why $(this) is used in this way?

why $(this) is used in this way?

Hi all,

In a plugin I see a the following code,

  1. $.fn.galleria = function( options ) {
  2.     if ( !$(this).length ) {
  3. ...

The code works. But this in $(this). above should be JQuery, so $(this). is essentially $(jQuery). Why don't use just "this"?

Thank you.