... each other out of tough situations. Friends give each other support and affection when they need it the most. Friends heal each other, and this is demonstrated in the novel "Speak," by Laurie Halse Anderson. The novel is about the main character, Melinda Sordino, recovering from the subsequent depression and loneliness that stems from a traumatic experience that led to her calling the cops at a party ... readers, that if she ever wanted to get over her fears and distrust, she has to face the problem head on. David becomes the trigger for Melinda's realization of her problems and how to ...

• Word Count: 920
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

In the novel Speak, Laurie Halse Anderson introduces the tale of Melinda Sordino launching her freshman year of high school concealing a dreadful secret. Melinda struggles throughout her school year withstanding a flashback and battling her lack of voice, frightened to share her secret. She was raped by Andy Evans, a popular senior, the summer before starting high school. Laurie Halse Anderson uses the motifs of mouth, lips, and trees to develop ... Melinda's character throughout the novel. The motif of mouth is used to develop Melinda's character throughout the novel. It refers to Melinda's ...

• Word Count: 548
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... perspective, to enable them to understand the books they are reading. Gender roles have been prevalent in our communities for centuries now and they are unfortunately still common; in today's society. The novel Speak , by Laurie Halse Anderson paints a vivid image on gender roles; in today's society. Anderson's work is appreciable at using characters to portray the modern day relationship between men and women. Characters are the ... that men hold over women. Symbols play an important role in the novel as they represent growth and trauma. Laurie Anderson uses trees throughout the entire...

• Word Count: 1774
• Approx Pages: 7
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

Speak is a story of a ninth-grader named Melinda Sordino, a rape victim. Throughout the novel, Melinda is in her own world of despair and physically cannot speak to others about her rape. As the novel progresses, she slowly starts to deal with the rape and finally accepts it and decides to move on with her life. In Speak, Anderson's use of rhetorical devices like allusions, symbolism, and metaphors and similes helps to create the texts depressed tone that later change to hopeful. Using allusions like Picasso's cubism and The Scarlet Letter help to show Melinda's internal pain. Picasso's art st...

• Word Count: 950
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... right, no matter the consequence. A part of making decisions are the consequences that come along as extra baggage, it's also about not being afraid to speak up for your beliefs, and how experience effects us all. Although everyone is born free of experience, it's the events in our lives that make every human different ... adapt to change as well as the world around us, nevertheless we as humans do have the choice to stand up for what we believe in. For we all have a voice, so every human can speak. From the first moment of her freshman year at Merryweather High, Melinda Sordino knows t...

• Word Count: 1020
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

Character Analysis The book Speak, written by Laurie Halse Anderson, is about a young girl named Melinda who throughout the book is tormented by other students because, over the summer, she called the police at a party. The other students are clueless as to why she ... sleep than try to get a decent education. Another example of this is when the book says, "My parents commanded me to stay after school every day for extra help from teachers I hang out in my refurbished closet."(5) This also shows her non-interest in being educated. It shows how lounging around in a ... but being lazy is one o...

• Word Count: 740
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

Character Analysis The book Speak, written by Laurie Halse Anderson, is about a young girl named Melinda who throughout the book is tormented by other students because, over the summer, she called the police at a party. The other students are clueless as to why she ... sleep than try to get a decent education. Another example of this is when the book says, "My parents commanded me to stay after school every day for extra help from teachers I hang out in my refurbished closet."(5) This also shows her non-interest in being educated. It shows how lounging around in a ... but being lazy is one o...

• Word Count: 740
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School