Katherine Paterson's Lyddie

764 Words2 Pages

Have you ever been in a situation where you could help others and yourself, but may affect your life heavily? In the novel, Lyddie, by Katherine Paterson, the main character, Lyddie Worthen, faces a decision either to sign the petition or not, that Diana Goss is circulating. Lyddie becomes a factory worker in the Concord Corporation, which is in Lowell, Massachusetts. She leaves the tavern so that she could make more money in the spinning room. Lyddie lives in a boarding house with other girls. Some would say Lyddie should not sign because she will be fired but at least she will help others in the future if she signs. If Lyddie signs the petition she’ll be able to work fewer hours and work in and better and safer place. She should sign since …show more content…

Since the girls are working for long hours it makes them exhausted every day. The girls are overworked since they are working more than 10 hrs per day. But if Lyddie signs the petition there would be fewer hours which mean she would be less tired. Also with fewer hours she would be able to spend time doing other things such as reading and writing. Its is mentally tiring for the workers. Even though it is cold outside, the temperature inside is like the sun is blasting. It is very hot inside the factory, it can also make the workers faint and give them a headache. In Chapter 12 Lyddie gets more looms to tend and the machinery is faster since the company wants to make more money. “Now I’ve twice that may at a speed that would make the devil curse.”(91) Not only does she have to work fast but also make sure it is done correctly. This causes her mentally and physically to be tired. Even though, she is working long hours, with more looms and fast pace she does not get the money she deserves. But if Lyddie signs the petition the future workers would be able to keep up. If she decides signs, she will spend less time in the hot factory, be able to do other activities, more condition could be improved. All in all, the fast pace, long hours and hot temperature all contribute to Lyddie being exhausted and it also shows that the conditions are

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