Upton Sinclair really wrote The Jungle for the promotion of socialism, being a long-time socialist himself, but what really caught the public's attention were the few pages of descriptions about horrors of the meat packing industry. He might not have been very happy that the book had gained fame for a different reason, but nevertheless it gained a considerable amount of fame and widely spread the message to the public that socialism is better than communism. There are many different characters in The Jungle and they all have meaning to their roles. These characters vary widely in many aspects, including: professions, social status, and economic status. The main character of the novel is Jurgis Rudkus, a Lithuanian immigrant. His wife is Ona Lukoszaite, also Lithuanian. Their son is named Antanas, but he dies after not long, which is truly a turning point for Jurgis. Phil Jack Duane is a savvy and educated criminal who is also "politically connected". Connor is a foreman in Packingtown, politically connected through Scully, and a man who causes a lot of trouble for Jurgis. Mike Scully is a powerful political leader in Packingtown. There are also members of Ona's family, each of whom plays a minor role in the story. The story opens with the party at Jurgis and Ona's wedding in America, but quickly returns to the time before they left Lithuania. Jurgis met Ona at a horse fair and fell in love with her. Unfortunately they were too poor to marry, as Ona's father had just died.