100 pages • 3 hours read
Upton SinclairThe Flivver King: A Story of Ford-America
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1937A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Summary
Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapters 1-3
Chapters 4-6
Chapters 7-9
Chapters 10-12
Chapters 13-15
Chapters 16-18
Chapters 19-21
Chapters 22-24
Chapters 25-27
Chapters 28-30
Chapters 31-33
Chapters 34-36
Chapters 37-39
Chapters 40-42
Chapters 43-45
Chapters 46-48
Chapters 49-51
Chapters 52-54
Chapters 55-57
Chapters 58-60
Chapters 61-63
Chapters 64-66
Chapters 67-69
Chapters 70-72
Chapters 73-75
Chapters 76-78
Chapters 79-81
Chapters 82-84
Chapters 85-92
Character Analysis
Themes
Symbols & Motifs
Important Quotes
Essay Topics
Tools
BetaChapters 16-18Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 16 Summary
Ford has now experimented with eight different automobile models. One day, he announces that the only model his plant will make is the Model T, “a single cheap car for the masses” (41). The Model T is not beautiful, but it is practical, and Ford is convinced that “the mass of the American people [are] like himself, caring very little about beauty and a great deal about use” (41). Despite the doubts of those around him, Ford buys land in a Detroit suburb and begins to construct the world’s largest automobile factory. He continues to reduce the price of his car each year, and sales increase. The factory makes a hundred cars a day, and Ford has an acute sense of his own power.
Ford builds a power plant, a steel plant, and forges for his factory; he plans to build his own mines, ships, and railroads as well. He hires a team of experts to perfect each aspect of the business, from the production of materials to accounting and advertising. Ford is determined not only to change Americans’ transportation habits, but also to “make them over into people like himself” (42): sober, hard-working, enamored of machinery, well-paid, thrifty, and each the owner of a Model T. Ford fantasizes about imposing his own good sense on others: “‘I am common sense,’ said the soul of Henry Ford” (43).
Chapter 17 Summary
Each evening, Abner reads the paper at home. In this way, he learns about the new plant, which he visits on Sundays along with some colleagues. While most of the men, like Abner, are proud of Ford, “a few were jealous [...] and had the idea that Henry’s prosperity had come out of their hides” (44). Abner views this idea as preposterous and dismisses these men as “socialists” (44), although he does not know exactly what the word means and generally avoids politics: “Talk about politics was not encouraged in the plant. Mr. Ford didn’t approve of politics” (44).
In 1912, Abner falls victim to a flu epidemic and is seriously ill. The doctor orders him to stay in bed, but Abner (who, in eight years at the Ford plant, has never missed a day of work) is terrified of losing his job. A company agent comes to his home to confirm that Abner is genuinely sick and assures Abner that he will not lose his job. However, Abner “knew enough of the routine in that plant to understand the danger of letting it be known that a man could be dispensed with” (45). He lies anxiously in bed until he is finally well enough to return to work. Even then, he is still frail and weak, and “the experience made a deep impression on his mind, bringing back the cruel fears of his boyhood” (46).
Abner receives a profit-share bonus of $70, which covers his doctor’s bills. He feels even more grateful to Ford than before; Ford, for his part, considers his company “sacred” (46) because so many families depend upon it.
Chapter 18 Summary
When the presidential election comes around, Abner is tempted to vote for the Democrat Woodrow Wilson, but his belief that a Democratic president means hard times dissuades him from doing so. Wilson wins the election and business does slow. Abner remains a staunch Republican for life.
Ford continues to succeed despite the economic slump. He lowers the price of the Model T to $600 and sells 500 cars a day. A year later, he lowers the price to $550 and sells almost 1000 cars a day.
As Ford’s cars grow in popularity, they acquire affectionate nicknames: “flivvers”, “tin Lizzies”, and “Henry’s” (47). Jokes about the car abound and serve as free advertisement.
Abner, who is still the foreman of the spindle-nut screwing department, oversees the screwing-on of 4000 spindle-nuts a day. He moves his family into the suburb where the enormous new Ford factory is located.
Chapters 16-18 Analysis
These chapters depict the early days of the rising Ford empire. Ford’s business plan, mass-producing inexpensive cars, proves successful, and he plans to expand into other industries in order to make materials for the cars at a lower price. However, the plans are still in their infancy and nobody, including Ford, foresees the sweeping consequences these changes will have for American industry and workers alike.
Abner’s anxiety that he will lose his job because of a brief absence from work is, however, one indication where things are going. Although Abner views his employer as benevolent, and the factory as a place ruled by justice and opportunity, he also knows instinctively that being absent for too long could result in his losing his job—not because his employer does not wish him well, but because Ford, or the foreman, will become aware that Abner’s presence is not really necessary. This fear points to the increasing redundancy of workers within Ford’s factory.
