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The Jungle, a 1906 novel by Upton Sinclair (1878-1968), was one of the most important works in the history of American literature. Its impact spread far beyond the world of letters: with its scathing portrayal of Chicago meat-packers, it led to public outcries against the scandalous practices of that industry, and this resulted in the passage of the Pure Food and Drug Act in the same year as the novel's publication.

So well-known is the political impact of The Jungle that its effect as a work of literature is not as frequently discussed. Nonetheless, Sinclair's lyrical portrait of a Lithuanian wedding celebration—occurring as it does against the grim industrial backdrop that ties the novel together—is a compelling one. It is a mark of his artistry that Sinclir, who was not a Lithuanian himself and therefore must have gathered his facts through research, does not bring in more detail than the...