Speak By Laurie Halse Anderson

Imagine that you were depressed and didn’t talk about your problems. You find out that art is a way that you can express your feelings. In the novel Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson, Melinda expresses her emotions through her artwork. Melinda’s art shows how she grew when she spoke through art.

Melinda’s artwork shows how unpleasant her life is. After the pep rally when Melinda was knocked down the bleachers. She drew an art project in Mr. Freeman’s class and says “I’ve been painting watercolors of trees that have been hit by lightning.

I try to paint them so they are nearly dead, but not totally” (Anderson 30-31).The trees that Melinda is painting are getting struck by lightning. The lightning that struck her is all of the kids at school who make fun of her and her ex-friends that ignore her.Melinda and the tree are both getting hurt in some way. Next, when Melinda’s in Mr.

Freeman’s art class and tries to make her tree look real. “But when I try to carve it, it looks like a dead tree, toothpicks, a child’s drawing. I can’t bring it to life. I‘d love to give it up. Quit. But I can’t think of anything else to do, so I keep chipping away at it” (Anderson 78).Melinda carving the linoleum block symbolizes her social status. Her status right now is going down hill just like her drawing, and she wants to give up, butshe doesn’t because there nothing else to do.

Get quality help now

WriterBelle

Verified

Proficient in: Communication

4.7 (657)

“ Really polite, and a great writer! Task done as described and better, responded to all my questions promptly too! ”

+84 relevant experts are online

Hire writer

Melinda’s art shows how she was not doing so well in school.

Speak Laurie Anderson

Melinda’s artwork represents the progress that she has made. When Melinda was in biology she draws a picture. While in biology class Melinda is passing her notebook back and forth with David and she draws a picture of Ms. Keen as a robin and David “draws a branch under her feet and slides the notebook back to me.” and she “tries to connect the branch to a tree. It looks pretty good, better than anything I have drawn so far in art” (anderson 109-110). This shows how in order for her “tree” to grow s…