Who Is Upton Sinclair's The Jungle?

Since its founding on July 4th, 1776, the United States of America has been creating lofty ideals of liberty, justice, and equality. From the Declaration of Independence to the pledge of allegiance, the nation has aspired to embody these principles in its governance, policies, and actions. However, reality often falls short of these ideals. From an economic perspective, America has not lived up to these ideals, whether it be poor working conditions in the meat-packing industry, where the people searching for any job they can find are treated like scum and replaceable; or Roosevelt’s New Deal, which although brought many new job opportunities to impoverished Americans, still discriminated against African Americans. America's economic history …show more content…
Upton Sinclair’s novel, The Jungle, finally brought all of these issues to light, giving a raw perspective of the terrible realities that these laborers would go through in these meatpacking plants. He depicts the labor force as wool-pluckers, whose hands were ravaged by acid used to extract wool from sheep pelts. The workers suffered grave injuries, leaving them unable to perform basic tasks and condemned to a life of hardship. The brutal treatment extended beyond just injury; workers faced constant danger, with some meeting terrible fates in the vats of the plants. Sinclair discusses unsanitary conditions prevalent in the industry, with meat often contaminated by dirt, sawdust, and rat excrement. This novel shocked the American public, creating widespread outrage and disgust of the conditions these workers had to go through. It was only after the publication of the novel that the government took action to address the crisis. The Assembly of the Food and Drug Administration and the Federal Meat Inspection Act of 1906 started an end to the problems, regulating the industry and ensuring food …show more content…
“African Americans and the New Deal” highlights the racial inequalities within New Deal programs, such as the National Recovery Administration's authorization of separate and lower pay scales for African Americans, stating, "Most New Deal programs discriminated against African Americans." Additionally, the document reveals that the Federal Housing Authority refused to guarantee mortgages for African Americans trying to buy homes in white neighborhoods. Moreover, “CCC Youth Refuses To Fan Flies Off Officer; Is Fired” exposes the discrimination faced by African American CCC workers, exemplified by Eddie Simons, a young African American boy who was in Harlem, dishonorable discharge for refusing to perform a demeaning task for a white officer, which led to the intervention of the NAACP to rectify the injustice. Furthermore, an interview with George Dobbin, who used to be a cotton mill worker, provides insight into the disillusionment of lower-class Americans despite Roosevelt's efforts, with Dobbin feeling doubtful about Roosevelt's ability to sustain progress and prevent the nation from falling back into

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