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Social effects of upton sinclairs the jungle
Social effects of upton sinclairs the jungle
Upton Sinclair the jungle and socializm
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Some workers came out publicly and spoke addressing that the meat packing houses were sanitary and there need be no fear that the industry was corrupt. Kauffman explains one argument many used to validate their stand was that “there was already a system in place... If conditions were as bad as Sinclair claimed… Chicago packing houses would have reported them.” Kauffman also comments on how account may vary based on the workers that were observed, explaining “any unsanitary conditions… were isolated cases… even though packers might maintain the highest sanitary standards, employers could not control the actions of every single worker.” Being that there was already a system in place, many disputed the legitimacy of Sinclair’s accounts, therefore standing and defending the meat packing
Sinclair worked undercover in a meatpacking plant to gather information firsthand, before he began writing the book. Its influence on the labor practices and regulations governing the food industry cannot be understated. It tackles subjects as varied as the poor living conditions of the immigrants, exploitation of cheap labor by industrialists, and the unsanitary conditions of the meatpacking plants and stockyards of Chicago. The descriptions of the disgusting processes that were conducted in the meatpacking plants made for shocking reading and turned the book into a bestseller. The President Teddy Roosevelt ordered an investigation into the lack of sanitation in meatpacking plants and caused the creation of legislation governing the food industry in the form of the Food and Drugs Act of 1906.
Some significant reforms in the 1900s were the homes families and strangers lived in going from slums to nicer living conditions. For example living in an apartment that is meant for 1 maybe 2 adults has 10 to 15 adults living in it with a bathroom down the hall away from the rooms for people in other apartments to use as well, or when someone gets a sickness in the apartment and everyone in the whole building gets it because everything is contaminated from the person being sick. It went from that to a little bit bigger homes with lesser people and cleaner rooms and bathrooms. Upton Sinclairs was an activist because he took part in what he thought was right when it came to meet packaging and how it needs to be reformed and cleaned. And if
The Teapot Scandal When senator Fall became secretary of the interior, in 1921, he handled the public oil reserves, which both Republican leaders and Democrats accorded for future Naval use. And, therefore, they banned their private exploitation. Nevertheless, he leased those lands; which contained the prohibited domes and reservoirs, in California and Wyoming, to the companies that repaid his favour with loans and gifts. And, though he tried to silence his steps, he and his friends failed to dodge investigation.
The environment the workers dealt with was hazardous. They were usually required to work 12-14 hours a day, six or seven days a week, while being exposed to dangerous machinery and toxic chemicals such as ammonia and chlorine without proper safety equipment or training. Not to mention they walked on slippery floors all day due to blood from animal carcasses hanging from the ceiling. The meatpacking industry was well known for its unsanitary conditions, forcing workers to work in close proximity to rotting meat and animal waste.
The book, After the Fact: The Art of Historical Detection describes how Upton Sinclair stated how he had hoped to draw his readers’ attention to “the conditions under which toilers get their bread,” and how there are, “corrupt federal meat inspectors, unsanitary slaughter houses, tubercular cattle, and the packers’ unscrupulous business practices”(Document 4). The authors, James Davidson and Mark Lytle are expressing how meat factory workers are making terrible, unsanitary food. They’re pointing out that not even the meat inspectors care for the condition the meat is in. In other words, just as long as they’re making a profit, the inspectors could care less about the meat’s quality. However, consumer products soon took a turn for the better when the Meat Inspection Act was finally passed.
On June 8th, 1906, Teddy Roosevelt faced a pivotal moment in history, being forced to grapple with a decision that would affect the entire nation. Among many challenges, this concept of rational ignorance emerged, highlighting how individuals have this tendency to choose to remain uninformed about certain topics and issues. This is due to the imbalance between the effort to attain knowledge, and its benefits. Roosevelt was confronted with this dilemma involving the choice to accept the revised bill from the House of Agriculture Committee and support it in the skeptical Senate or risk no growth in the country by sending it back. This decision held significance, intertwining many implications with the meatpacking industry, as the bill aimed to
The jobs were hard, and “the family had firsthand knowledge of the great majority of packingtown swindles” (Sinclair 1). After his book was published a national uproar occurred. Not because of the life of immigrants but because of the dirty meat-packing industry. The book helped laws get passed so the meat would be healthy and not full of “little extras” that would poison the
However, readers at the time were not very concerned about the petty immigrants living on the lower rung of society. Rather, they cared about what affected them most: the condition of the meat they were eating-- and had been eating-- for years, that were produced by some of the very factories mentioned in Sinclair’s novel. For the majority of The Jungle’s readers, the fact that poor immigrants were being exploited was not bothersome. Instead, the fact that the food that readers had been eating for years contained the power to kill them seemed shocking, pushing the nation into a worried frenzy. Readers were disgusted by the facts they were reading, catalyzing the creation of administrations like the FDA.
Upton Sinclair was born on September 20th, 1878. Him and his family moved to New York City in 1888 due to his father being an alcoholic. His family was extremely poor, unlike Sinclair’s grandparents, who were extremely wealthy. He claims that because of his experiences with the lifestyle of being poor and wealthy, it turned him into a socialist. Sinclair entered New York City college at the age of fourteen.
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
Upton Sinclair was an author and socialist figure during the early 1900s. His place in history was forged by his many accomplishments in successful writing that exposed the horrors of the meat packing industry. He was also a famed critique of the government and offered ideas on its reformation and even ran for governor as a socialist but primarily gained he place in history for his book The Jungle . Upton Sinclair is a significant figure in history due to his outspoken nature and his exposure of the meat industry that led to a multitude of new regulations making food in America safer.
Although, since each author has a different motive they expose the topic in different ways. Sinclair give more visual representation through his descriptions because he wants the work conditions to be enforced within in the audiences’ mind. This is centrally his strongest argument, therefore he compares the workers to relatable images to better present a significance of the immigrant workers in the meat factories. On the other hand, Schlosser’s motive does not lie within improving better working conditions, but it is a party of his idea surrounding the slaughterhouses in general. Therefore, he provides the audience with quick and credible data on the workers and their injuries.
In the text his main purpose was to persuade farm workers not to use violence to get their (farm workers) demands met, and boycott grape farms. In doing so the farmers would have to give in to demands of labor leaders. However, due to the struggles of others Throughout his speech there is a determined and insistent tone.
During the time period of the 1900’s, the meat packaging industry in Chicago, as Sinclair mentions in his novel, The Jungle, was a very unsanitary and extremely dangerous workplace that lacked much more than just a few safety precautions. Simple things, such as enforcing hand washing or workers’ rights were unheard of in the working environment. It is clear that Upton Sinclair was trying to expose the worker’s horrendous labor conditions in order to improve their situation, along with the introduction of socialism. Upton Sinclair, in his novel, talks about how a Lithuanian immigrant by the name of Jurgis Rudkus, and his family, travel to Chicago trying to make ends meet. However, they soon realize Chicago was not the place for that.
