Literary Essay: Aristotle and Dante, Speak

For most people, conversations about rape and homosexuality are ones that are commonly avoided. Most kids are not educated about these topics and this might lead to them struggling to seek for help. This could be because of a community's belief of it being sinful. This would leave people feeling isolated or like an outcast. This message came clear in the books “Speak” by Laurie Halse Anderson and “Aristotle and Dante discover the secrets of the universe” by Benjamin Alire Saenz. Both authors use inner thinking as a tool to effectively show emotions and to prove that people we frequently interact with would shape a part of who we become.

In “Speak” an outcast called Melinda was introduced. She starts 9th grade alone with no companions by her side. During the summer of the previous year, she was sexually assaulted during a party. This act sealed her lips and turned her into an outcast. Melinda belongs to a busy family. Her family rarely talk, they “communicate with the notes on the kitchen counter. I write when I need school supplies or a ride to the mall. They write what time they’ll be home from work and if I should thaw anything. What else is there to say?” Melinda rarely talks to her parents so she doesn't know how to go up to them and talk about what happened last summer. “I don’t have time for this Melinda” was the response that Melinda got the night after she harmed herself. She was left speechless after this. If her family doesn't care about her, who will? Melinda’s family is a part of the reason that she couldn’t open up to anyone about the event that occured last summer. Melinda’s parents seem to overreact over the smallest things: grades, room decorations, seasons. This could be another reason why she didn’t tell them about what happened because of the fear that they might take drastic measures to ensure their daughter is alright.

The story “Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe” revolves around the friendship of two boys, Aristotle and Dante. Dante frequently interacted with were his parents and Aristotle. His relationship with his parents is like one with friends. He is aware of the fact that his parents trust and respect him. Even when he is treated this way, he is still afraid to talk to them about his feelings towards Aristotle. He did this because he was afraid of disappointing his parents because of who he was becoming, as he was an only child. Also, the act of kissing another of the same gender in a public space got him into a hospital ICU. This proves that people and rules that are set shape parts of who we become.

Aristotle’s relationship with his parents is one that shapes a big part of who he has become. His relationship with his dad is a shallow one. This changes after the car accident where he jumped in front of a car to protect Dante. Eventually, they found some things in common (Bad dreams, books, driving lessons and his brother). He doesn't talk as openly with his father as he does with his mother. Aristotle wasn’t one who had many companions but, his relationship with his mother was one like close friends. They knew each other pretty well. Even if this is, he is really hesitant to talk about his feelings for Dante and to ask questions about his brother, “Thats what I did with everything. Keep it inside”. Aristotle got into a fist fight once and his parents got very worried because his brother got into prison because he had killed someone with his bare fists. “I’m not my brother” Aristotle said and then promised himself that he wouldn’t turn into his brother. Past events, parental pressure and expectations shape who you become.

Even though people say that everyone is different and it is important to be your own original person, but in most cases, our families and the people we frequently interact with make some sort of mark on us. As Anne Frank said once said, ““Parents can only give good advice or put them on the right paths, but the final forming of a person's character lies in their own hands.” As people, we should be committed to care and listen to anyone who might require assistance of any kind. Even the smallest actions can make large impacts.

By Manini 

Authors Craft Essay: 'Speak' by Laurie Halse Anderson

Most people go through a phase where they feel like they’re voice is unheard. That phase where the words that roll out of their tongue simply vanish into the thin air. Similarly in the story “Speak” by Laurie Halse Anderson, a girl found herself silenced because of a rape incidence earlier in her life. Over time, she finds her voice and the courage to speak her mind. The girl, Melinda, enters high school at the start of the book, she starts alone. She is nervous and retreats into a shell whenever she has to interact with people. Author Laurie Halse Anderson used techniques like symbolism and flashbacks to keep readers predicting, so that they could make an effort to understand why Melinda is so introverted and how her character will evolve through the book.

From the start of the book Melinda was introduced as a shy and introverted 9th grader. With every new page, a bit more was revealed about her. This helped build the readers curiosity and made the reader want to keep reading further to understand more about the character. The author would talk about melinda now and then and then occasionally flip back to the summer and to what happened back then. The author probably did this to build up suspense and gradually develop the cause and effect aspect of Melinda’s present character. The author also revealed more information about Melinda and her friends at a slow pace and probably deliberately to keep the reader anxious to find out more.

The dominant symbol throughout the story are trees. Laurie found an easy way to do this, she engraved her symbol into something that Melinda does at school. Art. At the start of the year, Melinda got to pick a chit of paper with her art assignment on it. Trees. In my opinion, the trees mentioned represent growth of this character. At times, Melinda would not be able to draw trees, this probably symbolized struggle. “I can’t bring it to life” she would say and then give up on drawing fauna. Her trees would be ‘lifeless’ perhaps symbolizing her own inability to speak and interact socially with life around her. The act of giving up could symbolize losing hope after trying to do something over and over again and rarely succeeding. Time spent in the art room is described as tedious and challenging. Maybe this meant that change is a slow and a tiresome process. Finally, at the end of the year Melinda was able to draw trees successfully. This shows relief and strength. The symbol allowed the reader to track Melinda’s character grow as the story progresses?

People might have missed this but, another symbol that has been mentioned repeatedly were Melinda’s lips. Melinda often criticized her lips of being cracked and dry. This could possibly symbolize not taking sufficient care of herself or to symbolize something rarely used. She once said that she didn’t recognize her lips, as though she was talking about not recognizing who she was turning into. It might also show confusion or being unsure of how to manage a situation. Melinda really struggled with speaking up, and she often questions if people would care about what she has to say “would they listen?” or “would they believe me?”. Her lips were the perfect symbol that would help us understand that she hasn’t spoken for a while and wasn’t going to speak up any time soon, which is why it was dry and uncared for. This got me predicting about the end, would she finally speak up? would someone help her to find her voice?

Speaking up isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, and we should respect that. Some people just don’t know how to or are not comfortable to express themselves verbally and they might end up using alternatives, just like how Laurie was able to use trees, Melindas lips and flashbacks as tools to speak for Melinda’s feelings. The effects of events in the past have large impacts on our present selves, this has come out well throughout the story. I, myself, am going to commit to listening up, genuinely care, and try and help someone in a similar situation. I am hoping, but who knows, if there are more Melindas amongst us in real life?

By Manini