Not for the Faint-Hearted!

Published in 1906, this long novel deals with the plight of Yurgis Rudkus, a Lithuanian who immigrates with his extended family to Chicago in the early 20th century. Detailed descriptions of various dismal workplaces are provided, notably of the huge stockyards _ with the risk of shaking any reader’s desire to further consume meat products. Clearly, prior to writing, the author completed significant research in situ; he even comments how workers do not pay attention to occasional gentlemanly visitors. In fact, some may suspect that his plot is intentionally set up to present as wide as possible a range of nonskilled occupations.

It is striking that, for more than the first half of the novel, there is hardly any dialogue, no doubt in sync with the fact that the characters do not yet speak English. It is even more remarkable that there seems to be no organized support to ease integration into the USA, whether of government or private initiative. Oddly, Yurgis and his family never consider going back to their country. No doubt, they cannot afford it, unlike many Canadian immigrants to the US in the same period who did come back home.

The desperate situations described are reminiscent of Zola’s “Germinal” and Steinbeck’s “Grapes of Wrath”. In this case, however, a solution is naively and energetically brought forth by the author: socialism.

In the audio version, narration is perfect: it remains lively while never being melodramatic, despite what is described. Some may find however that the Lithuanian accent used in some dialogues appears however somewhat contrived.

Overall, this novel is of interest for shedding alternate light to the social, economic and political conditions that prevailed in the Gilded Age and the following years.

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