Melinda

Authority 


“I have entered high school with the wrong hair, the wrong clothes, the wrong attitude. 
And I don’t have anyone to sit with.  I am an outcast” – Melinda (4).


The adults throughout the book Speak range from supportive to indifferent to abysmal in their interactions with Melinda and the other students.

We meet Melinda as she is on the way to her first day of high school.  She feels ill-prepared physically for school – she doesn’t have the right clothes (wearing a skirt she hates) nor does she have the right hairstyle.  She feels alone and alludes to a recent traumatic event which seems to be the catalyst for lost friendships and anticipated bullying at school.





Her day goes from bad to worse as Mr. Neck, “gray jock buzz cut, whistle around the neck thicker than his head” (9), seems to have it out for Melinda from the beginning of the first day. Mr. Neck is a jerk to Melinda in almost every interaction he has with her. He gets downright hostile with other students throughout the book, including Melinda’s crush David, resulting in legal action from David’s family.  





Not all of the teachers and administrators at school are bad, in fact she develops a very supportive relationship with her art teacher, Mr. Freeman, which I believe ultimately helps her in standing up against IT (Andy Evans) and the rape.  It’s not clear if Mr. Freeman knows what happened to Melinda, however he can tell that she is troubled by something big.  He looks out for her through the school year, and encourages her to use her pain to create art.  At the end of the book, after turning in her final project, he complements her progress, and inquires: “You’ve been through a lot, haven’t you?”  Melinda, finally ready to share her story responds: “Let me tell you about it” (198).


Silence

Best-selling trauma research author Bessel van der Kolk wrote, “Trauma comes back as a reaction, not a memory”.  During the rape, IT (Andy Evans) prevented Melinda from screaming by overpowering her physically, she says: “His lips are locked on mine, and I can’t say anything” (135).  Throughout the book, Melinda often finds that she cannot speak when pressed for answers, or when she feels threatened.  This is a direct back to being physically kept from speaking during the assault.




Works Cited

Anderson, Laurie Halse. Speak. Square Fish. 1999. 
Van Der Kolk, Bessell. Good Reads. https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/10188894-trauma-comes-back-as-a-reaction-not-a-memory. 




Comments

  1. Debra AustinAugust 7, 2022 at 4:11 PM

    I enjoyed reading your insights about this book. Your writing is so eloquent! I think the link you made regarding the traumatic rape and her subsequent silence is spot-on. Thank you!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jen HairAugust 7, 2022 at 9:38 PM

      Thank you Debra! I appreciate your kind words! I've so enjoyed taking this class with you! Will miss you in my next classes!

      Delete

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