Final answer:
The authors' use of 'hungry' to describe the mills metaphorically emphasizes the exploitative and relentless nature of sugar mill operations, representing the continuous and demanding labor enforced upon enslaved workers during the sugarcane harvest.
Step-by-step explanation:
The authors’ choice of the word hungry to describe the mills in the passage from Sugar Changed the World is significant in supporting the text's claim. This metaphorical use is designed to evoke the image of a relentless, insatiable consumption similar to that of a living organism. The description illustrates the relentless pace that enslaved people were forced to maintain during the sugarcane harvest in order not to falter before the never-satisfied mills that kept devouring raw sugar cane. The usage of this description underscores the mill as a symbol of the harsh and oppressive conditions under which enslaved people labored.
Historical context presents sugar plantations as enterprises of mass production where sugar, an incredibly valuable and labor-intensive crop, was grown. The process of cultivating, harvesting, and processing of the sugar cane is discussed in terms of a brutal labor system, wherein the enslaved workers faced dangerous work conditions, grueling labor intensity, and the perpetual threat of punishment if they could not keep up with the high demands of production. This understanding illustrates the exploitative nature of the plantation system and the central role sugar production played in the formation of early capitalist economies.