Engels describes the horrific living conditions of the poor in London and other big cities. The neighborhoods where workers live are called slums, and they exist side-by-side with the wealthiest and most respectable parts of town, just out of sight of the rich.

The author describes several true stories based on local reports and newspaper articles to illustrate the appalling conditions in the poor parts of London. For example, in Spitalfields a widow and her nine children live in a little back room with no furniture. They all use a heap of rags in one of the room’s corners as a bed. They have no bedding and their only clothes are their daywear. In another slum a family living in a small room without any furniture is reduced to using a hole in their floor as a privy. These and countless similar stories illustrate the extent of the poverty characterizing the majority of workers in England. The author concedes that most do not live in quite such terrible conditions, but the possibility of being reduced to such a state is very real and always present, as there is absolutely no job security or other provisions in place in case the main family provider dies or falls ill, for example.