Jim Cullen believes that “the most common form” of the American Dream “was cast in terms of commercial success,” (Cullen, 60) and Rebecca Harding Davis discusses in “Life in the Iron-Mills” that it is difficult for workers in a low economic class to succeed. Davis depicts the workers’ life as miserable and hopeless but introduces the Quaker woman at the end to show the existence of hope. Davis implies that workers in the iron mills are stuck in poverty, and that religion is the only hope of the poor to have a better life. The chance for men to move up in the iron mills is little. Most workers do not even think of improving their living condition. Davis points out that “masses of men” are “with dull, besotted faces” even though their “skin
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However, Davis thinks that rich kind men are hard to find, because in “Life in the Iron-Mills”, none of the three visitors to the mill from higher economic classes helps Hugh. “The pocket,” (Davis, 1234) Kirby says he has “no fancy for nursing infant geniuses” and regards “our American system” as “a ladder which any man can scale” (Davis, 1231) even though he has money to educate Hugh. Kirby has no interest helping Hugh get out of poverty and would rather keep the worker to help increase the profit of his mill. “The heart,” (Davis, 1234) Doctor May is compassionate enough to tell Hugh to “take care of himself, and to remember it was his right to rise,” (Davis, 1234) but he claims that he does not have “the means” (Davis, 1233) and simply “prayed that power might be given these degraded souls to rise” (Davis, 1234) to wash his hand from the poverty issue. Doctor May gives up doing what he can do after realizing that he cannot save Hugh from his miserable life. As for Mitchell, he states that “reform is born of need, not pity” (Davis, 1234). Mitchell thinks workers in iron mills should stand on their own to reform without help from people in top economic classes. Even if he is such an intellectual who precisely gets Hugh’s calling for an equal opportunity to get a better life through reading Korl’s face, indifferent Mitchell prefers his outsider
However, Davis thinks that rich kind men are hard to find, because in “Life in the Iron-Mills”, none of the three visitors to the mill from higher economic classes helps Hugh. “The pocket,” (Davis, 1234) Kirby says he has “no fancy for nursing infant geniuses” and regards “our American system” as “a ladder which any man can scale” (Davis, 1231) even though he has money to educate Hugh. Kirby has no interest helping Hugh get out of poverty and would rather keep the worker to help increase the profit of his mill. “The heart,” (Davis, 1234) Doctor May is compassionate enough to tell Hugh to “take care of himself, and to remember it was his right to rise,” (Davis, 1234) but he claims that he does not have “the means” (Davis, 1233) and simply “prayed that power might be given these degraded souls to rise” (Davis, 1234) to wash his hand from the poverty issue. Doctor May gives up doing what he can do after realizing that he cannot save Hugh from his miserable life. As for Mitchell, he states that “reform is born of need, not pity” (Davis, 1234). Mitchell thinks workers in iron mills should stand on their own to reform without help from people in top economic classes. Even if he is such an intellectual who precisely gets Hugh’s calling for an equal opportunity to get a better life through reading Korl’s face, indifferent Mitchell prefers his outsider