Personal Review

Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle was one of my favorite books I have read this year. Though the life of the protagonist of the novel, Jurgis, was tragic, this is what drew me into the novel. Though Jurgis initially travels to American in hopes of fulfilling the American Dream, he is constantly cheated by boss rule, the judicial system, and shopkeepers. Jurgis is left to watch his family members die from strenuous work at the factory, and unhealthy living conditions at home. The descriptive sentences of Packingtown, a district in Chicago where "the swarms of flies hung about the scene, literally blacking the air, and the strange, fetid odour which assailed one’s nostrils, of all the dead things in the universe.” captured my curiosity and kept me reading, wanting to discover the fate of the family living in such conditions. Yet such unhealthy and corrupt conditions described by Sinclair allow the reader to only conclude one fate for Jurgis and his family, eventual bankruptcy and death. This form of dramatic irony, similar to that of the Three Theban Plays by Sophocles, also supported my interest in the novel. I enjoyed the plot of the story though at times it was very sad, and heartbreaking such as when Jurgis’s only son dies shortly after he has recovered from the traumatizing death of his wife, Ona. Jurgis’s depression leads him into heavy drinking, as well the underground crime scene. There, much of the corruption going on in Packingtown is explained. Because this instance was near the end of the novel, I would like to read it again, for the scandals that occurred at the beginning of the novel would have more provided more clarification. Overall, Upton Sinclair's plot was captivating and the subject was very interesting, allowing me to conclude it was my favorite of the era books :D !