City of Orphans

“So streets are clogged wheel to wheel with wagons, trolley (bells ting-a-linging), cabs and carts.”

Here, the author employs two literary devices, alliteration and onomatopoeia, to give the reader a full sense of what urban life might have felt like at the turn of the 20th century. This moment highlights a mix of both old and new technology in the modes of transportation, symbolizing a city on the precipice of modernizing the movement of people.

.“Anyway, Maks ain’t supposed to call for help. Kids’ doings—good or bad—are just for kids.”

A nod to the old adage, “A child should be seen, not heard,” the author establishes the place of children in this society. They are to be not only silent, but invisible.

“Even the air is crowded. Crisscrossing telephone lines make the smokey sky look like ruled paper.”

Two sentences succinctly describe urban life at the turn of the century. The air is polluted, and smog makes the air feel thick. The telephone lines exemplify the modernity weaving into city life.