Upton sinclair s the jungle essay theodore roosevelt. Jared davis english iii 17 october 2017 outline thesis statement. During the progressive era, intrepid reporters exposed misdeeds in business and poor. The jungle and fast food nation college papers for sale. Meatpacking began as a local business in the colonial era, but by the dawn of the twentyfirst century it had become a huge industry.
What social problem did upton sinclairs novel the jungle describe. Youve probably heard all about upton sinclairs 1906 expose of the turnofthecentury american meatpacking industry and the chicago stockyardsbut everything youve heard about it. President teddy roosevelt supposedly threw his breakfast sausages out a window after reading upton sinclairs book the jungle, which exposed corruption and abuses in the meatpacking industry. Dangers, tensions lurk in meatpacking industry nbc news. This is a short reading with a brief synopsis on upton sinclair and excerpts from his book the jungle about the meatpacking industry in the u. For most of the 20th century chicago was at the heart of the nations meatpacking industry. The jungle upton sinclair published the jungle in 1905 to expose labor abuses in the meat packing industry. Journalist upton sinclair exposed the unsanitary conditions. As a result, the government would step in and pass legislation that protected consumers from consuming unsafe food.
However, his fictional account of the meat packing industry was used by the meat packing industry itself to have the regulation scheme they had been lobbying for finally rammed through. Fast food nation on the other hand, was written by eric schlosser to explain the influence of the american fast food industry in the world market schlosser 1. Muckrakers were writers and journalists who sought to draw attention to social ills, such as poor working conditions and subpar food and drugs. The jungle and fast food nation 1493 words essay example. Upton sinclairs book awakened a nation not just to the dangers in the food supply, but to the central role government has to play in keeping it safe. Its vivid and horrifying depiction of the slaughterhouse, the dangers of contamination and injury conditions which were rife before any real regulation was set in place. Constitutional rights foundation bill of rights in action fall 2008 volume 24, no. Upton sinclair wrote the jungle to expose the appalling working conditions in the. His description of diseased, rotten, and contaminated meat shocked the public and led to new federal food safety laws. The first meatpacking business began in 1692, when john pynchon of springfield, massachusetts, began buying hogs and shipping the meat to boston for the growing city population and the provisioning of ships. One of the most famous muckrackers was upton sinclair, whose book the jungle exposed the darkest sides of the meatpacking industry. A harrowing portrait of an immigrants oppressive life in meatpacking, the.
Upton sinclairs the jungle had a mass effect on the us, politically and socially during. In 1906, sinclair acquired particular fame for his classic muckraking novel the jungle, which exposed labor and sanitary conditions in the u. Sinclair wrote the novel to portray the harsh conditions and exploited lives of immigrants in the united states in chicago and similar industrialized cities. Thesis statement of upton sinclairs the jungle 1489 words 6 pages. What did upton sinclair do to expose the meat packing.
Practitioners will use upton sinclairs novel the jungle as a centerpiece for study of reformers and muckrakers during americas progressive era. Upton sinclairs the jungle essay upton sinclair really wrote the jungle for the promotion of socialism, himself being a longtime socialist, but what really caught the attention of the public was the few pages of descriptions about the horrors of the meatpacking industry. The jungle, a harrowing account of a lithuanian immigrants experience laboring in chicagos meatpacking industry, was serialized in the socialist. Exposing capitalism in upton sinclairs the jungle essay. The book exposed the unsanitary conditions of the meatpacking industry and is said to have influenced president theodore roosevelt in passing the pure food and drug act in 1906. One problem in the meatpacking industry was how poorly they treated the animals about to be killed for their meat. Which novel detailed working conditions in the meatpacking. A harrowing portrait of an immigrants oppressive life in. The jungle exposed the horrors of the meatpacking industry. He posed as a worker and worked along side meat packers for seven weeks. The jungle changed meatpacking, but dangers, tensions.
Instead, sinclair exposed the unsanitary conditions in meatpacking plants. The novel depicts in harsh tones the poverty, absence of social programs, unpleasant living and working conditions, and hopelessness prevalent among the. For example, there were high squeals and low squeals, grunts, and wails of agony this quote obviously shows how scared the pigs were as they were hanging from only one of. What book exposes abuse in the meatpacking company. Why was the jungle important during the progressive era. It was written about the corruption of the american meatpacking industry during the early 20th century. The book, the jungle, by upton sinclair, exposed the underlying corruption of the horrid meatpacking industry of america, resulting in critical responses from the public and the creation of extensive laws and programs to ensure the health and safety of the american people, thus creating a catalyst for hygienic awareness in consumer product and factories in the united states, as well as the rest of the world.
Upton sinclair used fiction as his vehicle to attack social ills. Who exposed the unsanitary conditions in the meatpacking. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. Fast food nation is a book about fast food, the values it embodies, and the world it has made. What book exposed abuses in the meatpacking industry. Upton sinclairs book, the jungle, created a public response. What social problem did upton sinclairs novel the jungle. The jungle changed meatpacking, but dangers, tensions remain. His description of diseased, rotten, and contaminated meat shocked the public and led to.
