ipl-logo

The Jungle Analysis: Meat Packing Plants

651 Words3 Pages

The Jungle Analysis: Meat Packing Plants Several problems are revealed in the Industrialization Period through Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle. One of them is the the things that go on behind the walls of the food industry. The conditions here during this time were particularly awful in several ways and for many reasons. Some troubles that surface during this time in the meat packing plants are the use of spoiled, dirty or rotten meat, poor wages for the workers there and the conditions of the working area. In the meat packing plants, there were no laws or rules to abide by for the cleanliness of the food. This caused several businesses to overlook what they thought was adequate for the consumers and sold them perished or rotting meat. In Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle, he mentions that the workers would use this spoiled meat by making it into sausage. This truly reveals how the owners of these businesses didn’t care about how they made their money, but would make as much of it as possible, causing them to instruct their employees to not throw out the bad pork, but to utilize it and grind it up into a sausage. He documented how the …show more content…

"And, for this, at the end of the week, he will carry home three dollars to his family, being his pay at the rate of five cents per hour,” (Sinclair 85) shows that the employees-- typically new immigrants at the plants-- were hardly provided for and were not paid at all that much. They were exploited; working for long hours for this little pay. Jurgis, the main character in The Jungle, struggled throughout part of Sinclair’s novel because of his lack of income from the meat packing plant he worked at, Durham’s. Many people in this time did as well, like Jurgis, having trouble seeking a home, food or clothing fit enough to purchase with the little they were provided with from their

Show More
Related

Impact Of Upton Sinclair's The Jungle On The Meat Factories During The Progressive Age

1317 Words | 6 Pages

How did Upton Sinclair’s “The Jungle” Impact the Meat Factories during the Progressive Age? During the late 1800s and early 1900s a new stage in the United States began, called the Progressive Era. Over the years, America developed into an industrial working country although, like every country the social and economical problems were becoming an issue. Those who were on top were corrupted and vile while those who did the majority of the work took long hours and low pay.

Read More

How Did Upton Sinclair Exposed The Brutal Realities Of The Meatpacking Industry

411 Words | 2 Pages

The Meatpacking Industry was one of the most prominent and powerful industries in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was responsible for processing and distributing large amounts of meat to consumers across the United States. The industry was plagued with numerous problems, including poor working conditions, exploitation of workers, and unsanitary practices. In 1906, Upton Sinclair published his novel, "The Jungle," which exposed the brutal realities of the meatpacking industry.

Read More

Role Of Upton Sinclair's Living And Dying In Packingtown

1346 Words | 6 Pages

Sinclair explains, “all of their sausage came out of the same bowl, but when they came to wrap it they would stamp some of it ‘special,’ and for this they would charge two cents more a pound” (pg. 79). Sinclair’s detailed exposure of the production of products being consumed by society caused a strong public reaction, and is what The Jungle is commonly known for describing. While his work may be more commonly known for exposing the meatpacking industry, Sinclair also successfully exposed the horrific working conditions and their effects. His purpose was to improve working conditions and expose the immorality and indecency of industry and capitalism. Sinclair easily convinced society of this motive through gruesome detail of the Rudkus’ experiences.

Read More

Upton Sinclair The Jungle Propaganda

348 Words | 2 Pages

When Upton Sinclair wrote the Jungle, a book about the terrible environment of the meat-packing factories in Chicago, he hoped to motivate reform in immigrant working conditions and promote socialism. Instead, what shocked readers the most was the sordid surroundings in which their future meals were prepared. Sinclair 's audience saw these conditions as a threat to themselves, and that energized reform in the meat-packing industry. What scared audiences the most was how real this threat was to their lives. As can be witnessed in the results of Sinclair 's crusade, the most effective propaganda is that which rouses the visceral survival instinct.

Read More

The Role Of Socialism In Upton Sinclair's The Jungle

709 Words | 3 Pages

Upton Sinclair reflects the reality of the people during the late 1800’s in his novel The Jungle. In his novel, Sinclair wants to promote Socialism by showing how people lived in the meatpacking plant and under a corrupt government. The inhuman working conditions, combined with the lack of hygiene and a corrupt government, made trying to make a living a total hardships for the low class and the immigrants. The Jungle takes place in Packingtown, Chicago, where the employees work under horrible conditions.

Read More

Modern United States: 1897-1920

1395 Words | 6 Pages

Upton Sinclair wrote a book called “The Jungle”. This book exposed the way meat was being packaged. As a

Read More

Upton Sinclair's The Jungle And The Meatpacking Industry

601 Words | 3 Pages

The Jungle exposed the way workers were treated in the meatpacking industry. It stated that they were exposed to filthy workplaces, in which the smell would be outrageous. They were forced to work through these smells for non-stop hours. In addition, the smell would come from the meat itself. The smell would bring in rodents, such as rats, into the factories.

