The Jungle is a story of hardship and survival of Jurgis Rudkus and his family. They are Lithuanian immigrants who come to America to work in the meatpacking industry in Chicago. On their journey towards to living in the "country of the free" they experience harsh working and living conditions, poverty, starvation, and corruption. Jurgis is invited into the life of crime during one of his visits to jail by Jack Duane. Becoming involved in crime, Jurigs begins to develop an understanding of the corruption in the cities politics, various industries, and the packing-plants. Eventually Jugis has an explanation for his suffering and a way to change it. He realizes that Capitalism is the bane of society, constantly keeping the common worker in poverty while enriching the wealthy. He beings to develop knowledge about Socialism and becomes obsessed with it after finding a job in a hotel that is ran by Socialists.
The first couple chapters of this novel describes in great detail of what is occurring in the meat-packing industry. The novel doesn't hold back when describing in great detail of what happened at each station at the plant, how the visitors reacted, and what exactly each part of the animal was used for. I never realized that various parts of an animal can be used for various items other than eating. For example, "Out of the horns of the cattle they made combs, buttons, hairpins, and imitation ivory; out of the shinbones and other big bones they cut knife and toothbrush handles, and mouthpieces for pipes; out of the hoofs they cut hairpins and buttons, before they made the rest into glue."
I liked how you mentioned that they didn't hold back on describing in detail each station of the slaughterhouse. I was surprised when I read this section as well because I figured they wouldn't be as open about it,
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