hardships the immigrants faced is beyond comprehension for a modern America, it was the job of muckrakers (investigative journalists who exposed corruption and questionable practices by both politicians and corporations) such as Upton Sinclair, to bring both attention and justice to the impoverished. Sinclair’s book, The Jungle details a Lithuanian family’s horrifying experience in the stockyard district of Chicago, Illinois. Sinclair’s intention was for the book to bring national attention to the life of the poor, instead, the public took it as a gruesome report on the meatpacking industry. More on that later. This analytical paper contains three parts: the analysis of Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle, a discussion and personal opinions about The Jungle, and lastly, a report on modern day America in regards to poverty and the meatpacking industry with the book, Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser. Sinclair’s craft: a marvelous piece of concrete diction and petrifying imagery immerse the reader into the experience of the characters and the stockyards while the through commentary justify the reader’s reaction to the shocking reality of early 20th century life for immigrants.
After reading the first page, it was apparent that Sinclair had drizzled his book with tasty words, “…with the squeaking of the two fiddles...in intricate and altitudinous gymnastics.” (Sinclair 1). This would occur on every single page, adding a deeper meaning to the text, combined with the early 20th century English that immersed the reader into the time period. Diction is expertly placed to explain certain moments, specifically vile ones, giving the reader a feeling of disgust and shock about the practices of the time as Sinclair writes on page 51 describing Antanas’ profession, “The floor was filthy…with his mop slopping the “pickle” into a hole…” Instead of just using the verb, mopping, slopping is used for a greater reaction of disgust from the reader. When discussing Jurgis’ house condition on page 63, Sinclair notes “the drainage of fifteen years was in a cesspool under it.” This further details the horrors of immigrant housing, where they were persuaded into a deal with a house that lacked or had very poor amenities. Later in the book, where Jurgis had lost everything and was a homeless man, Sinclair describes how he would “get up and shake himself, and stride away again to battle with the world.”(Sinclair 181) This is a perfect example of how Sinclair utilized diction to create a deeper meaning for a sentence. Jurgis is not literally battling the physical world; he is battling the bosses, the corruption, the abusers, the injustice, the inequality, and so much more.
Sinclair’s usage of imagery is only second to commentary in regards to importance in his book. Specifically in passages detailing the appalling practices of the stockyards. One such case was the use of reservoirs for chemical waste where “the banks…are plastered thick with hairs, and this also the packers gather and clean.” (Sinclair 79) or the fertilizer men who “…fell into vats…when they were fished out…never enough of them to be worth exhibiting.” (Sinclair 82). Chapter 14, known for its gruesome imagery of the stockyard practices, is what got national attention. It is in this chapter where the story of smoked meat would be stored in barrels, which would be full of “dirt, rust, old nails, and stale water…would be…dumped into the hoppers of fresh meat.” (Sinclair 112). There are countless other examples of Sinclair’s petrifying imagery, all of which shock the reader and spark thoughts on if these practices still occur today.
The most important aspect of Sinclair’s craft in The Jungle was his commentary, which adds a whole new meaning to the text.
It tells the reality, the meaning behind Jurgis’ actions, and evokes emotions of anger, shock, disgust, and towards the end: happiness from the reader. When Jurgis had thought early on in the book just after he had gotten his first job that Durhams was protecting him and helping him, Sinclair chimed in, “So guileless was he, and ignorant of the nature of business.” (Sinclair 34) Sinclair tells the story from a God-like perspective, where he’s in the mind of Jurgis but seems to not control it, but has a heavy opinion on Jurgis’ actions and especially those of others. Sinclair once again calls out Jurgis’ ignorance on page 50 after he thinks that he will climb the corporate latter by performing hard work, to which Sinclair states, “…he would soon find out his error—for nobody rose in Packingtown for doing good work.” Every time a major incident occurred in the book, Sinclair was certain to comment on the reasoning, especially the covert one. After seeking for jobs and getting numerous rejections, Sinclair pointed out the hidden reason, “—poor devil, he was blacklisted!” (Sinclair 163). Blacklisting was a popular way of keeping out those who went against the company line: union leaders, disturbers, reformers, etc. It was also in his commentary that Sinclair delivered his message in support for socialism and how the corporate machine exploited people. After losing one of countless jobs, Sinclair goes on a long rant about the corporations, “What a hellish mockery it was…slave to make machines…only to be turned out to starve…for doing too well!” (Sinclair 168) Towards the end of the book, when Jurgis is taught socialism, Sinclair notes, “…suddenly a large hand…seized him…and set him high on a mountaintop” so he could see his entire life and how corporations took advantage of him and ruined his life and his family. (Sinclair
264)