The jungle exposed the horrible conditions of the u. The muckrakers were reformminded journalists in the progressive era in the united states. Sinclairs book was so moving and troubling that it inspired the establishment of the food and drug administration, a federal agency that is to this day responsible for regulating. Written by upton sinclair in 1906, the novel was intended to show the horrible conditions in americas slums. Working conditions in the new urban industrial zones were wretched, and a progressive reform movement soon grew out of the need to address the health and welfare of the american worker. Upton sinclair was a muckraker who wrote, the jungle, which exposed the problems of the meatpacking industry.
Sinclairs novel the jungle spurred public outrage that led to legislation. What was the reason congress passed the purefooddrug act. One hundred years ago, upton sinclair exposed the meatpacking industry. Welcome to the jungle upton sinclair exposes meatpacking. The jungle is a 1906 novel written by author and socialist journalist upton sinclair. Also explains the historical and literary context that influenced the jungle. The jungle by upton sinclair book summary minute book. Upton sinclair describes multiple social problems in his book the jungle, but they are all centered on capitalism. What was the goal of the national origins act in 1924. Teddy roosevelt believed that large corporate trusts.
Muckrakers also sought to raise awareness of poverty and other social ills. Sinclairs grotesque descriptions of conditions and procedures in the meatpacking plant led to subsequent reforms in food safety regulation. Upton sinclairs the jungle and the meatpacking industry. Upton sinclair wrote the jungle to expose the appalling working conditions in the meatpacking industry. Upton sinclair, whose muckraking changed the meat industry. Three new books expose sinclair as an activist dreamer with a messianic streak. Upton sinclair, on the public reaction to his 1906 novel the jungle. Journalist who exposed social evils like upton sinclair who wrote the the jungle which exposed the meat packing industry during teddy roosevelts time were called muckrakers. This is a quick book summary of the jungle by upton sinclair. Muckraking journalist who exposed the terrible conditions of the meatpacking industry.
Conditions in meatpacking plants 1906, by upton sinclairthe explosive growth of american industry in the late nineteenth century caused a similar expansion in the work force. Most muckrakers believed that their primary function in the progressive attack on social ills was to. The jungle, a 1906 novel by upton sinclair, is full of graphic descriptions of the poor conditions workers and cattle endured in the chicago meatpacking industry. Though both books talk about the food industry and the ills that. Upton sinclair exposing the meat packing industry quizlet.
Since sinclair was a socialist, his goal was to nationalize the whole market, not regulate it. A family working in the meat packing industry, exposing what really happened in the industry. Most of the muckrakers wrote nonfiction, but fictional exposes often had a major impact too, such as those by upton sinclair. He exposed the fact that water supplies were contaminated, and he. Sinclair traced its ills to capitalism, and as a moralist, not a theorist, he firmly.
About halfway through, ive found the ills of the meat packing industry to be very much a. The first few publishers whom sinclair approached told him that his novel was too. The book decried the ills of industrialization rampant health violations and horrific working conditions in food processing plants. His novel the jungle, an expose of the meatpacking industry, became an. The jungle was a literary novel written by upton sinclair to expose the plight of american immigrants and the rot of corruption that went on in the american meatpacking sector sinclair 1. The novel chronicles jurgis rudkus, a lithuanian immigrant, in his quest for the. This is a tragic story about a lithuanian family led by a man named jurgis and their trials in packingtowns meat packing industry. Meatpacking industry the original purpose of upton sinclairs the jungle was to expose the unfair. The jungle is a book that exposed abuses in the meatpacking company. The jungle bad a family working in the meat packing industry, exposing what really happened in the industry. The book the jungle exposed the abuses in the meatpacking industry. The movement to protect americas natural resources.
Its not anywhere near as horrible as the world muckraker upton sinclair surveyed 100 years ago in his sensational book the jungle. The jungle, upton sinclairs infamous 1906 book exposing the horrific conditions of the meatpacking industry, brought to light what was actually happening. The rise and growth of the fast food industry, like the meatpacking industry, illuminates the evolution of the american dream in postworld war ii america. The jungle is a 1906 novel by the american journalist and novelist upton sinclair 18781968. Sinclair published his book the jungle which expressed the horrible conditions of the meat packing industry, the effects of capitalism and immigrants of the progressive era.
So lamented upton sinclair, author of the novel the jungle, a fictionalized account of the corruption and contamination in chicagos meatpacking industry. Who exposed the ills of the meatpacking industry in the. His primary purpose in describing the meat industry and its working conditions was to advance socialism in the united states. In 1906, upton sinclairs novel the jungle uncovered harrowing conditions inside americas meat packing plants and initiated a period of transformation in the nations meat industry. The jungle, his gutchurning expose of the meatpacking industry that. The jungle might very well be the most influential novel you probably dont know.