Laurie Halse Anderson's Speak

Its hard to find humor in the macabre. This book certainly had its fair share of comedic moments. And it had its fair share of dramatic moments. The scene with the counselor and principal and Melinda where Principal Principal calls her Melissa is both hilarious and unfortunately depressing. She needs help, and maybe deep down wants help, but no one is affording her the attention she deserves. She makes light of these situations throughout the text to bring humor to her plight, but it is easy to see through her and know that she has some emotional scars.

As far as teaching this text, the way Anderson uses Melinda's voice to foreshadow details of the account of her rape are something to behold. Anderson keeps touching on the surface of this incident, of which we have no clue what it is initially. Eventually, with over half the novel completed, we find out what happens to our fair narrator. There are many fragments of foreshadowing throughout the novel that would be excellent to teach students about authorial intent and how to use plot devices such as this, while still teaching an enjoyable text.

Although the novel was written in a contemporary, even post-modern, time, the novel is passionately realistic. The ten lies the school tells students are especially evidential to this. The apathy of the counselors, the nicknames given to students and (especially) teachers, the social outcast(s), the cliques, what Heather finally told Melinda about her personality, guys like Andy Evans (maybe not to the rapist extent, but certainly jockish and unfriendly), and her refusal to talk about what happened (denial, essentially) are all facets of the realistic nature of this text. What this translates to is an engaging read for young (and old) adults because of the connections they can make, especially in relation to our own high school experiences. Another interesting issue to teach would be the rebellious and anti-establishmentarian nature of Melinda. Certainly many students go through these phases, and Melinda's refusal to conform to the cliques can be a bright moment in a rather morbid tale (concerning the rape, at least). Overall, Anderson's text is appealing to audiences both young and old, and is certainly one that should be placed in the hands of young women and men alike.