The People of the Abyss

This story "The people of the abyss" is the author's first hand account of how the poorest of poor lived & survived In the slums of the East End of London during the end of the nineteenth century beginning of the twentieth century, this is a first hand account of the lives of people who weren't born into wealth and privilege . Jack London wrote about the life's of those who weren't born wealthy and privileged and about the despair of the people who survived on the streets of London , what makes this so fascinating is that the author lived amongst these people to better understand the why's and how's of their life's , something which most of society couldn't explain or even cared about, the thing that got me about this story is even though just over a hundred years apart some parts of the book could have easily been about today's London.

Written in 1902, this book is the result of the author going undercover to experience for himself the dreadful conditions in the East End of London. The content is very interesting and the writing style is pleasant and easygoing. A slight downside. The author, Jack London, is an American who several times compares his country very favourably to England. I found this a little difficult to accept when considering the plight of the freed slaves in America at the time. Maybe it takes a visitor to a country, with fresh eyes, to notice what things are really like, be it England or America. But the conditions recorded in this book are horrendous. It’s a bit like reading a Charles Dickens’ book without the fictitious storyline, except this book tells it as it really was; it’s not written for entertainment — it’s written to inform the reader. And it certainly does that.

An interesting look at a time now past, with many of the same problems of poverty that still exist today. It was a great experiment to submerse himself in the lifestyle to gain a greater understanding of the problems facing the people of London's East End. The stories of people one serious illness away from falling into poverty rings very true in America today. A sad state of affairs for any civilized society no matter the century. We also still see the problem of neighborhoods deteriorating around those who have lived there their whole lives with no option to leave due to economic circumstances as the problems associated with poverty inch closer to their neighborhoods. Well worth the read, even though somethings have changed for the better, there is much to ponder in those things that still need to be addressed.

My present political position in life is one that has evolved through time. I was a young Republican in my early adult life and then began to observe how our first-world society works and more importantly, read about how it used to be. Books such as The Jungle, Sister Carry, and Martin Eden defined for me the societal conditions that existed when the free market was allowed to shape society under near laissez-faire conditions. By looking at life as it is depicted in these books I was able to develop comparisons between then and now, and consider the reasons for the vast contrasts that have developed over the past hundred years. The People of the Abyss is unique within this historical perspective in that it pushes the laissez-faire extreme closer to the ideal. Jack London tells of life in London where the vast majority of people, men, women, and children, are treated as a cheap commodity; used for the lowest wages possible and then discarded when their labor can be replaced for a more vigorous person or for even lower wages. The commodity is housed in pits that are filled to maximum capacity in order to maximize rents and is fed with food intended to sustain life while bleeding away the strength of youth. The book is an observational commentary composed by London during his sojourns into the East End of London. He dressed as these people dressed, pursued work as they did, and most importantly, recognized these people as human. London once said that this was his most purposeful book, indicating, “No other book of mine took so much of my young heart and tears as that study of the economic degradation of the poor." After reading The People of the Abyss, I easily find an appreciation for London’s work and certainly see its value in my modern observations of today’s society.

Awareness of the Victorian era is widespread. It is an historic designation that goes beyond the boundaries of Queen Victoria’s empire. Victoria ascended the throne as a girl of just 18 and reigned for 63 years and seven months, longer than any of her predecessors. Modern authors write historical fiction not only about Victorian England, but about Victorian San Francisco. Victorian New York and other places over which Victoria did not rule but where her influence meandered. While the death of the Queen, in 1901, more or less marked the end of that era, conditions do not immediately change with the ascension of the new monarch. Likewise, the sweeping domestic and international changes associated with this time period began sometime before she was crowned. Quite simply, one person may symbolize an era, but it is political and social temperature that brings about that notoriety. Jack London was an American journalist, novelist, and social activist. THE PEOPLE OF THE ABYSS is a narrative of London's East End specifically, and on a deeper level, a treatise on conditions in Great Britain as a whole. Poverty, or as London calls it, pauperism, is as rampant today as it was at the turn of the 20th century. It is terrifying to think that now, nearly 120 years later, people in first world countries are living hand to mouth just waiting for the thing to happen that will push them over into destitution. The thing, as explained by London, is inevitable. It might be illness or injury or simply being fired from one's job. The only sure thing is that a thing will happen. It is frightening to read about the truly horrifying conditions in London's East End, in 1902 and find that where Jack London refers to the London Abyss you can easily substitute American Abyss. Although I have read a considerable number of accounts of the Jack the Ripper murders, that occurred in 1888, and have been horrified by the description of conditions then, THE PEOPLE OF THE ABYSS, written 14 years later, describes filthy living conditions and an appallingly short life expectancy in the most stark terms I have ever read. Many families who live in the slums of Whitechapel, Spitalfields, and the like are doomed to die out during the third generation. Surprisingly, there was a Public Health Committee that investigated overcrowding in dwellings in London at the time this was written. The numbers cited throughout the book detail unimaginable unsanitary conditions and overcrowding along with innumerable people of all ages living on the street. While I was reading about these conditions, newspapers today were detailing the unsanitary conditions of caged human beings right here in the United States. It is a stark reminder of how far we have come juxtaposed with how easily we can slip backwards. Although not a terribly long book, THE PEOPLE OF THE ABYSS is not ...