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A French philosopher once said that the greatest tyranny of democracy was
when the minority ruled the majority. Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle gives the
reader a great example of exactly this. A man who earns his living honestly and
through hard work will always be trapped in poverty, but a man who earns his
living through lies and cheating will be wealthy. The Jungle portrays a
Lithuanian family stuck in a Capitalistic country. It shows the ongoing struggle
of a lower class that will never get farther in life as long as the minority of
rich people rule over them. The Jungle conveys a struggle between Capitalism and
Socialism. Socialism is the best way out for the peasants, but a Capitalistic
America has already trapped them. When Jurgis Rudkus and his family first come
to America, they do not know how it was run. Once Jurgis begins working in the
stockyards, he finds out that the upper class dominates over the lower class.
Supposedly America is a democratic nation, but this is not true. Capitalism
rules the nation.
The upper class bosses rule what goes on in the peasants
lives. It is a form of slavery. Sinclair writes: Things that were quite
unspeakable went on there in the packing houses all the time, and were taken for
granted by everybody; only they did not show, as in old slavery times, because
there was no difference in color between master and slave. (106) Sinclair
compares the conditions of the factories to that of slavery. The rich boss is
the master and the peasant is the lowly slave. Capitalism rules in the
stockyards of Chicago. The higher class people can get ahead in life because
they have an in with the system, but the peasants will forever be stuck at their
work on the machines in a packing plant. Jurgis Rudkus endures the work in the
factory system. He comes across Capitalism first hand here. Through his work in
the meat packing plant, he sees how they are able to work around government
regulation through bribes and deceit. He also soon learns that everyone steals
from the people below them in the system. Sinclair writes, “...the bosses
grafted off the men, and they grafted off each other; and someday the
superintendent would find out about the boss, and then he would graft off the
boss” (59). Sinclair reveals that men of a higher status were able to steal
freely from others and get away with it. If one found out, he just stole right
back from another.
This was Capitalism in and of itself. Here, in the stockyards
of Chicago, the upper class rules over the lower class. In Packingtown, Jurgis
Rudkus and his family face many difficulties with the Capitalistic rule. The
people take advantage of them and steal their money. When they first came to
America, they had to pay many fees because they were foreigners and did not know
better. Eventually, Jurgis decides to buy a house. He thinks he is getting a
good deal, but in reality is not. The real estate agent tells him that it is a
brand new house, but this is a lie. Sinclair writes, “...it was not new at all,
as they had supposed; it was about fifteen years old, and there was nothing new
upon it but the paint” (65). The real estate agent took advantage of them
because they were lower class. He was able to do so because they did not know
any better. The upper class ruled over them. They lived in a Capitalistic nation
that trapped them as lower class citizens. The Capitalistic way of life allows
for a lot of corruption in the government and police department. Many people pay
off high officials in order to get lead way in court and other places. Men who
own saloons pay the police so they can sell liquor on Sundays. At one point in
the book Jurgis beats up a bartender because he will not give him his change for
a hundred dollar bill. The bartender does not get in trouble for this because he
has paid people off. Sinclair writes, “...the owner of the saloon had paid five
dollars each to the policemen alone for Sunday privileges and general favors”
(249).
This was a common thing among many bartenders. Capitalism involved the
police, government, and common people. If one had the money, then he could get
special privileges in life. After “hoboing” around the country and going to
jail, Jurgis comes across a man by the name of Jack Duane for the second time.
It is now when he becomes involved with politics. Jurgis and Duane help to get
votes. The system is full of corruption. Jurgis becomes a Democrat, but actually
helps to get votes for the Republicans. Lies make up the government as a whole.
One critic writes, “The democratic institutions which might have provided a
means of change have all been bought off by the ‘Machine.’ The opportunity to
‘rise’ causes men to betray their fellow workers and countrymen” (“The Jungle”
3096). Democracy does not help anyone apart from its institution at this point
in time. It helps few to rise, but causes many to betray others. The government
corrupts society and those who work for it. Sinclair writes: ...He, Scully,
would elect him with the “sheeny’s” money, and the Republicans might have the
glory.... In return for this the Republicans would agree to put up no candidate
the following year, when Scully himself came up for reelection as the other
alderman for the ward. (259) Capitalism plays a big role in government affairs.
It helps move others forward in politics. Scully is able to pull this off
because he holds a high position and has a lot of money. He is a big man in the
business and can get what he wants with his money. It is Capitalism along with
greed and power that leads to the corruption in government. Jurgis Rudkus gets
out of his business with the government and finds a regular job towards the end
of the book. He becomes heavily involved with Socialism during this period. One
critic writes that the conversion of Jurgis to Socialism is really impossible
after his soul has been murdered (Brooks 382). Jurgis really wanted to find a
way to better the working conditions in the factories.
It is not entirely
impossible because Jurgis was still strong and willing to fight. Jon A. Yoder
writes: By the end of [The Jungle the protagonist] has become a thoroughly
convinced socialist, part of the social movement that he and Sinclair expected
to turn Chicago into a place fit for Americans. (501) This is really what Jurgis
Rudkus hopes to achieve. He wants to improve working conditions and establish a
better pay. It is possible for Jurgis to become a Socialist. For the last few
chapters of The Jungle, Jurgis fights with the Socialist party. He converts many
to his side. Jurgis sees Socialism as a way to solve many problems. Sinclair
writes, “...it was the task of Socialists to teach and organize them for the
time when they were to seize the huge machine called the Beef Trust...” (317).
The Socialists’ plan is to bring down Capitalism and run the Beef trust
properly.
They intend to change it and make actual food instead of figuring out
how to make as a big a fortune as possible. One critic writes, “The Socialism he
preached implied a human ability (collectively expressed) to master that system”
(“The Jungle” 3096). The goal of the Socialists is exactly this. They plan to
clean up the factory system and master it, to make it better and fairer.
Socialism is to conquer Capitalism and make a better America. Capitalism versus
Socialism is a common theme throughout The Jungle. Jurgis Rudkus chances upon
both in different ways. He is a victim to Capitalism, a member of Socialism. He
battles Capitalism with Socialism. For him, Socialism seems to be the best way
of life, while for others Capitalism is. Capitalism and Socialism make up much
of society and for the rest of time there will be people on both sides; neither
will ever dominate the country.
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