alternative is Socialism, which will eliminate all the terrible problems of Capitalism. He is using all the grotesque events earlier in the book to show the reader that Socialism will allow one to escape from all of that. Everything that could go wrong for one person did go wrong in this novel. Jurgis was hit with every possible calamity, yet he was still able to overcome it all when he found Socialism. I think Sinclair did a superb job of supporting his idea. I believe this because he created a character that made me sympathetic for in a Capitalist society and then overjoyed when that character rises up and makes a new life as a Socialist. I cannot say that I would go out and join the Socialist party right now, but I do have a much better understanding of Socialism and how it is a good idea. I feel that I understand what Sinclair is trying to say and I also feel that Socialism was a good idea in Jurgis’ time. The idea was needed then to keep people motivated and to bring about change in a corrupt institution. I really felt affected when I read about the children being sent off to work at such young ages. The conditions they worked in were so terrible and it’s hard to believe I could work in them let alone my little brother. I could not believe what people had to do just to survive, especially compared to our lives now. At the time this story takes place I believe Socialism was superior, mainly because it so much seems like Capitalism today. I believe this is a very valid book for depicting what America used to be, what we have come to, and what we hope to be in the future so as not to let the work of Jurgis and others go to waste. ...
