Product Description

The JungleThe Jungle has drawn comment from historians, policy makers, and literary critics. "Contexts and Backgrounds" does full justice to the disparate social, historical, political, and literary dimensions of the novel. "Criticism" includes eight readings sure to foster classroom discussion of The Jungle as a literary text, as a historical document in its own right, as a contribution to Progressive-era muckraking, and as an important document in urban, economic, and labor history. A Selected Bibliography is also included.

About the series: No other series of classic texts equals the caliber of the Norton Critical Editions. Each volume combines the most authoritative text available with the comprehensive pedagogical apparatus necessary to appreciate the work fully. Careful editing, first-rate translation, and thorough explanatory annotations allow each text to meet the highest literary standards while remaining accessible to students. Each edition is printed on acid-free paper and every text in the series remains in print. Norton Critical Editions are the choice for excellence in scholarship for students at more than 2,000 universities worldwide.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #355169 in Books
• Published on: 2002-11
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 512 pages

About the Author
Clare Virginia Eby is Associate Professor of English at the University of Connecticut. She is the author of Dreiser and Veblen, Saboteurs of the Status Quo, editor of Theodore Dreiser's The Genius, and co-editor of the forthcoming Cambridge Companion to Theodore Dreiser.

Customer Reviews

Pablos review of The Jungle
Did you ever want to read a book that revolutionized the food industries' laws, and at the same time reformed workers rights? Well then, The Jungle is the book for you. It is a wonderful tale about an immigrant family who just moved to Chicago, and shows their struggle in life just to survive in the miserable stockyards. Upton Sinclair, the author of this wonderful novel has a very unique style of writing that separates his book from all the others. His descriptive wrting and his use of symbolism make this story truely different. His overall mood is one of social protest, because the author wants changes in laws. The tone of Upton Sinclair is also very unique, he also tries to persuade you to his views on socialism and how bad some parts of the American government are. So, if you want to read book that will curdle your stomach and changes your views on equality, read The Jungle.

Great story
The Jungle is one of those books whose fame eclipses its reality. You probably learned about this one in sociology, history, biology, psychology, whatever class. Unfortunately, too few people have read it. You should. Not because it practically created the FDA either, but because it is a great story. However you want to classify the book - immigrant story, historical fiction, social realism, whatever else English teachers have done to deaden the fun - it's Jurgis' struggle to carve out a place for his family in the raw, brutal world of America that continues to fascinate. As a Chicagoan, I think this should be required reading for anyone who lives here - so many of the political and social conditions of the city and still connected to the systems of corporate and political cooperation that were established in the era of the novel. The ending is disappointing and definitely skip-able, but don't let that stop you from reading a great story.

One of my favorites
I first read this book about 8 years ago in a High School history class. Since then I have read it twice and I did a college thesis on it; it is one of my favorite books. The first time I read the hardcover book; the next two times I listened to the unabridged audiobook and enjoyed it so much better.