Awful Work-Settings Within the Meat-Packing Industry In 'The Jungle Book'

The high-tech revolution that would come to spot the U.S in the 19th century had revealed itself with Fulton Robert’s creation of the steamboat, which had provided service on the Hudson- River. Elias Howe’s famous invention of the sewing appliance, and Samuel F.B Morse’s creation of the telecommunication; all which had been invented before the Civil War. After the Civil War, Industrialization within the U.S had amplified rapidly. This time-period, occurring during the second half of the nineteenth century, has been well-known as the American Industrial Revolution. Over the first half of the 19th century, the U.S had expanded significantly, and the innovative land was rich in resources. Finishing the first transcontinental railroad in 1869 was an important moment for America, making it easier to provide transportation for people as well as transporting raw materials and goods across the country (from Eastern to Western States). The U.S had a variety of human resources: between 1860 and 1900, fourteen million immigrants had come to the U. S to live that “American” dream that so many wanted to endure, providing workers with a variety of industries to work for (www.loc.gov).

For a majority of employed Americans including Immigrants, the Industrial Revolution had transformed the very nature of their day-to-day duties. At one point-in-time, they might have been self-employed, growing a harvest from kernel to table, or creating raw materials into products. When many Americans and Immigrants had become factory workers, they were working for a huge business. The tedious work often included only one tiny step in the industrial process, so the worker did not experience (first-hand) or be grateful for what was being created; the work was often unsafe and completed in unsanitary settings. Many children as well as women had entered the work force. And child labor had become a big deal (www.loc.gov).

Unsafe working conditions, lengthy hours, and worries over wages and child labor contributed to the development of labor unions. In the years after the Civil War, workers had organized raids, and work stoppages that assisted to expose their problems to “others” (www.loc.gov). In “The Jungle Book,” written by Upton Sinclair, took his audience on a journey by showing how truly corrupted the meat-packing Industry was. Sinclair wrote the “Jungle” to expose the awful work-settings within the meat-packing industry. His description of unhealthy, unpleasant, and filthy meat stunned the public and led to new federal food safety laws that Theodore Roosevelt would implement later on, such as: The FDA (Food and Drug Administration).

Sinclair tells us how the Jurgis family-Lithuanian immigrant family who comes to America to try to obtain a better life just like all of the other immigrants who were coming to the U.S for during the 19th century. But the family’s hope for self-benefit/improvement as well as health gradually started to plummet by the miserable living and working conditions in Packingtown: Where Chicago’s meat-packing factories filled the air with disease. There were many difficulties that the Jurgis family had faced in “The Jungle.” 1) The Jurgis family can’t speak English so they had depended upon the honesty and kindness of others 2) They are totally confused due to the fact that they didn’t have an idea of how this new country operates, and the Urban area that they are living in 3) They are underprivileged and desperate for work (any kind of work), and medical care is too expensive for them, or are unable to stay home and recover due to the unjust work-conditions that went on in the meatpacking plants of Chicago. For example, as a factory worker (or as a worker in general), you weren’t allowed a sick day, didn’t have benefits, and all the other “rights” that workers have today.

Although one Character stood-out in “The Jungle” amongst the other Jurgis family members, Jurgis himself. - Jurgis is strong, young, positive, active, dedicated to his family, and excited about his new country. He has a strong judgement in the “American” dream- the belief that dedication will generate rewards. For example, When Ona (Jurgis’s wife) starts to worry about the financial debt that their veselija (wedding reception) put them in. Jurgis promises Ona he will work harder in order to earn more money, trying to keep a sustain calm environment.

As per Jurgis, he’s idealism and naivete are gradually crushed into oblivion due to cruel settings of life in Packingtown; the discomfort causes Jurgis to act differently for a lengthy time duration. The attitude with which he had first equipped himself in his hunt for joy seemunrelated: he used his income to drink deeply instead of saving it, he abandoned his love ones, and turned to exploitation and delinquency as a way to make a living. But we shouldn’t judge Jurgis severely or perceive him to be simply corrupt, or a heartless individual. On the contrary, we’re supposed to keep in mind that Jurgis is the precise opposite sort of person. Jurgis offers a perfect image of the “working-poor;” his poverty shows how capitalism miscarries the working class.

Factory owners didn’t care for individuals who worked in his or her factory. Factory owners had this belief that if workers wanted to better their lives, then they had to do it by-themselves. Also, because no specific ability was needed to handle the innovative factory machines, the workers were labeled as “unskilled.” This meant they were easily swapped, plus the unsanitary work-conditions killed many factory workers through-out the American Industrial Revolution. And, no matter how many times

Jurgis tried to stay positive during this crucial time, the unjust/unsanitary work-conditions had changed Jurgis’s views of the “American” dream from positive to negative. This was a time where factory workers like Jurgis couldn’t ‘bear” the crucial/unjust/unsanitary environment of meat-packing factories, and had failed (mentally, physically, and financially). It’s important that we understand as well as analyze carefully the struggles “workers” had faced during the American Industrial Revolution, and why it took us so long as a whole to take action to this matter.