Trash Essay

The wall divides the rich quarter, where the dead get buried in earth, from the poor quarter where the
dead get stacked in boxes (p. 180).
Discuss how Andy Mulligan represents the divide between the rich and the poor in Trash
What would you do if your only salvation was what the advantaged throw away? In Andy Mulligans book
Trash, sifting through the trash all day is all the poor can do to keep their family, and themselves alive.
No progression, no saving up money to buy a car and escape to freedom. The little that you earn on
Behala dumpsite only accounts for food, water and maybe some minor entertainment. As if life wasnt
hard enough, as much as a single wrong move and you could earn a one way trip to Colva Prison; the
same accounts for standing up against the corruption in the city. Even the most incorruptible police
officers are eventually turned because of the irresistible call of easy money. For the rich, just a quick
wave of cash and youre out of prison. For the workers of Behala dumpsite, youd think that theyre lifes
work would be remembered well. Sadly not, all the poor can afford is to be stacked upwards with the
rest of their brethren in their small concrete coffins. While the poor are treated horribly in death, they are
even more so in life. The rich have their mansions, pools and large recreational areas. All high quality to
ensure that top comfort is achieved. The poor cant even hope to dream of having any of that, some
might be lucky enough to live in a little shack. So while the minority of the poor have a small roof over
their heads, the rest are forced to live in small rooms pieced together with old car tyres and cardboard
boxes.
Andy Mulligans novel Trash illustrates the divide between the rich and the poor through the legal
system. This is shown when Gardo and Sister Olivia enter Colva prison. When they arrive there they are
forced to pay a large sum to enter the prison; then inside their first sight was prisoners in cages as if
they were savage animals. The corruption is easily detectable here because of the way everything
revolves around money. So when money is involved the poor are at a major disadvantage. The families
of the prisoners have to live in little shacks outside the prison so they can supply the prisoners with food
so they dont die of starvation. The inmates arent just adults, theyre also children and the elderly. Only
the poor end up in prison, for the rich can easily bribe their way out of any trouble they arouse.
Andy Mulligans novel Trash portrays the divide between the rich and the poor through the cemetery.
An obvious example of this is when Gardo, Raphael and Rat enter the cemetery later in the book to
search for Pias grave. There is a large wall dividing the rich area and the poor area. This instantly
shows that there is no equality between the rich and the poor at the cemetery. The main difference is
while the rich are buried underground in quality coffins, the poor are stacked in concrete boxes leading
upwards, with only a small plaque to remember them by. The plaque is usually written on with paint or
pen, which is a sad excuse for something that contains the remains of a mother, father or even children.
If the family is poor and unable to pay the rent, the grave is broken into and the body dumped. The rich
dont have to pay the rent, because they can easily pay the fee outright without the worry of recurring
bills and people breaking into the coffins. Again, everything is about money, and when money is
involved, the rich have the upper hand.
The people living in the world of Andy Mulligans novel Trash suffer every day. They are born poor so
they must live poor, the way they live will never change and the way they live is just as bad as where
they live. Rat lives under belt fourteen, in a small makeshift tunnel that is infested with rats and other
vermin. Raphael and most of the other dumpsite families live in small shacks built from boxes, tyres and
other rubbish. The slightest wind could cause their homes to collapse and leave them with even less
than nothing. For the rich, all this poverty is below them, they live without a care in the world as long as
they are comfortable. Their money buys them homes, clean disease-free food and a life. As long as they
have money, they can live life without a worry, but for all the poor without money there is no life.
In conclusion, Andy Mulligan has demonstrated the divide between the rich and the poor in excruciating
detail. He has shown the injustice of the prison system and the operation of the police force. Inequality
is still present in death, and he also revealed the many hardships that the poor have to endure while the
rich are sitting back relaxing. In Andy Mulligans book Trash money is the key to the top, and the only
way to make life bearable. Whilst the story is fictitious, all the issues in Trash are real world issues that
need to be acted on now. The poverty in the world is inhumane and its hard to believe that people just
sit by while people are suffering from major poverty. Are you going to be one of those people that just sit
by?