Trash By Andy Mulligan Analysis

‘Education is not helpful when you work at a dumpsite’

In Andy Mulligan’s ‘Trash’ there are three boys Gardo, Raphael and Rat. They are trash boys who scavenge amongst dumpsites looking for trash that can be sold so that they can earn a living. They were taught to scavenge for anything that could be sold. Which includes things like old tin cans and plastic bottles that can be recycled, to perhaps something more valuable, like a wallet. Which is what the boy’s find that change their lives. A wallet with an ID card a small locker key. The bag leaves them onto a massive adventure. Throughout the adventure they struggle as they do not have many resources where they live. The boys live in a place called Behala, where there is a mission school that they can attend to. Although the children believe ‘Education is not helpful when you work at a dumpsite’ they don’t realise that their education could provide them with essentials that they need in life.

Firstly, there are several children live on dumpsites all around the world, most start their life on dumpsites from as little as 7 or 8 years old. Their scavenging can mean

If they have no knowledge of what they are holding then they could easily be ripped off and sell something for so much cheaper than what they could sell it for they grow up thinking that they had found a bargain. For example in story Raphael refers to ‘Plastic (preferably white and blue), paper, cardboard, tin cans, anything metal, rags, glass and rubber’ being best to sell and re-use. Judging by the education that they have, if they were to learn more they are more than likely to be picking up more things that they would normally have considered trash and thrown away without even looking at