Analysis

The structure in “Loose Change” by Andrea Levy is generally chronological and culminates in a huge plot twist as the narrator abandons the immigrant girl without helping her.

The narrator presents herself as a typical, unsociable Londoner, and she ends up confirming this impression as she selfishly abandons Laylor without offering her help.

Laylor is a young girl who has recently fled Uzbekistan with her brother and is now living on the street. Although she is unfamiliar with English ways, she kindly gives the narrator some of her last money.

The physical setting underlines the difference in situation between the narrator and Laylor. The story takes place in the National Portrait gallery, which is a place of high culture where the narrator feels at home. This provides a contrast to Laylor’s desperate situation where money for food and a bed is the main focus point.

The story is told by a first-person narrator. Despite being a third-generation immigrant herself, the narrator is highly biased in the way she sees Laylor and her situation. Her description of the girl is generally negative, which makes her unreliable.

The language is full of similes, which help describe Laylor and the narrator to us. The text also includes rhetorical questions and repetition. Finally, a couple of symbols underline the difference in situation between Laylor and people like the narrator.

A full analysis of the short story can be found in the following pages.

Extract

Here you can read an extract from our study guide:

Similes

A large number of similes can be found in the text. For instance, the cold is “like acid” (p. 1, l. 7) on the narrator’s skin, which makes her enter the Portrait Gallery where she meets Laylor. She eventually returns willingly to that same cold to escape the girl and avoid helping her.

The simile “as mournful as a glum kid at a party.” (p. 2, l. 17) describes Laylor’s eyes and helps us realise that the girl is in fact very troubled. This is obviously because of the desperate situation she is in.

Another simile is “Her money jangled like a win on a slot machine” (p. 2, l. 32). This may suggest that, from the narrator’s point of view, the girl has an exaggerated number of coins. However, the simile also creates irony as the girl has not won any money - in fact, the pocketful of change is all the money she has.