In the novel Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson, a fictional tale,
Melinda Sordino struggles with self-doubt and insecurity. Just like the title
of the play Death of a Salesman, the title of this novel is self-explanatory. The
novel is told through the protagonist, Melinda Sordino, which allows the reader
to go more in depth with the character’s emotions and feelings towards others. In
the beginning of the novel, it is revealed that over the summer Melinda and her
friends attended an end of the summer party where an incident led her to call the
cops and lose all her friends. The book opens with Melinda’s first day as a
ninth grader at Merryweather High School. “I have entered high school with the
wrong hair, the wrong clothes…And I don’t have anyone to sit with” ( Anderson
4). Already Melinda is off to a rough start, leading her in the wrong path. The fear of being alone at school with no friends by her side to give her advice. Not only does she struggle with social skills, she struggles to communicate and express her true thoughts. “I see IT. IT goes to
Merryweather…IT smiles and winks. Good thing my lips are stitched together or I’d
throw up” (Anderson 45-46). Readers are able to predict that something or someone
caused her to become this mute person and eventually foreshadow the incident.
Many motifs, and one being lips, is a recurring subject in this novel. Her lips
are sealed from her mysterious past that is secretly killing her on the inside.
So when will Melinda finally speak the truth?
Melinda Sordino struggles with self-doubt and insecurity. Just like the title
of the play Death of a Salesman, the title of this novel is self-explanatory. The
novel is told through the protagonist, Melinda Sordino, which allows the reader
to go more in depth with the character’s emotions and feelings towards others. In
the beginning of the novel, it is revealed that over the summer Melinda and her
friends attended an end of the summer party where an incident led her to call the
cops and lose all her friends. The book opens with Melinda’s first day as a
ninth grader at Merryweather High School. “I have entered high school with the
wrong hair, the wrong clothes…And I don’t have anyone to sit with” ( Anderson
4). Already Melinda is off to a rough start, leading her in the wrong path. The fear of being alone at school with no friends by her side to give her advice. Not only does she struggle with social skills, she struggles to communicate and express her true thoughts. “I see IT. IT goes to
Merryweather…IT smiles and winks. Good thing my lips are stitched together or I’d
throw up” (Anderson 45-46). Readers are able to predict that something or someone
caused her to become this mute person and eventually foreshadow the incident.
Many motifs, and one being lips, is a recurring subject in this novel. Her lips
are sealed from her mysterious past that is secretly killing her on the inside.
So when will Melinda finally speak the truth?
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