Essay on The Jungle Upton Sinclair
The condition of the working class in the US at the beginning of the 20th century was extremely challenging since workers had to struggle for survival on the daily bases that can be clearly seen from The Jungle by Upton Sinclair. However, in the course of time, the situation did not change in principle because the US did not conduct systematic socioeconomic reforms that would eliminate conditions for the exploitation of a large group of people by a few for the benefit of the few, while the large part of the population remains at the risk of economic disaster. At this point, the recent economic recession is the best evidence of the lack of such reforms. This is why just like a hundred years ago, the US still faces the problem of the social injustice with the severe exploitation of employees, whose only source of income is scarce wages, while a few families concentrate in their hands the lion share of the national wealth and have a considerable and determinant impact not only on the US economy but also politics.
The Jungle by Upton Sinclair does not just show horrors of the life of American workers on the dawn of the 20th century but also and mainly the book uncovers intrinsic pitfalls of the capitalist system of the US, where workers and employees are doomed to struggle for survival, while the upper-class rips off a lion share of the national wealth. In such a way, the analysis of the condition of the working class in the US leads the author to the only conclusion that the US socio-economic and political system needs changes with the shift toward socialist state, where the government can take responsibility for citizens and the national wealth should be redistributed wisely and fairly.
At the same time, The Jungle gives multiple implications to the contemporary labor relations which are still vulnerable to the same pitfalls which persist because of the nature of the US capitalist system and traditions of the US labor relations. First of all, Sinclair shows clearly the wide gap between the employer and the employee. The main character of the book is struggling for survival, while owners of plants rip off high profits and stay wealthy. In such a way, the author clearly shows the wide gap between the rich and poor in the US, which is actually the gap between owners of businesses and their employees. In actuality, this trend persists, although it is not so obvious as it used to be in the past. In fact, the gap between owners of business and employees was the distinct feature of capitalism and this gap could be easily traced since the beginning of the industrial revolution in the US (Zinn 143). More important, the beginning of the industrial revolution accelerated the widening gap between owners of businesses and large corporations, on the one hand, and workers on the other.
Furthermore, the author of The Jungle raises the issue of the workplace safety and conditions of work of workers in the meatpacking industry in Chicago in the early 20th century and reveals that conditions of work were unbearable. Employees worked for twelve or fourteen hours. Employers recruited workers at the possibly lower price, even if workers were not trained to work in the meatpacking industry. For example, the child labor was a norm, although children were not always physically capable to afford working in meatpacking companies. As a result, they faced a higher risk of injuries in the workplace environment.
In fact, Sinclair shows that the workplace safety was extremely low and employees were at the high risk of injury as was the case of Jurgis friends, family members and Jurgis himself. At the same time, the injury of workers often meant the loss of job that proves that the early 20th century workers were not protected in their rights. At this point, it is worth mentioning the fact that legal acts that legally protected employees, who suffered injuries or had disabilities, were introduced only in the late 20th century, for example the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (Faragher 210). Therefore, the negligence of employers and lack of concerns about their employees’ health was a norm in the US in the past and this attitude has persisted, to a significant extent today, since many employers are dissatisfied with the growing pressure on them in terms of the enhancement of the workplace safety environment. The lack of attention to the safety of employees from the part of employers was the evidence of their indifference in relation to employees, even if employees suffered severe injuries leading to disabilities or death. Researchers (Zinn 145) explain such indifference by the traditionally high level of individualism in the US society which originates from the colonization era and frontier time.
In addition, the poor work place safety and indifference of employers to the life and health of their workers was also the evidence of the lack of the social security. For example, when Jurgis suffered the injury and could not work, he was just fired and he had not got any means for living. His employer did not even try to offer him some compensations. Therefore, his employer viewed him as a mere tool that he used for his personal enrichment. The owner of the company was interested in increase of his wealth and he did grow richer, while workers kept living in poverty struggling for survival and having no social security that means that they could not count on any support from the part of the company or government, if they suffered injuries, fell ill or retired.
Furthermore, the book also uncovers such problems as sexual harassment, as was the case of Jurgis’ sister, who was sexually abused by her boss, although she was a minor. In fact, she had no other choice because the work was the only way for her to survive. The problem of the sexual harassment was a norm because the attempt of Jurgis to regain justice and revenge on his sister’s boss resulted in Jurgis’ imprisonment.
All these facts reveal the poor protection of employees’ rights or the lack of such rights. In fact, the early 20th century employment relations were characterized by the poor protection of employees’ rights and lack of such rights and the story described by Sinclair became the precursor of the Great Depression. However, this story revealed roots of problems that eventually led to the Great Depression. Sinclair shows that the US had systematic, intrinsic pitfalls that were deep-rooted in the American socioeconomic system based on principles of open market economy and capitalism. At this point, it is worth mentioning the fact that employees were in a disadvantaged position in all industries. For example, when Jurgis experienced the work of a farm worker, he found out that farm workers had no chance for stable and good life based on high income because farmers need them as long as they need their labor and this is the case of all industries. This trend was very strong during the industrial revolution and the early 20th century in the US. More important, this trend persists today.
The major problem of the capitalist system uncovered by Sinclair and that really existed in the early 20th century as well as it exists now is the problem of the social injustice caused by the focus of employers on their well-being regardless of needs of employees. In fact, the only purpose of employers described by Sinclair was to maximize their profits. This is why they employed children, did not care about workplace safety and health of their employees. Instead, they viewed their employees as mere commodities, which they used to grow richer.
Moreover, the state supported employers and stood for their interests rather than for interests of employees. At this point, it is possible to return to the case of the rape of Jurgis’ sister by her boss. Jurgis was arrested immediately for his attempt to revenge on the rapist. The police reacted immediately, when the life and health of a rich person was at stake. On the other hand, the police did nothing to investigate the case of the rape and prosecute the rapist. This case is the evidence that the socioeconomic injustice and the privileged position of the rich, on the one hand, and the oppressed position of the poor, on the other, was maintained by the state through the criminal justice system, laws and policies conducted by the state. Such injustice could be traced throughout the history of the US, especially starting from the industrial revolution, when social inequalities became particularly obvious due to the fast enrichment of the few at cost of the pauperization of a large part of the US society.
Thus, the book Jungle by Upton Sinclair reveals the social injustice that persisted in the US in the early 20th century. However, the book raises many issues, which are still relevant today, such as the workplace safety, employees’ rights, labor relations, government policies in relation to labor relations, sexual harassment, social security and injustice and many other important issues. Upton Sinclair shows the desperate position of the working class in the US and clearly indicates the shift to socialism as the only solution to the problem of social injustice. In this regard, his solution is debatable but the point is that problems raised by Sinclair in his book were and, to a certain extent, are relevant and affect many people. The economic disparity and the unfair redistribution of the national wealth is the major problem that causes other issues and widens gaps between the rich and the poor in the US.
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