The Jungle

Description

Upton Sinclair's novel The Jungle, which inspired the 1906 Pure Food and Drug Act and the Meat Inspection Act, stands as a classic of Twentieth-century American literature and social protest. In this accessible and thorough edition by Christopher Phelps, a critical introduction addresses the wide range of issues raised by the text, including early twentieth-century working conditions, immigrant community, race and gender, political reform, and the continuing relevance of Sinclair's investigation. This edition uses the most widely recognized text of The Jungle and provides an illuminating supporting document: President Theodore Roosevelt's delivery to Congress of the official report that confirmed The Jungle's shocking allegations about the Chicago meatpacking industry.

Reviews

'Phelps has written an excellent introduction that places The Jungle in a multitude of political, social, and literary genres, thus making the book accessible to all sorts of readers and useful within a multiple set of academic disciplines.' -Nelson Lichtenstein, University of California, Santa Barbara 'This is a remarkably well-researched introduction, written with passion and intelligence.' - Michael Kazin, Georgetown University

Author description

CHRISTOPHER PHELPS is Associate Professor of History, The Ohio State University at Mansfield, USA.