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Allusion
Explanation and Analysis—Beasts and Humans:
While Thornton uses the metaphor of "beasts" to refer to his angry workers, Margaret insists that he look at them as human beings.
During the confrontation at Marlborough Mills, Thornton says that bringing in soldiers is the only way to deal with rioters, who are “men that make themselves into wild beasts.” An angry mob, he implies, will only respond to the use of brute force. Nevertheless, Margaret begs him to “face them like a man [… ] speak to your workmen as if they were human beings.” Though frightened herself by the “demoniac desire” of the crowd, she perceives that seeing the masses as humans who can be reasoned with, instead of as irrational beasts, is the only hope for avoiding violence. Notably, in making this plea, she also appeals to Thornton's own humanity, suggesting he'll be less than a man if he doesn't speak to his workers face to face.
The beast metaphor, and Margaret's counter to it, suggest that failing to regard workers as fully human is how manufacturers like Thornton have gotten into such bitter clashes with their employees.
The term "demoniac" is likely an intentional biblical allusion. The word refers to a person who is demon-possessed, notably to the Gerasene demoniac whose evil spirits caused him to be so strong and violent that no one but Jesus could heal him. So "demoniac desire" evokes the idea of the crowd's potential for unrestrained violence. Since Margaret takes the risk of regarding the "demoniac" mob as if they're rational people, this could be Gaskell's subtle way of setting her up as a Christlike figure (especially since she suffers on Thornton's behalf in the same chapter).
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