STONE COLD
DAILY ROUTINES 11-15
By: Robert Swindells
Learning Objectives
 To understand the main events that have led to the
conclusion of the novel:
 You will come to learn of the plot developments between




Daily Routine 11-15
Reinforce terms like: Dramatic Irony, Situational Irony,
Personification, Simile and Foreshadow
Learn of the climax
You will learn about the use and function of: Juxtaposition
You will come across the significance of various important
quotes
 You will also have to complete the following tasks:
 Write a newspaper article that details the events that led
up to Shelter’s arrest. You well be required to point out
what you as a journalist managed to see in his apartment
 Test on its significance


Daily Routine Orders 11
The two plots eventually manage to merge together in this chapter
Shelter begins to de-brief the readers on the day's events. He calls his
operation: ‘Laughing Boy One’
 He reveals how he had know Link and Ginger’s names first. Then, he began
follow them, waiting for them to separate
 Shelter is almost animal like in the way in which he stalks his prey, only
deciding to pounce when they are alone, apart from the shelter of a group
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Realising that Ginger is alone, Shelter moves in
He convinces the 'cagey' Ginger that he has knocked Link down and that the
seriously injured Link is at his house wanting him to come
Ginger, concerned about his friend, follows Shelter
Ginger thinks he sees an injured body covered in the house and immediately runs
to it
Ginger becomes the latest victim to be murdered
Shelter's sadistic nature is evident in his delight at his 'brilliance' in snaring

This is despite the fact that Ginger is suspicious about his story of Link being injured

The story that Shelter engineers to convince Ginger that it really is the
heavily bleeding Link under the blanket, display his unbalanced state of
mind
 In a chilling warning, Shelter vows to carry on the killing wanting to kill
Link next. When he does not see him, he states, 'there's always tomorrow,‘

He calls Link’s operation: ‘Laughing Boy Two’
Daily Routine Orders 11 (Cont’d)
 After considering various reasons for Ginger's disappearance, Link
decides to ask around
 In a conversation that follows with a Big Issue vendor, Link learns
that:
1.
2.
Ginger was seen talking to another man
Link's name was mentioned
 Tension is created as the readers realise that the vendor witnessed
Ginger talking to his killer

The readers know that murderer is also aware of Link's existence
 This is an example of Dramatic Irony
 This is considering that the readers are fully aware of what is going on, but Link has
not the slightest clue
 In a chance meeting, Link speaks to a Toya, a girl that knows
Ginger. She too is unsure of Ginger's whereabouts


She suggesting that he may have found employment and moved on
Link then makes a Promise: Not allow anyone to get too close to him
 After a brief meeting with a second 'dosser' called Gail, Link tells her that
he must go in keeping with his promise
 Link then goes back on his promise when Gail makes it clear that
she needs his help. This is considering:
1.
2.
He realizes that is may need her, just as he needed Ginger
He finds her to attractive
Daily Routine Orders 12
 Shelter appears annoyed with himself because he has made a
'mistake.‘
1.
Instead of concentrating on Link, he 'went looking for army
boots' to dress his collection of corpses in
2. This has given time for link to make an new friend, Gail
 This relapse strengthens his determination to capture Link
 Now that Link has a companion (Gail), Shelter admits that he
must, 're-group' and 'devise fresh tactics' if he is to succeed this
time
 Homelessness moves individuals to the edge of society, to a place
where they exist rather than live. Homelessness creates a 'separate
species.‘
 Link talks of how being an 'outsider' denies you the chance to:
1.
Get a haircut
2. Have dental check – ups
3.
Buy clothes and other necessary items
4. Talk casually to girls

 This is because normal everyday experience does not apply to you
At his lowest point, Link begins to think of himself as, “Living beside, not in
harmony with the world around him”
 It is as if he is a completely different species
Daily Routine Orders 12 (Cont’d)
 In meeting Gail, Link learns discovers the following has occurred:
He learns to appreciate what it is to feel that he belongs to society
again
He talks how for the first time in months, he 'wasn't some sort of
freak‘
The cold and the hunger are not much of a problem
He maybe in love with her
1.
2.
3.
4.
o
Situational Irony: Earlier on, he stated on difficult it is to get to know
any girl as a dosser
 Gail questions and learns a lot about, ‘The Scene’

Living homeless in the city
 Link was so caught up with Gail, that he completely forgot about
the disappearance of Ginger

He admits that this is the result of love
 The chapter ends on a positive note:

Link has made a friend, someone who seems genuinely interested in him
as a person
 As readers, we are forced to reflect on our own materialistic
existence

