Essay On Speak By Laurie Halse Anderson

In life, people judge others at first glance without knowing anything about them. If people know one thing about someone, they instantly make assumptions about that person even if the assumption is incorrect.A common theme throughout literature is that characters are not always what they seem. When characters are first introduced, the reader makes an initial impression of them and the impression often sticks. The novel Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson is written in first person through the eyes of the main character, Melinda Sordino. Since the reader understands the world through Melinda’s eyes, she has complete control and everything is from her perspective. Because Melinda is the narrator and she holds back information, readers make assumptions

She does not want to be in the front, but she would not dare be a “backseat wastecase.” When she gets to school she observes the clans as they separate into groups. She describes the average peer as “Jocks” but then goes on to call people “Eurotrash” and “Future Fascists of America” and “Idiot Savants.” Melinda as the narrator sees the world very negatively. She not only views herself negatively, but she also feels the need to insult others with snide comments.. Although the students she calls “Future Fascists of America” are not revealed, they in reality are just the student government minding their own business. Melinda and her negativity feel the need to insult them, but she does not reveal why she does so. The reader can see these thoughts Melinda has in her head and start to feel extreme dislike towards her as a character. Her attitude and actions that the reader does get to see, do not make her a favorable character and readers start to hate her from the beginning. Once the orientation is over, Melinda is dreading being there even more, and remarks that on the way to her first class, “I can’t find it and get my first demerit for wandering the