Jayla Stokes
Speak Essay
Professor Johann
1st Hour
Speak Essay
Everyone says things, they don’t know if it’s true. Gossip gets around, it bothers you. Imagine being cooped up in a closet your whole life. No one knows the truth but you. This is an event from the story speak by Laurie Halse Anderson. The main character Melinda was kind of an outsider and didn’t have many friends, she didn’t enjoy her high school years at all. Her and her mother didn’t get along well at all, to talk they would write notes to each other.
Melinda had to deal with many things and one big thing that she has to deal with was peer pressure. People in here high school would decide to judge her instead of trying to get to know her. This pressure began once Melinda and her friends attended a party that involved alcohol. Melinda and her friends thinking to have a good time, they needed to drink. So there was a high school male name Andy Evans and he was drunk as well. Andy Evans that night had raped Melinda Sordino. The cops arrived at the party, Melinda was the one that called. And everyone
remembers it as Melinda crashed the party.
The story speak is similar to movie I know called "Fantasia." But they are kind of opposites, because in the beginning Melinda has a good life. Melinda had friends, she was talking to her mom. And in the beginning of Fantasia, she is a girl that grows up in the projects. Her family was very poor and needed a lot. Both stories or movies the girls got raped and they were peer perused. Each one of them are different and handle it the same was. Strong.
Speak is a interesting title for a book. I feel like it is named speak because Melinda couldn’t. I don’t feel that Andy rapped her if she didn’t tell him to stop, but she couldn’t speak. If she would have said one word, just one he would have stopped hopefully. But speak makes me think of voice. But Melinda didn’t have one.
Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson is an inspiring story. What I think it is saying is speak your mind, don’t hold back like Melinda. Your voice needs to be heard, use it. Melinda was defiantly conflicted with peer pressure, but most high school girls are.