In the 21st century, how many of us can honestly say that all we need to
be happy is the company of others?
 Personification: “Panic squeezed my heart”
Daily Routine Orders 13
 Shelter vows to continue his 'business' to rid the
United Kingdom of the homeless
 The word ‘business’ indicates that Shelter believes
that he is providing a valuable service
 Shelter boasts about the fact that:
1.
2.
3.
4.
He has killed 7 dossers
Each execution has been beautifully planned
It is difficult to find a patterns of who is victims are
1 of the dossers he murders is Black
 Situational Irony: His explanation that he does not
discriminate and he murders all dossers regardless of their
colour is laughable
 Quote: “None of my lads is hungry, and they've got a
roof over their heads and a floor as well”
1.
This self-serving logic is his attempt to convince the readers
that he is carrying out this task for the benefit of the country
2.
Situational Irony: Shelter does provide a roof, floor
and relief from hunger, despite the fact that the
dossers he lures are dead
Daily Routine Orders 13 (Cont’d)
 Feeling that Gail values him, Link becomes obsessed
with finding a job. He wants to provide a home for
her. As a result, he:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Haunted job centres
Wrote letters to employers
Bought stamps he could not afford
Held several interviews
He had to leave Gail in his quest for a job
 Link realizes that he fact that she has not left him
yet may show that she too is in love with him
 Toya's father is scouring the streets looking for her. It
is breaking her parents` heart
1.
2.
Link offers to help by letting her know that her father is
looking for her if he sees Toya again
Link wishes that someone cared for him enough to come
to find him
Daily Routine Orders 14
 The readers learn of a strange situation, where a middle-
aged man knocks at Shelter's door the previous evening
 Suspicious of his appearance and warned by his instinct,
Shelter views his visitor from behind a curtain
 He chooses NOT to open the door to an uninvited character
 In a further insight into his warped mind, the readers learn
how Shelter's life depends on being in control of the details
to his house. This is considering that:
1.
2.
He continuously checks everything
He only using a 60-watt bulb
 This is so as to never 'show a strong light after dusk‘
 Nick, (Big Issue vendor), approaches Link to tell him that he
saw Toya with the same man that he saw Ginger talking to
 Nick's suspicions are aroused, as both: A) Ginger and B) Toya
go missing immediately after talking to this strange man
 Realising that he is need of help, Nick sent Toya's father who is searching for his missing daughter – to Captain Hook’s
house, who may know where the suspected man lives
Daily Routine Orders 14 (Cont’d)
 Concerned about what he has just heard, Link
suggests that Nick should go to the police
 Nick is less optimistic, expecting the police to
conclude that Toya and Ginger are two dossers
who have simply moved on
 Increasingly troubled by Ginger's sudden
disappearance, Link persuades Gail to
accompany him to the police station
 Link is convinced that Ginger would not disappear
without saying anything
 Hence, this arouses further suspicion on who this man
might be
 Just as Nick had forecast, the duty sergeant is
irritated, claiming that:
1.
2.
The matter has already been investigated
Nothing has been found to justify further action
Daily Routine Orders 15
 Confident that he can continue to outwit the police,
Shelter toys with the idea of whether or not he should
open the door to the 2 officers
 He decides to do so, while doing the following:
1.
2.
Being calm
Adopts persona to suit the moment
 Being, ‘Shy and modest‘
3.
Shows that he has a genuine concern for the homeless
 At the end of the police visit, he congratulates himself
on being able to remain 'as cool as a cucumber.‘
 Simile: ‘Cool as a cucumber’  Used to show how calm he
was during the police visit
 Shelter launches into a venomous attack, by
declaring that he has had the 'last laugh‘
 This is a sign of absolute arrogance
 According to him, the enemy has 'been repulsed.’
 His laughing out loud makes the readers think for that he is:
A) A lunatic and B) Has completely lost his mind
Daily Routine Orders 15 (Cont’d)
 Satisfied that Shelter is telling the truth, the officers
offer advice telling him to be careful about whom he
invites into his home.
 Quote: 'I'll be careful'  Shelter’s reply to the police
1.
2.
3.
4.
This is ironic
Shelter will be careful, careful not to get caught
It shows how loyal he will be to follow the police’s advice
He continues to deceive the police
 Quote: ‘I never let them stay overnight - well –
because I'm afraid I might be murdered in my bed.’
1.
2.
3.
This is ironic
Shelter is the one who is murdering the homeless, they
never attack
This shows Shelter’s ability to deceive the officers with her
persona
 Shelter is playing games by deliberately addressing
the constable as inspector
 This is done in an effort to make him feel more important
Daily
Routine
Orders
15
(Cont’d)
 Link and Gail plan to approach Captain Hook to find out where Nick
lives

