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Speak By Laurie Halse Anderson Analysis

725 Words3 Pages

When a Tree Falls in the Forest, does it Make a Sound?

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson is a novel following a 13-year-old girl, Melinda Sordino. The book depicts the aftereffects of sexual assault and brings awareness to the issue. Throughout the book, Melinda struggles to find her voice after being assaulted and becoming depressed. The book shows her effort to be able to find her voice again and put her demons of the past behind her. Laurie Halse Anderson represents Melinda's ability to move past her assault through her trees in art class and Melinda uses that assignment as a source of communication and finding her voice to speak up about her assault and depression.

Melinda does not have enough of a support group to feel comfortable telling …show more content…

"I open up a paper clip and scratch it across the inside of my left wrist. If a suicide attempt is a cry for help, then what is this? A whimper, a peep? Mom sees the wrist at breakfast. Mom: 'I don’t have time for this.'" Melinda is showing she needs help, and her mom could not understand any less. While Melinda shows she is not okay, no one cares enough to help her. If there was even one person who saw her whimper for help, she may have ended up in a much healthier environment, getting the help needed. But there was not, and Melinda was forced to struggle through her first year without friends and terrible grades along with a stinging memory of her being sexually …show more content…

Thankfully, I was not assaulted but I have struggled with my mental health and have learned and lived through the struggles of managing and balancing friendships, drama, and academic work. Melinda is sent to the principal’s office for struggling in school. To illustrate, "They [her parents] keep asking questions like "'What is wrong with you?' and 'Do you think this is cute?' How can I answer? I do not have to. They don't want to hear anything I have to say. (87)" On the contrary, my parents do care. During my silent struggle with my mental health, I felt the same as Melinda, I felt as if no one in the world cared about what I had to say and why I was struggling. One of the reasons this book became so popular was because so many people around the world could connect with their life and this book, like

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