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Metaphor
Explanation and Analysis—Baggage:
In the following passage, Yank explains to his fellow workers the idea that it is they, not the wealthy passengers on the ship, that are important to society. He uses metaphor to make this point to his audience:
YANK: Dey’re just baggage. Who makes dis old tub run? Ain’t it us guys? Well den, we belong, don’t we? We belong and dey don’t. Dat’s all.
Yank compares the people in upper class on the ship to "baggage," claiming that they are unimportant to the operation of the ship. This point of view is empowering to the working class, emphasizing the necessity of their work to the operation of society. The upper class, on the other hand, does not contribute at all, according to Yank. This metaphor upends classist, elitist rhetoric, deflating any arguments about the superior significance of wealthy individuals. They, Yank stresses, are the true people who belong in society, not the ultra-wealthy who profit off of those beneath them. Rather radically, this metaphor further undermines the authority of the upper class, fixing them as alien individuals who do not belong to the group. Without the working class, the bourgeoisie would be useless. They are only able to profit because they have people to profit off of, or so claims Yank.
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