Analysis

Sandburg's satire of Chicago 's brutality brilliantly emphasizes the harsh economy of the time. Wages at this time were so incredibly low that parents were forced to pull their children out of school and send them into the factories to earn wages and help support the family. Children lost their childhood to dark, stuffy rooms and ten hour days at a machine. These conditions led to an early death rate of children factory worker. Even if they survived into adulthood, they knew no other skills to build on for promotion. It was a perpetual cycle that could not be broken. Also, due to such a supply of young workers willing to take a lesser pay rate, the wages for men and women dropped accordingly, causing more families to need their children to work and continuing the cycle.