Manhattan Transfer · Chapter
I: Ferryslip explained
The chapter opens with the arrival of a ferry in New York, introducing Bud Korpenning, a weary upstate newcomer seeking work and the 'center of things' in the city.
What happens
The chapter opens with the arrival of a ferry in New York, introducing Bud Korpenning, a weary upstate newcomer seeking work and the 'center of things' in the city. It also follows Ed Thatcher, a nervous new father, as he learns of his daughter's birth and celebrates with a German printer named Mr. Zucher, discussing ambition, family, and the costs of city life. A vignette depicts a bearded man shaving off his beard with a safety razor, symbolizing transformation.
Themes in this chapter
The American Dream & Ambition
Bud Korpenning arrives seeking work and the 'center of things'; Ed Thatcher and Mr. Zucher discuss saving, ambition, and providing for children; the shaving vignette reflects a desire for self-improvement.
Urban Alienation
The ferry slip scene depicts crowds crushed and jostled like apples; Bud is a lonely newcomer; the city is overwhelming and impersonal.
Social Class and Inequality
Bud's worn shoes and clothes mark him as lower class; the lunch counter man advises him to look presentable; Ed Thatcher and Mr. Zucher discuss money and the cost of raising children.
Characters to notice
- Bud Korpenning
Arrives by ferry, tired and blistered from walking, asks directions to Broadway and the center of things, eats at a lunch counter and is advised to clean up before job hunting.
- Ed Thatcher
Visits the hospital after his wife gives birth, learns he has a daughter named Ellen, meets Mr. Zucher in a saloon, and discusses fatherhood and ambition.
- Ellen Thatcher
Born in this chapter, named after her grandmother, mentioned as a newborn in the hospital.
- Susie Thatcher
Ed Thatcher's wife, who has just given birth to Ellen; she is in the hospital and is described as 'poor Susie.'
Key passages
“Three gulls wheel above the broken boxes, orangerinds, spoiled cabbage heads that heave between the splintered plank walls, the green waves spume under the round bow as the ferry, skidding on the tide, crashes, gulps the broken water, slides, settles slowly into the slip.”
Gulls circle over garbage floating in the water as the ferry arrives, sliding and bumping into the dock.
Opens the chapter with a vivid, gritty image of the ferry's arrival, setting the tone for the city's harshness.
“The newborn baby squirmed in the cottonwool feebly like a knot of earthworms.”
The baby moved weakly in its wrapping, resembling a tangle of worms.
Describes Ellen Thatcher's birth with a raw, unromantic simile, emphasizing vulnerability.
“I want to get to the center of things.”
Bud expresses his desire to reach the heart of the city, where action and opportunity lie.
Reveals Bud's ambition and naivety as a newcomer.
“It's looks that count in this city.”
Appearance is what matters most in New York.
The lunch counter man's advice underscores the theme of social performance and inequality.
“A man vat is ambeetious must take chances.”
An ambitious man must be willing to take risks.
Mr. Zucher's philosophy reflects the immigrant drive for success.