Thomas Bell's novel Out of this Furnace examines paper mill workers in the late 19th century. This was the time when many Europeans made the journey to America in search of a better life. Hoping to one day return home rich, these unskilled workers toiled long hours in dirty, dangerous factories for paltry wages that barely paid for room and board. One such up-and-comer that Bell puts into perspective is Djuro Kracha. In the novel Kracha comes to America with nothing and works hard for many years in a steel mill. After some time, Kracha becomes a prosperous butcher's business owner. However, due to a series of events, he loses everything: his wife, his business, his land, his house and his children. Why did these things happen? He brought ruin upon himself because of his inability to resist temptation. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Kracha is a hard worker. One of the underlying themes of Out of this Furnace is that hard work should be rewarded. Unfortunately, in the late 1800s, simply working wasn't enough to be successful. Fortunately, Kracha is also an intelligent man. He sees an opportunity to start a business and runs with it. However, right from the start, we can see that Kracha has two weaknesses. His first is Zuska Mihula, a dark and mysterious woman who he can't take his eyes off. Later, the reader realizes how much he really likes her when he talks to his old friend Dubik. I would have given every penny I had for half an hour alone with her (13). Kracha spent all his money on liquor to celebrate Zuska's birthday. This explains why Kracha had to walk from New York to White Haven. He used alcohol to force her to have sex with him, but she wouldn't give in to his desires. Later in the novel, she also causes him problems, but this time it is his undoing. He has a secret relationship with her and of course everyone finds out. When this news is discovered, Kracha loses all of its customers. In desperation, Kracha turns to his second weakness: alcohol. Alcohol is a considerable part of Kracha's life. He abuses it in several ways throughout the book. In one case he exploits the human addiction to alcohol to get a job. He offers the Irishman a drink as a bribe for a job. The Irishman replies: I never turn down a drink. Then Dubik and Kracha laughed heartily at this confession of human weakness (29). In another case, Mike Dobrejcak is inactive due to Bryan's presidential loss. To comfort him, Kracha believes that alcohol will cheer him up and says, "Now come on, I'll buy you a drink." The world has not come to an end (67). It seems like alcohol can heal everything. When the world collapses around him, Kracha continues to drink constantly (90) in his self-pity. Eventually, he begins to beat his second wife, Zuska. However, he could not remember everything that happened that memorable summer, perhaps because during the two busiest months [in the butcher's shop] he was continually drunk (107). Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper now from our expert writers. Get a Custom Essay At the beginning of his downfall Kracha could not resist Zuska. This caused him to lose his business. Finally, in his self-pity, he couldn't resist alcohol. An immigrant who knew no English in the late 1800s could have been wealthy, as Kracha demonstrated. Unfortunately, his lack of resistance to temptation led to his downfall.