The Jungle
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4.2 • 159 Ratings
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Publisher Description
The Jungle is a 1906 novel written by the American journalist and novelist Upton Sinclair (1878-1968). Sinclair wrote the novel to portray the lives of immigrants in the United States. Many readers were most concerned with his exposure of practices in the American meatpacking industry during the early 20th century, based on an investigation he did for a socialist newspaper.
The book depicts poverty, the absence of social programs, unpleasant living and working conditions, and the hopelessness prevalent among the working class, which is contrasted with the deeply rooted corruption of people in power. A review by the writer Jack London called it, "the Uncle Tom's Cabin of wage slavery.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Originally published in 1991 as part of a short-lived revival of the Classics Illustrated line, this adaptation of Sinclair's muckraking socialist novel succeeds because of its powerful images. When Kuper initially drew it, he was already a well-known left-wing comics artist. His unenviable task is condensing a 400-page novel into a mere 48 pages, and, inevitably, much of the narrative drama is lost. Kuper replaces it, however, with unmatched pictorial drama. The story follows Lithuanian immigrant Jurgis Rudkis and his family as they are eaten up and spit out by capitalism (represented by Chicago's packing houses). Kuper uses an innovative full-color stencil technique with the immediacy of graffiti to give Sinclair's story new life. When Jurgis is jailed for beating the rich rapist Connor, a series of panels suffused with a dull, red glow draw readers closer and closer to Jurgis's face, until they see that the glint in his eye is fire. Jurgis, briefly prosperous as a strong-arm man for the Democratic machine, smokes a cigar; the smoke forms an image of his dead son and evicted family. Perhaps most visually dazzling is the cubist riot as strikers battle police amid escaping cattle. Kuper infuses this 1906 novel with the energy of 1980s-era street art and with his own profoundly original graphic innovation, making it a classic in its own right.
Customer Reviews
Well written and very informative!
Great story, I enjoyed the authors writing style which kept me enthralled the duration of the book. Very informative and relevant on societal topics that are relevant to this day. Wish there was more to Jurgis’s story after his strength and will come back, what a survivor!
“It’s a book about meat-“ NO ITS NOT BRUH
10/10 book. Shippable romance, betrayal, drama, and socialism?
Socialist themes lie heavy in the book, supposedly as an answer to all the gruesome stuff showcased in the book.
If you liked 1984, you will eat this book up like I did. It showcases the same grind wearing down a human, although here in the capitalist system. I will say the second half of the book is a bit boring compared to the first half, and also it has no ona :(. The first chapter is also a slog, but the latter half of the book, to its credit piques not a morbid curiosity but reveals the graft that ruled over Jurdis’ life. It shows him becoming the very thing he ought to destroy, like 1984.
SPOILER:
I was totally expecting him to die at the end, props to Upton.
Just like Yellowstone National Park, a must for every American Citizen and beyond.
Just like Yellowstone National Park, a must for every American Citizen and beyond. What blood out country
continues to operate.