In Upton Sinclair's novel "The Jungle", the use of animal terms and connotations in depictions of people and politics created compelling arguments in favor of socialism and against capitalism. Christopher Phelps's introduction states: "As a metaphor, 'jungle' denoted the ferocity of dog-eat-dog competition, the barbarity of exploitative labor, the wildness of urban life, the savagery of poverty, the crudity of political corruption and the primitive nature of urban life. the doctrine of survival of the fittest, which led people to slaughter as surely as cattle. » (1), this is the basis of Sinclair's arguments that capitalism promotes competition among the working class for simple survival while destroying human rights and shattering the American dream. “The Jungle” dehumanized workers to draw parallels between them and animals; the aim was to show the characters of the novel as animals in the jungle of a capitalist society. Sinclair suggests that workers are weak animals, which is evident in Antanas' description: "And now there he was, exhausted in soul and body, and having no more place in the world than a sick dog” (97). The author describes Old Antanas as weak and useless to the world because he is unable to work to help support the family. The author uses the word Old to emphasize the fact that the older the person is, the less useful they are. The author also uses the animal characteristics of Zaprawa 2 to portray the characters as vulgar and crude. During one of Onas's emotional episodes, Jurgis is described: "But he never thought of it, except when he was driven to it – he lived like a mute beast of burden, knowing only the moment in which he stood. » (172). In the middle of the paper, the strongest argument against capitalism is the quote “It was a devouring monster with a thousand mouths, trampling with a thousand hooves; he was the Great Butcher – he was the spirit of capitalism incarnate. ” (334), the description of the monster depicts capitalism as barbaric instead of those under the influence of capitalism being barbaric. This quote lends itself to the idea that people should fight for what they believe in, the parallel between capitalism and hoof trampling alludes to the idea that without fighting a man could simply be trampled. Works Cited Phelps, Christopher. “Introduction: Upton Sinclair and the social novel.” The jungle. Ed. Christopher Phelps. Boston/New York: Bedford St. Martin's, 2005. 1-39. Print. Sinclair, Upton. The Jungle. 1906. Ed. Christopher Phelps. Boston/New York: Bedford St. Martin's, 2005. Print.