The American Dream in the Jungle

Many immigrants migrate to the States unremarkable with the hopes to give their American dream. For most immigrants the American dream consist of decision a country where effort and morality transcend to success. In The hobo camp by Upton Sinclair, a family of hard departing optimistic Lithuanians migrate to America with the belief that equality and opport atomic number 53 dictates that all people should ingest the similar opportunities open to them if they put out efforts. They arrive to the US expecting to invite a trim back of opportunity, freedom, and equality, and acceptance.Instead they find a land where only crime, moral decomposition and crookedness enables them to succeed. The hopes and dreams of these individuals atomic number 18 undo as they encounter a land of moral corruption, crime, exploitation and a life of depression and unhealthy casual restriction that brings them physical and mental pain. Sinclair clearly shows that the American woolgather is apparen tly an illusion. The title of the book The Jungle creates an atmosphere of predators and prey kindred survival of the fittest of the fittest.The predators universe the criminals and the prey beingness the Rudkus family. The title of the book maps how the lower layer represented by the Rudkus family is being exploited or attacked by the capitalistic society and how the country is turned into a jungle . Sinclair examples similes and metaphors to demonstrate the coincidence between animals of the jungle and the people . For archetype in chapter 15, when Jurgis finds out that Connor the undischarged beast rapes Ona, Jurgis eyes were wild and his hair flying, and he was breathing hoarsely bid a wounded bull.Jurgis sprang into a room to find Connor, his prey, and sunk his teeth into the mans cheek, and when they tore him away he was dripping whit blood, and the little ribbons of skin where hanging in his oral cavity (Sinclair 162). Such imagery is portrayed through out the s assy. Exploitation is foreshowed at the beginning of the story when Jurgis and Ona celebrate their weeding and the guest refuse to leave m angiotensin converting enzymey to pay for the weeding. Ona is concerned that they wont be able to pay for the expenses and that they impart be in serious debt but Jurgis assures her that he will thrash harder and earn all the m whizzy back. Leave it to me, leave it up to me. I will earn much capital-I will spend a penny harder (Sinclair 21). This quotation shows how in the beginning of the novel Jurgis is very optimistic, strong, determine, energetic and, devoted to his family and his new country, being unaware of how the formation last. Even when the family tries to purchase their new home which is symbolize by what their American dream is, they get exploited by the accredited state agent. Grandm another(prenominal) Majauszkiene tells them You are all alike all the rest, they confuse you and eat you a jazz. They never merchandise the house without interest.Get your deed, and fill(Sinclair 73). The tone of this repeat to a fault expresses the jungle atmosphere when she mentions how they are been tricked and eaten alive. Another individual that serves as an opposing force to the Rudkus family is Phil Connor. He is Onas boss at the grind and represents the higher corrupt authority in Chicago. He also rapes and takes improvement of Ona by pushing her into prostitution and make outs life harder for Jurgis and his family when he decides to put him in the blacklist, making it absurd for Jurgis to get a new job.He is clearly an example of someone who abuses his power over others for his consume personal profit It is an bloodline that its up to everyone to do whatever is in their power to be happy. By exploiting the Rudkus family the real estate agent was happy because his American dream is to sell and make as much profit as possible. But up to what extend is it fair to gain ones American Dream? It is not fair to exploit other individuals in order to chance on ones goals and dreams. These people are coming to America unknowingly of how the system maneuvers blind to the ways of capitalism.For example, in chapter 3 Jurgis is portrayed as a naive individual that is not familiar on how the labor system works, he is overwhelmed with his new job that he doesnt understand Jokubus cynicism when he cynically stagecoachs out the signs posted that demand cleanliness, That was why to Jurgis it seemed almost profanity to speak near the place as did Jokubas, skeptically. Jurgis was grateful to pay a job and thats all he knew at the date to be given a place in it and a dowery in its wonderful activities was a bless(prenominal)ing to be grateful for, as one was grateful for the sunshine and the rain (Sinclair 43).Is not until later on when he starts to understand more(prenominal) and more about the bitterness he sees in his co-workers. Another form of exploitation that doesnt allow Jurgis and his family to achieve their American dream is the long hours of labor they must work in order to maintain the family alive. These unhealthy long hours of labor that they must work brings the family physical and mental pain. When Jurgis starts to work in the meat packing full treatment he is exited and happy to bugger off a job, soon by and by he discovers that he is engaged in unsportsmanlike labor activities as well up as unsafe forage handling.In chapter 11 Jurgis suffers from a terrible solidus at work. The company doctor tells him that hell be laid up for months with a severe ankle and foot injury. The accident poses a terrible conundrum for the family. Without Jurgis issue, they might starve. It was dreadful that an accident of this sort, that no man can help, should have meant such suffering. The bitterness of it was the daily food and drink of Jurgis. It was of no use to them to try to deceive him, he knew as much about the patch as they did, and he knew that the family might literally starve to death (Sinclair 120).Soon after Ona mystifys terribly ill with a cough similar to the one that killed Dede Antana, she also flexs pregnant and not long after dies when giving birth. They were beaten they had woolly the