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Teenage Depression In Speak By Laurie Halse Anderson

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Character Response Laurie Halse Anderson the writer of the novel “Speak” portrays the struggles of teenage depression. Melinda a Freshman student who has been taking advantage of by an upper-class man at a high school summer party suffers through depression. Her depression builds under pressure after losing her best friends, family problems and the fact that she is an outcast at her school. Melinda’s mother and school teachers perceive Melinda as a quiet, troubled, teenager who refuses to speak, when truly Melinda is traumatized from her experience at the summer party. When being held at a parent conference, for example, Melinda does not speak out loud once. Her parents try to get Melinda to speak, Although they “Can’t get a word out of …show more content…

As a result of being raped at the party, Melinda keeps all the memories to herself.This is mostly because she no longer has a close enough relationship with someone to express her feelings. Melinda wants to have a connection with her parents but feels scared and does not know how her others around her will react. “I want to tell them everything” (Anderson 72) states Melinda. On Christmas day when she feels somewhat of a connected to her parents after she receives a present that showed her parents interest in her. Melinda wants to explain why she does not talk, why she is not doing well in school and tell them everything about the night at the party, but she does not. Being scared overpowers Melinda’s actions and the way she approaches others. For example, as Melinda is one-day skipping school she spots “IT” standing in the same parking lot as her. The action of being scared too over and she quickly run away, “bunny rabbit bolts, leaving fast tracks in the snow. Getaway, getaway, getaway.” (Anderson 97) Throughout the novel, Melinda is perceived as a quiet person who does not speak and often mistaken for trouble. Melinda has suffered through situations that make her scared and unwilling to speak. Melinda has unfortunately taken advantage of and it takes her awhile to get back up on her feet

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