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Is Upton Sinclair's The Jungle a Primary Source?

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The Jungle written by Upton Sinclair shows a vivid description of life and the living condition in the meat and other industry around Chicago. The Jungle is full of examples of historical content about profit, corruption, and condition making it a good primary source. To determine whether a book is a primary source or a secondary source, a person needs to know what a primary and secondary source is. First, a primary source, define by Princeton, “is a document or physical object which was written or created during the time under study.” Also, “these sources were present during an experience or time period and offer an inside view of a particular event. While a secondary source interprets and analyzes primary sources. These sources are one or more steps removed from the event.” (Primary vs Secondary) Next thing to consider is the background about the author and how he is involved with the story. Upton Sinclair was writing about a meat packing company and had a firsthand account of the terrible things that company did to the animals and the workers. Since Sinclair was there during that time and documented the experience of workers and their condition, his book would be declared a primary source. What Sinclair saw was his inspiration to write about his most famous and moving book, The Jungle. Upton Sinclair was not a famous writer until his release of the book and his book caused major reform in the food industry around the country.
During the late 1800s and early 1900s

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