Murphy injects social commentary into his narrative throughout The Great Fire. He is clearly sympathetic to the O'Learys and their neighbors, all hard workers who were climbing the social ladder through long hours and mutual help. The O'Learys are presented as exemplars of the hard work that made Chicago a hive of activity. Both Catherine and Patrick O'Leary worked; their prosperity came from laboring side-by-side with one another. They were productive people whose labors added to the general wealth and welfare of the city. When they and many others of their economic level lost their homes, the blow to the city's economy must have been significant, but they tended to be vilified in the press. The O'Learys in particular were slandered, portrayed as drunkards and feeble-minded fools. Part of what Murphy attempts in The Great Fire is to set the record straight about the working people...