Shattered, By Eric Walters: An Analysis

What is a privilege? To some, it may be wealth, power, eating three-course meals each day, and basking in expensive clothing. How about food, education, and a roof over your head, is that a privilege too? In the novel Shattered, by Eric Walters, Ian Blackburn is a wealthy teen who must complete his volunteer hours at a local soup kitchen to pass his civics class, it is here that he must overcome his prejudice towards the homeless. His eyes are opened to experiencing what life is like for homeless people and seeing what they truly are like with the owner of the soup kitchen, Mac, and a former United Nations peacekeeper, Jacques. The theme of Shattered is that privilege isolates us from the experiences of others. The aforementioned two types of privilege and their

It was hard for him to grasp the concept of something like this happening, henceforth causing him to panic. This is a direct result of his wealth sheltering him. Ian “tried to get to sleep for a long time”. Each time [he] closed [his] eyes [he] saw Jacob’s” (138). Once Ian has learned about the experiences of a victim, he can feel for himself as a person. Lastly, Ian’s classmates also show how privilege isolates us from the experiences of others through their lack of knowledge about homeless people. Ian’s classmates are all shown to have the privilege of a roof over their heads, clothes, and food. This is shown through their negative assumptions about homeless people. For instance, when the class discussed Ian’s interview with Jacqueline, his class discredited him solely because he is a hobo. Jason, one of Ian’s classmates, says, “‘You got all your information from a bum!’” (128). Jason’s stereotypes make him think that all homeless people are uneducated. In another instance, Ian’s class discussed the homeless and some students called homeless people “‘Drug addicts” as well as, “‘Crazy as a Loon’” and “‘Worthless’”