'The Jungle' - an epic failure

Upton Sinclair's specific goal in writing 'The Jungle' was to convince Americans that socialism (communism) was the answer to America's problems.  (The words 'socialism' and 'communism' meant the same thing in English before 1945 - since then the meaning of 'socialism' has changed.)  The United States today is not a communist country, so clearly Sinclair failed.  The book was a bestseller, and as we will see in class this year, the book did cause huge changes in the structure of American society and in the role of the government in American society.  If the book was so influential, why does Sinclair ultimately fail?  As you read the book, see if you are convinced that the U.S. should have become communist, and ask yourself why you are or are not convinced.  Is there a weakness in the way the book is written, or is it something else?  Compare this book to Uncle Tom's Cabin - in the 1850's a majority of Americans did not want slavery to end, and yet Harriet Beecher Stowe was entirely successful - 15 years after her book was published, slavery had been abolished forever.

Welcome to the Jungle

Jurgis is the hero of 'The Jungle' - he is young, strong, full of ambition, kind & loving, moral, and ready to tackle any challenge.  Where does he go wrong?  What could or should he have done differently in order to be successful?  Or did he not do anything wrong at all?  If he did not, why does he fail so spectacularly?

Why is calling someone 'Uncle Tom' an insult?

Uncle Tom is the hero of 'Uncle Tom's Cabin'  - he is strong, moral, good, selfless, and kind - everything that Stowe believes a Christian should strive to become.  Today 'Uncle Tom' is one of the worst insults that you can use when talking to an African-American.  Why is this?  Is Uncle Tom actually a hero, or are George and Liza the real heroes?  If Uncle Tom really is a hero, how and/or why has his name become an insult?

Why is Stowe so nice to slaveowners?

Most of the slave owners in Uncle Tom's Cabin are portrayed as decent people, even people that are trying to do the right thing.  Since Stowe's goal in writing the book was to convince people that slavery was wrong and evil, why doesn't she show slaveowners as bad people?  Wouldn't that have helped make her case that slavery needed to end?  If the slave owners were mostly nice people, why, according to this book, was it so important that slavery be abolished?