ipl-logo

Speak By Laurie Halse Anderson Character Analysis

1040 Words5 Pages

The character Melinda from "Speak” by “Laurie Halse Anderson is similar to the character of Alice Sun from “If You Could See The Sun” by Ann Liang because they are both quite anxious people in the beginning of the novels . The two characters are different because Melinda is trying to be noticed by others but Alice is opening up for a love interest/ friendly relationship. In the Novel “Speak”, Melinda was led to a forest by Andy Evans during a Halloween party. She was raped by him, and then called the cops on the party. After that night, everyone hated Melinda because they believed she just wanted to crash the party. This caused her to be depressed and spaced away from everyone. In other words, Melinda is anxious from being traumatized by the Halloween party. Everyone believed that Melinda called the cops on purpose and she was very lonely and depressed. She would not attend social events such as not joining the club Rachel invited her to and not going to David’s party after …show more content…

Shame roils in my gut. How much easier would their lives be if they didn't have to pay that extra 165,000 RMB every year?” (Linag , Page 14). This shows that Alice is a quiet and anxious person because of her parent’s financial situation. Alice attends Arlington which is a Beijing international boarding school. This area has an abundance of wealthy parents that own major tech companies or other large businesses, while Alice's parents work very long and hard hours to live in this area. Alice feels anxiety from not being able to afford the school tuition fee for the next

Show More
Related

  • Melinda Betrayed Quotes

    728 Words  | 3 Pages

    It also shows how she's now confident, even if it isn't a new emotion, it's something that hasn't come up with her ever since she was betrayed, molested, neglected, and more. Another way in “speak” the author connects to “perks of being a wallflower” is when Andy, the guy who molested Melinda, locks himself in the room with her at school, Melinda immediately starts fighting back, and screaming no, she got him in a position where he couldn't do anything, but just stand there, Showing the growth in Melinda. This connects to “the perks of being a wallflower” because it shows how the memories and trauma he gave her, made her stronger and fierce. It made her able to fight back, And this is seen in “the perks of being a wallflower” when he grows from the trauma, and he escapes from those memories that his aunt gave

    Read More

  • Brief Summary Of Speak By Laurie Halse Anderson

    620 Words  | 3 Pages

    At this point in the novel, the only thing revealed about what happened was that she had called the cops on a high school party during summer, leaving her friends mad at her. Melinda went through the first few classes and lunch on her terrible first day, finding them all completely miserable.

    Read More

  • Character Analysis Of Melinda Sordino In Speak By Laurie Halse Anderson

    505 Words  | 3 Pages

    Melinda Sordino Melinda Sordino is the main character in Laurie Halse Anderson’s award-winning book, Speak. Speak is about a young teenager who experienced a great trauma. Melinda Sordino was raped at a high school party before the start of her freshman year. She struggles with letting her secret be known. Melinda is very independent, lonely, and depressed.

    Read More

  • Summary And Symbolism In Laurie Halse Anderson's Speak

    441 Words  | 2 Pages

    Have you ever felt like you were trapped in a secret that you couldn’t find the power to share it with anyone? Author, Laurie Halse Anderson wrote her young-adult novel Speak, to show the what its like to face something like that. What’s her secret you might ask? Melinda a ninth grade student about to enter high school was a victim to a sexual assult by one of her peers that past summer at a party. Many teens face this and even though it seems impossible to conquer, Anderson, using humor, and complex symbolism which brings to light on how a real life issue evolved into a new way.

    Read More

  • Characters In Speak By Laurie Halse Anderson

    909 Words  | 4 Pages

    Eventually she drops Melinda as a friend and said that she was too depressed and needed help. This Melinda even more depressed and feel more alone. When prom came around Heather went to Melinda’s house and begged her to help with prom preparations. Heather offered to help redo Melinda’s room. Melinda finally stood up for what she believed and said no to Heather.

    Read More

  • The Characters In Speak By Laurie Halse Anderson

    710 Words  | 3 Pages

    Near the end of the book, Melinda started standing up for herself and developing a new confidence. “I’m tough enough to play and strong enough to win.”(pg 170) For most of the book, Melinda always thought she was doing everything wrong “ I feel bad that I didn’t.” (pg 72) was a common theme for her. Melinda always did whatever people told her to do especially Heather “‘ I won’t help you.”’

