The Jungle By Sinclair A Man Of

Many Colors Essay, Research Paper

The Jungle by Sinclair: A Man of Many Colors

There are often many sides to a person’s personality. Jurgis Rudkis of

Upton Sinclair’s novel, The Jungle, is no exception. Rudkis is a very

determined and caring person. Conversely, he is also strickened with cupidity.

He has both good and evil coexisting within him.

Rudkis is a very determined and directed man. He is always eager to

work. He does not let anything stop him and is ?confident in his ability to get

work for himself, unassisted by anyone(pg.35) .? Aware that he needed money,

Rudkis does anything and everything to achieve his goals. No matter what he

must endure, he always manages to keep his head high and keeps striving toward

his dreams. Rudkis’s determination is also displayed when he tries to make a

good impression on his boss. He proves he is not lazy and ?promptly reports for

work in the morning(pg.46) .?

Rudkis is also a caring man. His primary goal is to protect Ona, and

when he reaches America, he has every confidence he can do so. He works in

terrible conditions and endures many hardships merely to keep her happy. When

he lost his job, he earned mony immoraly. He does not do this for himself, but

for the welfare of Ona and the family. Eventhough he inevidably fails, he does

everything in his power to be an ideal husband.

Rudkis, like many other good-hearted people, had to circumb to the evil

powers of greed. He buys an expensive house that he could not afford. He could

settele for a house of lesser value that suits his needs just as well, but he

doesn’t. Eventhough he is somewhat conned into buying it, his greed still

convinced him. Shortly after this, he is so eager to get more money, that he

starts to behave immoraly. After he lost his job due to an injury, he sinks

into a life of crime as a foe of society. He becomes a mugger and a grafter.

He dupes fellow workers as an undercover operative for the Democratic machine.

He helps break up a strike, then ends up in jail. He then became a homeless man.

His greedy side may have been the cause of his downfall.

People often behave differently at different times. Jurgid Rudkis was a

complex man with many different aspects to his personality. He was a determined,

caring, yet greedy person. He, like many, had both a ?good side? and a ?bad

side.?