内容简介
"The Jungle," by Upton Sinclair, is part of the "Barnes andNoble Classics"" "series, which offers quality editions ataffordable prices to the student and the general reader, includingnew scholarship, thoughtful design, and pages of carefully craftedextras. Here are some of the remarkable features of "Barnes andNoble Classics": New introductions commissioned from today's topwriters and scholars Biographies of the authors Chronologies ofcontemporary historical, biographical, and cultural eventsFootnotes and endnotes Selective discussions of imitations,parodies, poems, books, plays, paintings, operas, statuary, andfilms inspired by the work Comments by other famous authors Studyquestions to challenge the reader's viewpoints and expectationsBibliographies for further reading Indices and Glossaries, whenappropriateAll editions are beautifully designed and are printed tosuperior specifications; some include illustrations of historicalinterest. "Barnes and Noble Classics "pulls together aconstellation of influences-biographical, historical, andliterary-to enrich each reader's understanding of these enduringworks. Upton Sinclair's muckraking masterpiece "The Jungle" centerson Jurgis Rudkus, a Lithuanian immigrant working in Chicago'sinfamous Packingtown. Instead of finding the American Dream, Rudkusand his family inhabit a brutal, soul-crushing urban jungledominated by greedy bosses, pitiless con-men, and corruptpoliticians. While Sinclair's main target was the industry'sappalling labor conditions, the reading public was most outraged bythe disgusting filth and contamination in American food that hisnovel exposed. As a result, President Theodore Roosevelt demandedanofficial investigation, which quickly led to the passage of thePure Food and Drug laws. For a work of fiction to have such animpact outside its literary context is extremely rare. (At the timeof "The Jungle"'s publication in 1906, the only novel to have ledto social change on a similar scale in America was "Uncle Tom'sCabin,") Today, "The Jungle" remains a relevant portrait ofcapitalism at its worst and an impassioned account of the humanspirit facing nearly insurmountable challenges. Maura Spiegelteaches literature and film at Columbia University and BarnardCollege. She is the coauthor of "The Grim Reader and The BreastBook: An Intimate and Curious History," She coedits "Literature andMedicine," a journal.