Shelter, the less predominant character in the novel, who is trying to rid the streets of homeless people uses subject specific Lexis to show the reader that he has a background in the army or has worked for the army. This is shown to the reader as Shelter always starts his chapters with, “Daily routine orders”.
Link uses sarcasm to emphasise a point, for example, “Good old Vince”. After Describing Vince as a Brutish, evil stepfather who is a boozer and a bastard, Link says, “Good old Vince”. The author, Robert Swindells uses this to create an irony.
At the beginning of page three Link mentions, “Born March 20th 1977… to Mr & Mrs X”. Link says this to show the reader that he has forgotten the past and wants to get on with life. The main quotation to support and emphasise this is, “Mr & Mrs X”. Another statement to support this is when Link says, “I strode out of the station with my backpack and bedroll, and it felt like a new beginning”. This also shows the reader that link was positive life would improve from what it was with Vince. Another quotation to support this is “Nobody knows you. Where you’re from and what’s gone before. That’s you’re business”. One other quotation to support this is when Link chooses the name to give to Ginger he says, “‘Link’ I said. I’d seen it on this signpost earlier. Thames – Link. It’s a railway.”
Robert Swindells also uses various techniques to make living on the streets look very hard and scary. The reader is informed of this when Link says, “Sad is what it is, Sad and scary. You’re leaving a place you know and heading into the unknown with nothing to protect you. This also informs the reader that this novel appears to be tragedy in many respects.
Link feels very depressed after applying for many jobs in London and not getting any because he was homeless and was looking rough and scruffy, also looking like a tramp because of sleeping in the same clothes on the solid concrete floor.
When Link started living on the streets of London he thought he was a hard boy who everyone would be terrified of after hitting an old bloke but his hopes were soon dashed after he was kicked out of his ‘bedroom’ by the streetwise, tough person he wanted to be. An example of this is shown to us when Link mentions, “this guy was what I was kidding myself I’d become”.
Robert Swindells uses Shelters storyline as a very good way in which to present living on the streets of London. As Shelter goes around London looking for young and old people, whenever Shelter says, “Hostel” he always manages to get them to his house so that he can kill them. This shows the reader that homeless people are desperate for somewhere comfortable to sleep at. An example of this is when Shelter gets his first client, “That got him ‘hostel’…he fell for it hook line and sinker”.
On page twenty-one Shelter also says, “I am not a murderer at all – I’m a Soldier out of uniform, killing for his country.” After killing a homeless person shelter mentions to the reader that he is not a murderer but a soldier killing for his country. This statement is not true as Shelter has murdered people who have done nothing to him and his country. Shelter thinks he is doing a good thing and is particularly careful about every step he takes. The author, Robert Swindells uses this to create an irony.
As the reader gets deeper and deeper into the book, they start to grasp knowledge of Shelters storyline and start to know the feeling of how it is to be homeless and the different setbacks and failures it may have. The reader also learns not to stereotype homeless people.