Aware that he would not tell them, Gail decides to go on her own
 Whilst Link is waiting for Gail to return, he reflects on how the
following:
How he has changed his life for the better
He feels a strange uneasiness that he cannot explain
He is suspicious of Gail's confidence, and suspects that she might not really
be homeless
 Quote: ‘She [Gail] wasn't screwed up enough.' (Link)
1.
2.
3.
1.
2.
This shows suspicion she may not be really homeless
Foreshadow: It serves as a sign that this maybe the case later on
 After finding out where Nick lives, they both set off to watch the
house where they think Toya and Ginger were last seen
 They spend a considerable amount of time watching the house over a
few days

Their surveillance amounts to nothing
 Quote: ‘Horrible things had been done in the house‘ (Link)
1.
2.
3.

Foreshadow: A terrible event may ensue there
Link is struck by the ordinary appearance of the man who lives there
Juxtaposition: It is so peaceful, yet terrible things may have occurred there
Juxtaposition: The act of placing close together or side by side for comparison or contrast
purposes (Def.)
Daily Routine Orders 15 (Cont’d)

Gail has 'a couple of things to see to' so Link keeps watch alone. To his luck,
it manages to rain quite tremendously
 Shelter manages to see Link and lures him by:
1.
2.
3.


Striking a conversation about his missing cat
Inviting into his house to eat
Tempting him with the offer of a coat that might keep Link warm and dry
Link feels that it is rude to refuse such a generous offer
Once in the living room, Link notices the following:
1.
2.
3.
Everything is in its place
The house is incredibly clean
There are no strong lights

Situational Irony: Link puts himself in great danger in Shelter’s house,
but is not initially aware of it
 The lingering suspicions that Link had as he surveyed the house have now
dissolved. Alone in the room, Link begins to ironically feel more comfortable
 The sight of his watch on the sideboard alerts Link that there is something
wrong
1.
2.
3.
Link had been mugged for his watch by another homeless man earlier on in the
novel
As readers, we are able to make the connection that Shelter may have killed the
man that mugged Link
This causes Link to feel great discomfort, since his watch would not appear there by
chance
Daily Routine Orders 15 (Cont’d)
 As the man walks into the room, Link starts to:
1.
2.
Panic
Feel a tightening sensation in his chest
 Climax: 'Paralyzed with horror,' Link looks at the
man's contorted face and he realizes that he is
trapped by the same 'mad' man that had taken
Ginger and Toya
 Climax: The highest or most intense point in the
development of a plot (Definition)
 Shelter warns Link of the fate of the other 'recruits‘.
He removes the floorboards for Link to see the
bodies of the other victims
 Realising the urgency with which he must escape,
Link immediately react by:
1.
2.
Trying to smash the front window  The glass only
cracks
Link, 'sobbing with terror,' manages to temporarily claw
himself free
Daily Routine Orders 15 (Cont’d)
 Shelter manages to quickly pin him to the floor
 Overhanging the hole in the floorboards, Link is
forced to look at the bodies of the murdered victims
below and he recognises Ginger
 Link is losing consciousness as Shelter is trying to
strangle him. Shelter does get off him, but it is only to
reach for a length of flex to kill Link more quickly
 Unexpectedly, the sirens scream and the police arrive
to drag Shelter out
 Gail is waiting for Link she explains how she has got
the police involved:
1.
2.
3.
4.
When she returned outside the house she did not see him
and was about to leave
The lights then came on and the curtains fell
She could see through the window Link struggling to
break free
She then immediately ran to get help
Daily Routine Orders 15 (Cont’d)

Gail reveals her true identity that she is actually a T.V journalist
researching homelessness

Significance: This therefore fulfills Link’s earlier suspicion that she is not a real
dosser

Angry and traumatised by his experience, Link at first accuses Gail of
standing by when she was aware of what was happening
 He realises though that he 'hardly knew what he [Link] was saying.'
 Out of sympathy, Gail then: A) 'shoves a wad of bank notes into Links
hand’, B) wishes him good luck and C) Disappears into a waiting car
 Link reflects on what has happened to Shelter, and the situation that he
now finds himself in:
1.
Shelter has been sent to prison
 He still has 'a roof [over his head], a bed and 3 meals a day
 Situational Irony: Although Link is not a murderer, he does not get any of these
privileges/benefits
2.
3.

Link points out that a murderer is treated with more dignity than he is
Link is not bitter about his near death experience, or even that he still has to
struggle on the streets
Link hopes that Gail's research into homelessness may result to the
following:
1.
2.
3.
Prompt people to make things better, if they know what is going on
Young people will look for alternatives to life on the streets
It may indicate that he has forgiven her, for fooling him into thinking that she is
interested in him and that she is a dosser