Speak Discussion- Erika Kozub

By -
      Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson, is a great novel that highlights hot topics in adolescent culture that individuals know are present, but don't necessarily like to discuss. This story sends a great message to adolescents and encouraging to speak up for the issues they have going on so the people around you can do anything to help you move past it. Melinda struggles by her inability to speak up for herself. This is something that completely changes who she is as a person, her grades, relationship with others, and her ability to trust.
      One thing that really stuck with me was Melinda's reaction to the treatment she received from students. Although she knew students hated her for calling the cops, she never stood up for herself to tell them why, but she also never talked poorly about anyone other than Andy. One great example of this is the way she treated Rachel. There were numerous times in the book where Melinda made an effort tot talks to Rachel with the slightest hope that they my possibly be friends again. When she finds out Rachel is dating Andy, that they first time Melinda decides to speak up about what happened. This had nothing to do with Melinda wanting to be friends with her. At his point, Melinda only cared about the well being of her friend. This shows Melinda as being a very caring character. She puts aside everything that happened to her in the past in the effort to protect someone from the pain she felt.
      Another thing I noticed about Melinda that I believe was very significant was her ability to finally stand up for herself. When she refused to help Heather with prom decorations, this was a huge turning point in her character. Melinda was beginning to open up and voice her opinion, something she wasn't able to do before this.I believe this led to her finally being able to stand up to Andy the second time he attacked her. When they were in the closet alone together, he was sure she wasn't going to scream because she was so scared to do so last time. This develops a sort of strength in Melinda's character that we didn't know she had. This symbolized her growing as a young woman and finally learning how to defend herself. Something that would really encourage students her age when reading this book.
      Speak was not only a great book because of its story line, but also for the way it was written. Laurie Halse Anderson did a phenomenal job in allowing her readers to live through the pages of the story. Although I was never in Melinda's situation, I was able to relate to her on a personal level. I especially noticed how the paragraphs where we were inside Melinda's head and allowed us to see her thoughts allowed us to connect with her character. Her thoughts were very simple and realistic. The author didn't try so hard to make the paragraphs wordy and impressive with vocabulary, but rather chose to keep it simple to allow readers to connect with her characters. Her word choice was appropriate for adolescent readers and the content was so real and eye-opening that I think it would be a great book to teach in the classroom.
      My favorite part of this book altogether was how the author threw in so many characters that adolescent readers can relate to. We all have the Rachel's, Andy's, Davids, Mr. Freeman's, Ivy's, and Heathers in our lives. I believe the author really hit the target with her characters and fitting each one into the story. All these individuals led Melinda to eventually speak up. They symbolized her safe haven, or the individuals that she wanted o be protected from. Teaching this book in the classroom would allow students to find a solace with one of these characters and finding their equivalent in their lives if they are possibly going through anything similar to what Melinda has to go through. That one person that will listen and encourage them. Their heroes.

Comments

  1. EduFitSeptember 20, 2017 at 7:55 AM

    You did a great job explaining and analyzing the text! I agree when you mentioned how relatable and well-written the book is. Her word choice was very appropriate and overall made it an easy read! And yes, teaching the book could definitely help to encourage students who are possibly battling the same issues that Melinda is

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Growing Pains - The Symbolism of the Tree in Speak

By -
I have felt the paralyzing pain of internal disease. The kind of trauma that causes your mouth to curl in and swallow you whole. I, like so many other women, are walking the halls in Melinda’s shoes in “Speak.” I thought Laurie Anderson did a phenomenal job of twisting all of the tribulations a high school girl goes through, into the tree that Melinda is. Whether we’re as strong as an oak or weak as a bush, we have all gone through the disease that strikes Melinda from the inside out. Melinda is like a half-dead tree. Some parts of her strive to blossom and create beauty. Other parts are broken and diseased. Like a dead tree, Melinda needs to save herself and “cut off the damage, [so it] is possible for the tree to grow again” (187). The symbolism of a tree is significant in “Speak.” Trees reflect her growing process. In the beginning, Melinda is a sick and lifeless tree. Her view is negative and dark. She’s so far past repair, bursts of sunlight do her no good. Sunlight would be pe
Read more

How Starr Goes from Acting to Embracing in The Hate U Give

By -
In The Hate U Give, Starr Carter is caught between two worlds. She lives in a predominantly black neighborhood, but her father sends her and her brothers to a private school where she is surrounded by white people. She talks about acting differently depending on what group she is around, which can create some identity problems. She says on page 11, "Funny how it works with white kids though. It's dope to be black until it's hard to be black." When at Williamson, she sees white kids that think it's cool to engage in black culture, but she knows they don't understand what she goes through in her Garden Heights community. She witnessed her friend Natasha's death when she was 10 years old, and she sees gang activity in her community all the time. When she is among her black friends, like at the party, they tease her for hanging out with the white kids. This reminds me of a Drake song where he says, "I used to get teased for being black, and now I'm
Read more

Postmodernism in Curious Incident

By -
Before I start writing, I first want to acknowledge that I just really loved this book! It seemed like a lot of the class had trouble enjoying or appreciating the novel because it's so different stylistically, which is understandable, but all of those unique elements helped make the novel more authentic. The main topic I want to focus on (also what I'm writing my paper on) is how a lot of postmodernist elements were used in the novel to make Christopher come to life. While obviously not every postmodern novel is about an autistic kid, I think Haddon really used a lot of these elements to his advantage and they ended up working out really well to characterize Christopher. One of the major postmodern elements which helps this book really craft an authentic portrayal of autism is the fact that it's metafictive. Basically, this means it's a "story within a story." Readers would be extremely limited just reading the parts of the novel which are meant to be C
Read more