Read More

The Food Process In Upton Sinclair's The Jungle

1261 Words | 6 Pages

In “ The Jungle”, the author Upton Sinclair states that “ I aimed at the public's heart and by accident I hit it in the stomach”. This means that Sinclair wanted to muckrake the Meat Packing Industry to seek attention for the workers, but instead food became a bigger concern. The characters Jurgis, Ona, and Marija with fellow family members are Lithuanian immigrants who came to PackingTown in hope for a better future, however they came to realize that the whole town is run by capitalist. Although Sinclair intentionally uses metaphors and similes to depict the characters struggle in the horrible living and working conditions in Packingtown, his purpose is undermined and overlooked by his use of realism to depict the food process.

Read More

Essay On The Meatpacking Industry

87 Words | 1 Pages

The early 20th century was a great time for America. Industrialization was booming as more and more factories were coming up in the most populous cities. Stockyard jobs were created in exponential numbers, employing many young people as well as immigrants. Hiring these naive individuals allowed for the hierarchical manipulation of these people. Capitalism was a large problem, feeding the bosses large suppers as the workers starved.

Read More

Meatpacking Workers In Upton Sinclair's The Jungle

1060 Words | 5 Pages

Revealing the harsh treatment of meatpacking workers and showing the reality of the disgusting conditions found in butchery shops to the public, Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle became an enduring classic by American readers throughout the early twentieth century the prompted the later creation of the Federal Drug Administration. In the early 1900s, America was explosively transitioning from an agricultural society to a thriving manufacturing-based nation. As production demand in factories grew throughout the country, the work force needed to run those factories also expanded. A new type of demanding and dangerous work became prevalent throughout the nation, as immigrants coming into the “Land of Opportunity” found themselves desperate

Read More

Awarness Of Conditions In Upton Sinclair's The Jungle

1385 Words | 6 Pages

This awareness motivated the actions of reformers and civilians, which therefore fueled Progressivism. In The Jungle by Sinclair, he wrote, “These rats were nuisances, and the packers would put poisoned bread out for them; they would die, and then rats, bread, and meat would go into the hoppers together, (79). Sinclair also described the contamination of meat by factory workers, the rotting of meat, and the generally unsanitary conditions of a meatpacking plant (79). While The Jungle’s main purpose was to highlight and raise awareness of the terrible working conditions of employees, public outrage was mainly focused on passages like these. Sinclair said, "I aimed at the public's heart and by accident I hit it in the stomach,” in reference to the misunderstanding.

Read More

1900's Meat Packing Industry

665 Words | 3 Pages

Although it may seem that the meat packing industry is still in turmoil because of their unwillingness to make known what foods have Genetically Modified organisms present, the meat packing industry was much worse during the 1900’s because of the unsafe working conditions, and uncleanliness of the food. Body 1: The meat packing industry’s working conditions were much worse in the 1900’s than they are today. In the novel The Jungle, by Upton Sinclair, working conditions were horrible for immigrants who were employed in these factories. People in these factories were worked very hard and used up till they could not work anymore. In the novel Jurgis broke his ankle because of the unsafe

Read More

Working Conditions In The Jungle

634 Words | 3 Pages

During the 1900’s working conditions were undeniably horrible. In Packingtown everyday got more difficult as the days went on. In the meat packing business things were supposed to be done quick. Inside the factories packing, chopping, inspecting and people actions didn’t mix. Not only did the people in the factories suffered, the people outside of the factory also suffered.

Read More

The American Dream In Upton Sinclair's The Jungle

1045 Words | 5 Pages

The 19th century was the era of the Gilded Age, where the economy was booming, bringing great changes that affected the lives of workers and entrepreneurs. During this period, there was a large influx of immigrants that were coming to America to look for job opportunities. The migration of immigrants proved useful as a source for cheap labor, allowing an even higher rise in the U.S. economy. While American industrialization may have benefited the upper class of the American society, the effects were opposite to the workers of the lower classes. This problem was especially worse for immigrant workers as their belief in the so-called American dream has been worn down due to the misery they had to endure.

Read More

Symbolism In Upton Sinclair's The Jungle

1433 Words | 6 Pages

The Jungle In the literary work, The Jungle, the author, Upton Sinclair makes a commentary on the deceitful and dark truth of the American dream. This was achieved by using the canned meat that was produced in Packingtown as a symbol to represent the dream that all the immigrants had about their new lives in America. As the story progresses, the reader, along with the protagonist, Jurgis will discover that the American dream lies cloaked behind a shroud of beautiful lies that masks the vile truths that are the American dream and the canned “beef” processed by the corrupt meat business in Packingtown.

Read More

More about The Jungle Analysis: Meat Packing Plants

Related Topics

Open Document