SPEAK
By: Laurie Halse Anderson
Melinda Sordino- dynamic character, protagonist,she is an outcast, very unhappy, she always thinks negatively, and she's uncooperative, but she goes through a drastic change at the end of the story
Heather- she is optimistic, happy, she moved to New York from Ohio, wants to fit in, in a popular club called the Marthas
Mom- worried, sad, procrastinator
Dad-carless, worried and sad too
Mr. Freeman- art teacher, encourages Melinda
Ivy-good at art, also encourages Melinda to get better and do better at art
Rachel- an old friend that now does not like Melinda, she is also dynamic, dates the guy that raped Melinda
Andy Evans- the man that raped Melinda
The setting is Syracuse, New York. Also, most of the story takes place in Merryweather High School. It is in present time. The story takes place over course of a school year.
Person vs Person ---> Melinda vs. Andy Evans (when she was raped, and when they were in the closet)
Person vs. Self ---> Melinda vs Herself (She struggled with herself throughout the whole book. Whether it was how she felt, or just herslef being her own worst enemy)
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- Expostion- something over the summer happened that caused Melinda to loose her friends
- She goes to Merryweather highschool
- She does not fit in
- She meets a friend named Heather that just moved from Ohio
- She grows to love art class
- Rising Action-She thinks Heather is annoying
- Her art class assignment is to draw trees; she has trouble with this
- She has flashbacks of a night in summer, but she does not want to tell anyone
- She grows unhappier
- Her parents worry about Melinda because she's failing and skipping school
- Heather tells Melinda that she no longer wants to be friends because Melinda is too depressed
- Ivy (an old friend) and Melinda start talkign again. They enjoy having and doing art together
- Melinda still has trouble with her tree assignment, this frustrates her.
- In a flash back, it is finally revealed to the reader what happened that summer night: Andy Evans was at a party. Everyone was drinking including Melinda. Andy raped Melinda and she didn't know what to do. So, she called the cops and got scared and hung up. The cops still came and everyone got in trouble at the party. Melinda never told anyone though, what had happened to her.
- Melinda tells her old friend Rachel what Andy did (Rachel and Andy are dating). Rachel thinks Melinda did this just because she was jealous.
- Everyone finds out what Melinda told Rachel, including Andy himself.
- Climax-Melinda was in a janitors closet at school, when Andy came in the closet too and locked the door. He was so angry that Melinda told people what had happened. Her choked her, and punched her causing her mouth to fill with blood. She screamed NO and grabbed something glass, broke it and put it to his neck.
- "Shards of glass slip down the wall and into the sink. IT pulls away from me, puzzled. I reach in and wrap my fingers around a triangle of glass. I hold it to Andy Evans's neck. He freezes. I push it hard enough to raise one drop of blood."
- Falling Action- The lacrosse team sees this and calls 911.
- Melinda needs to finish her art for a final grade.
- Mr. Freeman sees how now the Melinda did something about what happened that summer night, she's finally let go of things. She's not so depressed, a weight has been lifted off her shoulders.
- Resolution- As Melinda finishes her last tree, she thinks about everything that has happened to her this past year. She begins to cry. She hands in her final work.
- "I hand over the picture. He takes it in his hands and studies it. I sniff again and wipe my eyes on my arm. The bruises are vivd, but they will fade....'You've been through a lot, haven't you?'"
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Caption
The point of view is first person. The protagonist, Melinda, is also the narrator.
"If I sit in the middle, a stranger could sit next to me. If I sit in the front, it will make me look like a little kid, but I figure it's the best chance I have to make eye contact with one of my friends, if any of them have decided to talk to me yet."
Caption
Symbolism- The tree in this story symbolizes strength. When Melinda had no idea who she was, when she was weak, she was unable to successfully draw the tree. Finally, when Melinda faced her past and took control of her life, she regained the strength she had lost. She was then able to successfully draw the tree.
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Themes: Sometimes, you can be your own worst enemy.
You have to stand up for yourself.
You can't live in the past.
Recommendations: I would reccommend this book. I thought it was well written and I at times I could relate to what was going on. I didn't want to put the book down. This book is more for a teen girl audience. The only complaint I had about this book was that it was kind of boring in the beginning.
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Laurie Halse Anderson was born on October 23, 1961 in Potsdam, New York. Her father was a Reverend. She had one younger sister. She started to love reading and writing in about second grade. Later on, she grew to enjoy science, and dreamed of becoming a doctor. When she graduated high school, she moved to Denmark and was an exchange student there was for thirteen months. When she came home, she worked at clothing store and earned minimum wage. She decided she wanted to go to college. She went to Georgetown University in 1981. She graduated in 1984. She graduated with a B.S.L.L. in languages and linguistics. She married Greg Anderson and gave birth to a baby girl. Even though she had a love of writing she never really thought about it other than a hobby. Anderson did come to realize that her hobby could turn into a job. As she started writing professionally, she had success very early in her career. In 2002, she was diagnosed with melanoma. Also, her and her husband got a divorce. Laurie still writes books (of every age group), she travels and speaks, and likes to relax at home with her dog.
Info was taken from http://www.writerlady.com/bioh.html
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