In his novel, Out of This Furnace, Thomas Bell reveals the hardships that three generations of an immigrant family had to endure due to being in the working class of the Pittsburgh steel mills. This is just one example of the hardships that the immigrant worker faced when coming to America. The nature of immigration to America for most immigrants was to make money and to make a better life for themselves and their families. Many believed, when coming to America, they would become rich, as Kracha believes, "Who knows? We may all be millionaires by then" (Bell, 7). Often the only job opportunities available to immigrants were factory and mill jobs. The life of a mill worker was not a luxurious life. This is obvious in the lives of George Kracha and Mike Dobrejcak. The American immigrant workers' story is one of little success and of failure because of the prejudices and bias' faced by the workers; the poverty because of low wages, and the high death rates.
             The immigrant workers' story is somewhat successful because many were able to accumulate more money than they were able to make in their home country. Many immigrants were better off in America with their freedoms. As George Kracha says, "I'll admit, but have you forgotten how we had to live in the old country" (Bell, 59). George Kracha was able to save money, eventually buy and run a butcher shop. He was successful and this success allowed him to save money. But eventually, he lost everything and was back in a state of poverty. Other success stories include immigrants that went into business for themselves, such as saloon owners. Few were able to get into politics and better their lives. As in the case of Dobie, he made it the farthest up the social and economic ladder. Dobie states that he is. "Made in the USA" (Bell, 410) and he is correct. He was able to take advantage of the freedoms and opportunities in Americ...