"Git on Board"

Chaneisha Booker
March 29, 2011
English 1B

“Git on Board”

1.      Symbolism and Satire.

·         Miss Pat symbolizes the type of black people that decides to follow what the white man says in order to continue their lives without facing harm.

·         The “ism” that she also symbolizes is racism.

·         The author is satirizing Miss Pat and racism because he portrays the scene as if it’s taking place on an airplane but it’s actually a slave ship. Miss Pat constantly plays the perky, happy “flight attendant” and her attitude belies the fact everyone aboard the ship is being taken to become slaves in Savannah, Georgia.

2.      Themes and Conflicts.

·         As the ship goes through a time warp, Miss Pat says that even though everyone will become slaves, the songs they sing and the battles they fight will eventually evolve into the development of Black culture that we have present today.

·         The theme defines the identity of African-Americans because as Miss Pat flashes forward to say all of the things that will happen, black people has played a part in all of it and it reflects the way that they were slaves but now the culture has evolved into the new world.

·         I also see the conflict of social forces such as oppression and white supremacy which I think will be represented throughout the entire play.

3.      Allusions.

·         The Middle Passage was the journey of slave trading ships from the west coast of Africa, where the slaves were obtained, across the Atlantic, where they were sold or traded for goods.

·         The journey of “Git on Board” was referred to the Middle Passage where slaves will be taken across the Atlantic Ocean and they will eventually end up in Savannah.

·         Two African American Cultural Allusions found were the Funky Chicken and James Brown.

·         Two American Historic Allusions that I found was The American Revolution and the Civil War.

·         Then I found some African-American Historic Allusions such as Martin Luther King and Malcolm X.

4.      Satire.

·         The meaning of the quote “We value you” is unlike passengers thrown overboard on The Laughing Mary, the slaves are needed to be under the control of White Americans.

·         The quote “Fasten your shackles” means that the slaves among the ship will not be able to rebel.

·         Black people will be imprisoned by the force of oppression, continually under that authority of White Americans making them mentally shackled.