World Famous Comics: The Jungle: The Uncensored Original Edition
The Jungle: The Uncensored Original Edition
By: Upton Sinclair Publisher: See Sharp Press Average Rating: Binding: Paperback Label: See Sharp Press Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 352 Publication Date: April 01, 2003
For nearly a century, the original version of Upton Sinclair's classic novel has remained almost entirely unknown. When it was published in serial form in 1905, it was a full third longer than the censored, commercial edition published in book form the following year. That expurgated commercial edition edited out much of the ethnic flavor of the original, as well as some of the goriest descriptions of the meat-packing industry and much of Sinclair's most pointed social and political commentary. The text of this new edition is as it appeared in the original uncensored edition of 1905. It contains the full 36 chapters as originally published, rather than the 31 of the expurgated edition. A new foreword describes the discovery in the 1980s of the original edition and its subsequent suppression, and a new introduction places the novel in historical context by explaining the pattern of censorship in the shorter commercial edition.
Interesting Book But the ending is absurd considering that the "capitalist industrialists" are in fact socialists themselves (Carnegie, Morgan, Rothschild, Roosevelt, etc.) and that dehumanizing factories were not built until the era of socialist control over politics, economics, education, etc. (easily the Gilded Age but honestly back to the French Revolution).
Traditional, conservative economies had citizens who provided for themselves from the land or in the towns from an established craft whereas the machine-driven modern economy not only employs fewer individuals in any real meaningful labor but also deprives most people of the means for taking care of their families (landless wage slaves who know nothing of traditional life).
Jungle Haven't had a chance to read much of the book, but what I have read indicated the writer (Upton Sinclair) was truly a man with a attitude towards the society in which he lived. Don't think he liked his life. Realistic and hard hitting...yet those were the times in which he lived.
The reason I pay my union dues Living in a right-to-work state, you forget why we have unions. As a teenager, I read this book for school and fell in love with it. My parents and family were all union backers (teachers, firefighters, etc.), but I did not understand why we had unions. Then I read this book and ever since I have paid my union dues. Sinclair is an outstanding writer and I think everyone should read this book to understand where we have been and where we are now in labor. So read this book and cherish the life we have today.
Timeless Classic I was very surprised to find myself enjoying this book. I was nervous that the language would be dated to a point of difficulty, or that it would be slower than a snail. But this is far from the truth. The writing is easy to follow and the characters very believable. Given that Sinclair based this novel on events and people he actually witnessed in the meat packing industry of Chicago more than 100 years ago, it only makes sense that the characters seem real. And just when you think this can't possibly get worse....yeah, it just did.
The only reason why I didn't give this novel 5 stars was how the story falls flat towards the end when Sinclair lapses into a Socialist manifesto. I didn't feel that it was being preachy, but rather the Socialist information was meant to be just that: information. Perhaps it could be argued that it is propaganda, given that this was originally written for a Socialist paper, and then put together as a novel to reach "the masses". Regardless, this can be overlooked because overall the story moves along nicely.
I found it very interesting, on the other hand, that Sinclair's writing had some racist leanings. For instance, his description of the southern black men that were recruited to work as scabs and his mention of big black men with daggers in their shoes standing next to young white women during the rowdy prize-fighting made me raise an eyebrow given the author's Socialist leanings. Perhaps I misunderstand what socialism is, but don't they support equality in society?
I do recommend that you read this book. It is a timeless piece of literature, and a reminder that these industries have not changed that much in our country. There are likely families living the modern day version of this.
GOOD READ I enjoyed reading The Jungle very much, it was a fantastic book written with great detail. This book should be read by every high school student before they graduate. Upton Sinclair does a great job describing the truths of life and how life in the workplace and factories is. I feel Sinclair did a marvelous job in his portrayal as the United States as a more humble place than most immigrants thought. The hardships and imperfections in the factories made the country humble and changed the perspective of those coming to live here. The best part of the book is the result it had in America after it was written. After the publication of it, many reforms were created in order to improve lifestyles, health, and the economy. It also made me appreciate the meat inspection we have today, and all food inspections, and how sanitary life is today. As being a student currently, it was very easy to connect to this book and imagine what factory life was like. The main character Jurgis sees America one way, and realizes it as a completly different way. Every vivid detail Sinclair includes not only affects Jurgis in the story, but the reader of the story. I would recommend this book to anyone and everyone. It is a must read, especially for students. They need to see what the real world is like and that the US is not always as good as it is amped us to be.
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