Essay | Symbolism in Maggie: A Girl of the Streets

In Maggie a Girl of the Streets, Stephen Crane uses animal images and color symbolism to de-humanize and emphasize the filthiness and insignificance of the common people.

Crane begins using animal images and color symbols in the beginning of MAGOTS, when he refers to a line of convicts as a worm: ."..a worm of unknown convicts..." (1). By comparing the convicts to a worm, Crane emphasizes both the filthiness and insignificance of the common people. Worms are grubby creatures that live in the dirt and grime. The link between the convicts and the dirty worms shows that the convicts are filthy, just like the worms. Worms are very small and insignificant creatures. This comparison shows just how little the lives of the lowly common people mean to the rest of the world. Crane continues, connecting colors to the convicts: .".. came from the...
(read more)