Poverty’s Consequences
“Poverty is the colostomy bag and wheelchair, the night terrors and bullets that maimed but didn’t finish their cunning work.” While all these things being listed here are literal consequences of living in poverty, in this case the greater meaning is metaphorical. The author is trying to move the definition of poverty away from dry economic figures and to concrete consequences of living within those constrained economic figures. It is through the impact of long-term poverty that it becomes synonymous with issues of poor health and societal dangers.
Unions
The author’s deep dive into the cause of poverty spreads well beyond low-income housing and food stamps. It is not a failure related simply to laziness and lack of work. “They told us that organized labor was a drag on the economy, burdensome cargo preventing our ship from reaching flank speed.” The argument being made is that the gradual loss of power of labor unions resulted in wage stagnation which fuels poverty-level living even among those with full-time jobs. The metaphor casts the higher wages gained for workers through union solidarity as slowing down worker efficiency and decreasing productivity which negatively impacts tax revenue across the capitalist spectrum.
Redistribution
The author explicitly asserts a distaste for the term “redistribution of wealthy.” “The notion of redistribution has the pernicious effect of framing social progress as a taking, as if the government were a greedy, many-tentacled monster seeking to reach deeper into your pocket.” The simile comparing a term of language to a monster is apt. The very word redistribution is enough to cause a kneejerk reaction even among those who actually support the concept but misunderstand its application. The imagery of the government as this monster with tentacles reaching into every pocket is the cornerstone of economic conservatism in America; a mythical beast that ensures campaign funding and incumbency.
Zombie
In order to avoid poverty—often unsuccessfully—many people are forced to work more than one job a day. The result often has them engaging the same metaphorical language as a young man named Julio: “I felt like a zombie.” In Julio’s case, the simile just barely manages to avoid becoming the literal truth. Sixteen hours of work seven days a week left him little time for anything other than sleep and lumbering through whatever free time he could find like a lumbering zombie.
The Wall
A metaphorical image which is persistently used throughout the book is the idea of the separation between economic strata as a wall. And, on occasion, this wall is simultaneously portrayed as literal. “The wall remains the wall, indifferent to our decorations.” The context of this quote is that many businesses pay lip service to progressive policies by supporting different niche causes. This kind of superficial address of issues does little to change the reality of the situation, the author argues. The same walls have remained firmly in place despite an ever-changing series of decorations based on cultural advancements.
