The Reflection Of Laurie Halse Anderson's 'Speak'

The damage caused by her experiences at the party left her feeling broken and hopeless, and is the cause of her depression. Secondly, as the diseased branches on the large tree in Melinda’s yard are being cut down her father states that “by cutting off the damage, you can make it possible for the tree to grow again,” and that it will eventually be “the strongest on the block” (Anderson 187). The tree represents Melinda, and the diseased branches represent the damage that was left behind from the incident during the party. She refuses to talk about what happened, and due to that, it’s slowly dragging her even deeper into depression, however, if she would open up and talk about it she would have the ability to pull herself out.

She recollects an episode in which at the age of 16 or 17 she randomly decided to leave school and walk home, and while she walked, the houses surrounding her suddenly began to appear “very ominous and foreboding”. She began to think that the houses

Speak was written in 1999 by Laurie Halse Anderson. The book is about Melinda, a freshman just starting high school. Melinda starts school off with no friends, she lost the ones she had over the summer. A traumatic event causes Melinda to shut everyone out, and not speak to anyone. Growing up usually takes time, but Melinda is rushed into maturity too soon and must help others do the same.

This line shows a big part of her personality. "He's not chopping down. He's saving it. By cutting off the damage, you make it possible for the tree to grow again." In this quote, we can substitute Melinda as the tree.

On a seemingly emotional high after attending a high school party as a rising freshman, Melinda’s world got turned upside down when she was taken advantage of by a popular senior jock. Along with the pain of the trauma itself, Melinda was reminded of her terrible ordeal each time she came in contact with Andy: “I want to throw up and I can smell him and I run and he remembers and he knows. He whispers in my ear” (Anderson 86). When Andy encroached on her sanctuary in the art room and destroyed her work, Melinda shut down and locked herself in her closet, where she “stuffed [her] mouth with old fabric and screamed until there were no sounds left under [her] skin” (Anderson 162). While interactions with others could incite her anxiety and feelings of depression, continued encounters with her rapist further aggravated Melinda.

The setting serves as a way to display Melinda’s emotional state, which effectively represents her feelings of loneliness and trauma after the incident at the party. In the first few pages of Speak, Melinda says, "The school looks the same as I remember it, but it feels different. Like I'm trapped in a nightmare version of Sterling High. Hallways that once smelled of Clorox and floor wax now reek of impotence and despair" (Anderson 4). This quote represents the way Melinda sees the world through her eyes.

Speak Journal Response This journal is in response to the novel Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson. As a coming-of-age contemporary novel, Speak discusses many sensitive issues that are still prominent even today. In this story, we explore the life of Melinda Sordino, a fourteen-year-old girl who is beginning high school right after experiencing an utterly traumatic event: rape. Melinda is left friendless, with no one to help and support her after what happened.

The fluffy pillows and warm comforter are more powerful than I am. I have no choice but to snuggle under the covers.” In this quote, the symbol is her room. Melinda’s room symbolizes a safe space and

" Speak also states on page 161 " I am a deer in headlights of a tractor, is he going to hurt me again? He couldn't in school... why am I so afraid. " These examples from the text show all the problems Melinda had, for instance what Andy did to her,

Laurie Halse Anderson accurately captures the emotions and struggles of a school age rape victim through her award-winning novel Speak. Anderson is able to accomplish such an accurate portrayal of a rape victim’s struggles because of her personal experience of being raped as a freshman. She is able to weave her own story and emotions into her protagonist’s life, allowing the reader to draw parallels between Melinda and Anderson’s life. For instance, both Melinda and Anderson were raped by an older boy in their freshman year, and were both silent about it.

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).

After Melinda admits to herself that she was raped, Melinda starts to realize that

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.

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.

As a young woman she was crippled by the weight of the world. After her mother died she was overwhelmed by the task of bearing her stepfather's children and trying to protect her little sister Nettie. Her lack of confidence and self worth took a toll to the words and actions of her stepfather. Even after escaping her father she covered her mouth when she smiled because he