    Read More

  • Examples Of Avoidance Of Conflict In The Novel Speak By Laurie Halse Anderson

    757 Words  | 4 Pages

    The main character of the novel Speak, Melinda, struggles to come to terms with her sexual assault and the effects it has had on her. Throughout the book, she ignores the conflicts her experience has caused and attempts to get away from it. In the novel Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson, Melinda’s avoidance of conflict and the ramifications it has on her life reinforces the message that ignoring your problems will only drag out hardships. The most obvious way that Melinda’s evasion of conflicts can be seen is with her friends.

    Read More

  • Sexual Assault In Speak By Laurie Halse Anderson

    709 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the novel Speak, Melinda thinks no one will believe her and thinks no one will care. Melinda says, “It is easier not to say anything. Shut your trap, button your lip, can it. All that crap you hear on TV about communication and expressing feelings is a lie. Nobody really wants to hear what you have to say,” (Anderson 9).

    Read More

  • Examples Of Character Development In Speak By Laurie Halse Anderson

    755 Words  | 4 Pages

    At the end of the story she finally found her voice and was able to stand up for herself. In the beginning, Melinda didn't talk to anyone, barely even to her parents. She says, “I have tried so hard to forget every second of that stupid party and here I am in the middle of a hostile crowd that hates me for what I had to do. I can't tell them what really happened” (Anderson, 28).

    Read More

  • Summary Of Speak By Laurie Halse Anderson

    685 Words  | 3 Pages

    The book Speak is a book written by Laurie Halse Anderson, it is about a young girl named Melinda Sordino and is about a very serious and all too common issue: rape and depression. Rape is a serious problem, it can completely destroy a person, making them never the same again. Depression is always an uphill battle and is even worse when your friends turn their back on you and your family does not notice something is seriously wrong with you. Melinda was a young girl enjoying life until an older boy named Andy Evans took advantage of his size and raped her.

    Read More

  • Summary Of Speak By Laurie Halse Anderson

    529 Words  | 3 Pages

    In Speak, Melinda begins recovering from her attack by trying to do better at school and starting to speak out. To begin with, Melinda shows her recovery by trying to do better at school. For instance, she starts doing better in her gym class. While playing tennis, Melinda tries her best to win against Nicole, the athletic goddess. “The ball explodes on the court, leaving a crater before Nicole can blink.

    Read More

  • Character Analysis: Speak By Laurie Halse Anderson

    1072 Words  | 5 Pages

    As the school year progresses she learns to find her voice and speak out about what happened to her. Through the novel, Melinda tries to express her mental health and longing for her friends through her thoughts, speech, and impressions. Laurie Halse Anderson first

    Read More

  • Speak By Laurie Halse Anderson Analysis

    734 Words  | 3 Pages

    The novel Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson, is about a girl named Melinda, who shows signs of depression throughout the story. She has no friends and is hated by people she doesn’t even know. This is because she called the cops at a party, where she was raped. Anderson includes literary elements to show how Melinda is depressed. Throughout the novel, she uses many different literary elements to show Melinda’s conflict.

    Read More

  • Essay On Symbolism In The Book Speak

    1197 Words  | 5 Pages

    Melinda, in a lot of ways, starts out like that it the book. She becomes a shell of herself from before the party happened and because no one else was there, she is lonely and doesn't have anybody to go to and to make matters even worse, she’s covered by the reputation that she has formed. In the book, Laurie Halse Anderson uses symbolism to convey exactly what Melinda can't say. In the beginning of the book, Melinda starts high school carrying her emotional wounds with her after something happens mysterious to her at a party during the summer.

    Read More

  • Speak Journal Response To Speak By Laurie Halse Anderson

    1218 Words  | 5 Pages

    Another element in this novel is Melinda’s inner conflict, man vs. self. What Melinda has been through greatly affected her everyday life. She struggles with depression, dislikes her appearance, and feels ashamed of herself for something that isn 't her fault: “I want to confess everything, hand over the guilt and mistake and anger to someone else...even if I dump the memory, it will stay with me, staining me” (Anderson 51). Andy Evans, the senior who raped her, made her feel worthless. This situation is much like the one in the novel The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins.

    Read More

More about Speak By Laurie Halse Anderson Character Analysis

Open Document