Christ in Concrete

Job is the symbol whose presence dominates the book and shapes the course of all the characters in the book. Di Donato cleverly personifies Job with animalistic traits to make its daily oppression seem more horrific and opens the book with this chilling imagery: “Job loomed up damp shivery gray” (9). Right away, it's clear that Job is not a force for good. Job’s ominous and constant presence throughout the book re-emphasizes how capitalists have made its nature wicked. The author capitalizes Job to show it is not just one job but a systemic force that keeps workers impoverished in a cruel system to feed their family. However, Job is not mysterious, as it is a force that has its roots in the oppressive system of unfettered capitalism that prizes profit over workers’ safety. If Job is evil, then the corporations that set up Job must be evil, too. This is made clear when Paul says this of Geremio’s boss, who pushed the men to work in unsafe conditions: “Father, I know now that Mr. Murdin is our enemy!” (225).