I've been a bit anxious today concerning starting a blog. Will what I write be clever? Will people read my blog? What should I write about? What should I not write about? What pictures should I post? Then I decided that one should not worry so much about something that goes by the name of "blog," and so here's my post, a bit of a book review.I just concluded Upton Sinclair's The Jungle. I didn't really know all that much about the book, except that it brought to the public the fact that rat feces were being packed with meat and sold for food. Come to find out, its a novel about a Lithuanian immigrant family trying to survive in the meat district. Indeed, I was shocked by the fact that rat poison was swept into the pickled meat products along with other things not fit for human consumption, but what affected me most was reading about how the strain of just trying to survive took a toll on the souls of the family. I was job searching right after grad school, and boy did it take a toll! I can't imagine what working from dawn to dusk everyday just to make enough money to pay for the "new" house that is already falling apart and the adulterated food that certainly isn't providing enough calories is like. The book was interesting, and on a Likert scale from 1 to 7, I'd rate it a 5. The end was a bit disappointing because 1) the style of the writing switched from political novel to political pamphlet and 2) I felt like there was no closure. But that could have certainly been the author's wish. It seems when books have zero to some closure, readers tend to think about them a bit more. And I've definitely thought a lot about the book.
5 comments:
I have done a ton of reading and never read this book. Now I feel like I need to add it to my list to be culturally literate. Good review.
yeah, thanks ash. job hunting's a drag, survival can be exhausting. and what the heck kind of name is Upton?
Ah yes, quite an erudite review of an American classic. It is quite refreshing to see young people take such an interest in fine literature. Keep up the fine work my gal.
i finally read this a couple years ago and my feelings were much the same. of course the sick crap was all fascinating but it was the 'new house' that really made me mad! the other part that was unbelievable was the slippery floor/meat hook combo on the killing floor. no thanks!
I remember reading the Jungle as a young teenager. It reminded me of stories that my Papa told when he came to America and was trying to survive. The haves and the have nots has always been an interesting theme in our culture. I was intrigue by Papa who talked about working in a can factory as a young 12 year old trying to eke out an existence with slave life wages.
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