After exploring many of the ills of society in The Gilded Age, we move on to how to remedy them. The Progressive Movement focuses on the many social reforms put in place to "progress" the country forward.
Among the numerous people/concepts we will cover, is Upton Sinclair's influential novel The Jungle, about the meat packing industry in Chicago. The story focuses on an immigrant family from Lithuania that is desperately trying to achieve that elusive "American Dream." What they find, however, is the American Nightmare. Some of the issues we will discuss as we read excerpts from the novel include the immigrant experience, industrialization, environmental issues, unsafe labor practices, food safety, consumerism, and capitalism. Here are some pre-reading discussion questions.
We will read the following chapters:
