Ona goes into premature labor and is suffering, but Jurgis and her family do not have enough money to hire a midwife. Marija is unable to work and may lose her hand. State a theme for the novel based on these incidents.

THe near slavery of these immigrants at the hands of the Capitalist system fits as a theme here. Sinclair describes the plight of the immigrant working class in Packingtown as that of wage slavery. These capitalists would purposefully keep wages low and keep the people in poverty. Those without jobs would then be desperate for any work, and because the immigrant populations kept growing, the demand for work kept wages even lower. Ona is an example of how immigrants are an expendable resource, their lives are worth nothing.