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The Germ Of Hope In Upton Sinclair's The Jungle

597 Words3 Pages

he muckraking novel, The Jungle, by Upton Sinclair does not only expose the secrets of the meat industry in Chicago in the early twentieth century, but tells of the hardships a family of Lithuanian immigrants had to go through when trying to create a better life in the United States. Even when the cold winter blew in and their lives in America were not off to the greatest start, “...the germ of hope was not to be kept from sprouting in their hearts” (Sinclair 69). Jurgis and his family go through many ups and downs as the novel continues, but their determination never diminishes as each person tries their hardest to find a good job and keep a high spirit. This “germ of hope” was found in the hearts and souls of thousands of immigrants in the United States at this time since …show more content…

Jurgis and the rest of his family kept high hopes although they suffered multiple deaths and losses of jobs throughout the novel. The theme of determination is heavily emphasized in The Jungle as Sinclair chronicles Jurgis’ journey of working in the stockyards of Chicago as he suffers many losses in both his work and family lives. Jurgis’ spirit does wane in parts of the novel, but he powers through with hope in himself and the nation in which he immigrated to. The wintertime delivered extremely difficult times for the family, but their belief in America could not be faltered because their determination and optimism brought out the best in each family member. Finding a purpose in life is another prominent theme in The Jungle since Jurgis, in particular, went in many different directions when trying to find his way. When Jurgis accidentally attends a Socialist party rally, the

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Jurgis and his family went to purchase a house but found out they will be paying monthly, which resembles more of a rent based system than a purchase. On top of moving into a new house they have learned that the payments also have an interest fee on top of their monthly amount. One of their neighbors decides to share a story with them about other families that have not been able to pay off the house and have been evicted which highlights the corrupt nature of the landlords. It also points out that the families before them have had to rely on a key wage earner for the monthly payments and when they are overcome by disease or injury from the stockyards they lose the house. Unfortunately, Jurgis’s family is effected by the diseases from the stockyards as well but they do not have time to take off work in order

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Later in her pregnancy she becomes very ill. Soon after, she dies along with her baby. Suddenly Jurgis comes into realization with what is happening. Matthew Morris writes, “Jurgis comes to see and comprehend the class system that has destroyed everyone he cared about, and to join the fight to change that system” that has made him lose his job and lead to his wife’s death (5). Jurgis decides to join a rebellion to protest the mistreatment of immigrants.

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Jurgis’ “roundness” packs on to the significance of Sinclair’s The Jungle. Characterization is what makes a character believable, Jurgis Rudkus is a perfect example. He is a major, dynamic, and round character that brings a sense of reality to The Jungle. With all of the circumstances that he is put under he molds into a new man, making an already revolutionary tale even

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There are many other traps around America that deceive the immigrants because their weakness of not knowing English and the desire of getting a great life in America which lead them unpreparedly get fooled by the businessmen. These traps prevented the immigrants from leaving America, because of the significant amount of debt that they have to pay each month, which forced them to keep working and become the slave of this capitalistic society in America. Unfortunately, even they work very hard, in most of the time they will not get anything in return, such that Jurgis’s family cannot even keep the house at the of the book and many of family members’ health destroyed by the harsh working conditions in the

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They take you on a journey full of dream-crushing brutality and deception of what seems to be the ideal place to work and built a life. They settle near the stockyards and meatpacking district, where Jurgis finds his first job at Brown’s slaughterhouse. Jurgis, thinking the U.S. offered more freedom, finds that the working conditions there are very

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