game, they were swept aside. It was not less sad because it was so sordid, because that it had to do with wages and grocery bills and rents. They had dreamed of freedom of a chance to face up about them and learn something to be decent and clean, to see their child group up to be strong. And now it was all done for(p)-it would never be (Sinclair 163) Jurgis and his family have failed in the attempt to pursue the American dream because the wage slavery and unfair labor practices shatters every aspect of their lives. Not only does the unhealthy labor causes the family physical pain but also mental pain. For example Stanislovas, one of Elzbietas children witnesses a little boy with severe frostbite to his ears that fall arrive at when a ma n rubs them strongly to try to save them. After that, Stanislovas develops a phobia of the parky winter and throws a fit before work each day.He doesnt want to go out in the cold with the fear that his ears are going to fall off. Also seeing how the food is processed becomes a sort of trauma for the characters. Sinclair uses symbolism to show how the twist of the pigs and the meat is symbolic of the middle class. Workers get chewed up just like the meat. It is an argument that if one is working in a slaughterhouse one must have to be strong minded and expect to work with blood, and other bodily fluids that can cause effect.The problem with this argument is that at the cost of a whole factory staff only a few get to be happy, while those workers down on the cleanup spot floors are being hurt on a daily bag and get little to no pay. Ironically labor is suppose to be part of the American dream, immigrants travel to the country to find jobs to prosper and make funds but in this cas e the hard long hours of work only corporate towards their family destruction. As the novel progresses the role of family diminishes as the characters become increasingly abuse and battered.For example in chapter 13 Kristoforas, one of Elzbietas children dies, Jurgis is more relief than sad because that only mean that there is one less mouth to feed. The only thing that concerns Jurgis is the expenses for the funeral since they have no money. Kristoforas had howled his last howl. No one was really sorry about this except worthless Elzbieta, who was inconsolable. Jurgis inform that so far as he was concerned the child would have to be buried by the city, since they had no money for a funeral (Sinclair 134).At this point in the novel the main focus is survival and the desperate sine qua non for nourishment takes priority over compassion and love, as evidenced by Jurgiss beating Stanislovas when he doesnt want to go to work. The unity of the family is destroyed by the poverty, a res ult of capitalist economics and it doesnt allow them to give affection to one another. In chapter 10 it is homely that Ona and Jurgis dont have time for their newborn baby, Jurgis had to go to slumber himself. Then in the morning there was no time to look at him, so really the only chance the father had was Sundays.This was more cruel yet for Ona, who ought to have stayed home and nursed the him, the doctors said for her own heath as well as the babys, but Ona had to go to work and leave him (Sinclair 114) Jurgis and Ona arent able to enjoy each other anymore, whenever they talk it is merely about their concerns and worries. Talked they had only their worries to talk of- truly it was hard, in such a life, to keep any sentiment alive (Sinclair 129). Ona doesnt feel love anymore by Jurgis, she is concerned that the ill luck is eroding out their love. She wondered if he cared for her as much as ever, if all this misery was not wearing out his love(Sinclair 130). Sinclair shows how this family has been destroyed by the corruption and greed of others, the tone is very depressing and tragic. In this point of the novel the characters have been consumed from head to toe by the oppression of their job, they dont even have energy to show emotions such as love, hate, or sadness. Jurgis is clearly a robot to the society that engages in a system from home to work and back to home just to sleep.Jurgis and his family have become dehumanized and become more zombie like as they are described with intense imagery Jurgis cant not stay angry. The poor fellow looked like a homeless ghost, whit his cheeks sunken in and his long black hair straggling into his eyes he was to a fault discourage to cut it, or think about his appearance. His muscles were wasting away, and what where leave where soft and flabby. He had no appetite and they couldnt not pass on to tempt in whit any delicacies.It was better, he said, that he shouldnt not eat, it was saving. (Sinclair 127) Some peop le argue that if Jurgis and Ona never had a baby, the money being used for that baby could have been used for other purposes like food or toward their home. having children while having no money is bad. But being happy with the little bit of money they had, Ona and Jurgis didnt think it would be much of a problems In chapter 10 before Ona gets pregnant, the family has enough money to survive and even has money left to pay little by little his debts. During the early part of winter the family had had money enough to live and little over to pay their debts (Sinclair 105). But Jurgis then gets injured and has no work. When he has no work there is no money rate of flow into the home, this causes despair and urgency. It was also part of their American dream, to have kids watch them conjure up and give them an education. They were beaten they had lost the game, they were swept aside. It was not less tragic because it was so sordid, because it had to do with wages and grocery bills and r ents.They had dreamed of freedom of a chance to look about them and learn something to be decent and clean, to see their child grow up to be strong. And now it was all goneit would never be They had played the game and they had lost. (Sinclair 144). This quote shows how Jurgiss life has been destroyed by the unjust social system that didnt allow him to achieve his American dream. The American dream is cWork Cited Page Upton Sinclair. The Jungle New York flyspeck Classic edition, 1906