Mrtvački brod

Gales loses his identity and right to exist when his ship sails away without him with his seaman's card and passport still on board in his jacket pocket. Stranded on foreign shores, our sailor is systematically persecuted by the authorities in various European countries. Gales was often imprisoned, deported and even sentenced to death simply because he was an undocumented worker.

Without a seaman's license, Gales cannot get a job on a ship to return home to New Orleans. The situation is further complicated because the American consulate will not issue him the necessary papers since he has no proof of his identity.

In a desperate attempt to get out of the situation, Gales reluctantly accepts a job on the Yorikke, an ancient rusted ship. The Yorikke is truly a ship of death. The working conditions are murderous and simply unsustainable, so the sailors jump into the sea or are killed by the captain. Even the ship's rats will not touch the slops that are distributed to the hapless and eternally hungry sailors.