Coming into a new high school being an outcast is tough, especially when you don’t have any friends and continuously get bullied. In the novel Speak, the character Melinda Sordino went through the three stages of Bildungsroman. The first stage of Bildungsroman is innocence/ immaturity. Before the incident at the party Melinda was at the stage of innocence/ immaturity. Throughout the novel Melinda also experienced stage two of Bildungsroman which is test and trials. At the end of the book, Melinda experiences stage three of Bildungsroman which is experience/ maturity. Throughout the novel, the character Melinda Sordino progresses through the three stages of Bildungsroman.
The first stage of Bildungsroman is innocence/ immaturity. Before the incident at the party, Melinda was at the stage of innocence/ immaturity. Firstly, she used to do well at school. During the meeting with the principal, guidance counselor and Melinda, the principal discusses Melinda’s previous report card: “Melinda. Last year you were a straight-B student, no behaviour problems, few absences. But the
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reports I’ve been getting… well, what can I say?” (114). This shows that before the incident at the party Melinda did well in school. Not only did Melinda do well in school, but she also had many friends. During the first day of high school, Melinda was talking about all her ex- friends and the clan they used to be in, “The Plain Janes”: “There is no point looking for my ex- friends. Our clan, “The Plain Janes,” has splintered and the Nagpal2 pieces are being absorbed by rival faction” (4). Melinda had lost all her friends due to what happened after the end of the summer party. Before the incident happened, Melinda was also very naive about boys. When Andy Evans was flirting with Melinda at the end of summer party, she was happy because she thought that she was going to go to high school with a boyfriend: “And I thought for just a minute there that I had a boyfriend, older and stronger and ready to watch out for me” (134). Melinda didn’t know what was happening to her at the time. She didn’t know that Andy Evans would end up raping her at the party. Therefore, in the novel Speak, the character Melinda had experienced the first stage of Bildungsroman which is innocence/ immaturity before the incident at the party. In the novel Speak, Melinda experienced stage two of Bildungsroman which is test and trials. For example, during this novel, Melinda suffered from low self-esteem issues. When it was Melinda’s first day at high school, she entered high school with the wrong hair, clothes, and attitude and she didn’t have anyone to sit with her: “I have entered high school with the wrong hair, the wrong clothes, the wrong attitude. And I don’t have anyone to sit with. I am Outcast” (4). Melinda was outcast, everyone remembered what happened at the end of the summer party. In addition, Melinda went through many symptoms of depression. When Melinda was in her bedroom closet, she got a paperclip and started scratching herself: “I open up a paperclip and scratch it across the inside of my left wrist. Pitiful” (87). Melinda needs someone to help her treat her depression; she is depressed because she lost all her old friends and no one is paying attention to her. Not only did Melinda suffer from depression, but she also goes through Nagpal3 a lot of bullying. When Melinda was sitting on the bleachers, the girl behind her jammed her knees into Melinda’s back: “The girl behind me jams her knees into my back. They are as sharp as her fingernails” (29). Melinda was continuously getting bullied because everyone knew that she was very weak and didn’t have much confidence in herself. Thus, Melinda had experienced the second stage of Bildungsroman which is test and trials throughout the novel. At the end of the novel, Melinda experienced stage three of Bildungsroman which is experience/ maturity. Firstly, Melinda shows improvement in school. When Mr. Freeman, the art teacher was discussing Melinda’s final tree assignment he was very impressed: “You get an A+. you worked hard on this” (198). This shows that Melinda is starting to work hard again and she is becoming more mature when it comes to school and studies. In addition, Melinda is starting to stand up for herself. When Melinda was trapped in the closet with Andy Evans she was standing up for herself this time: “NNNOOO…I said no” (194). Melinda knew that this time she had to speak up and not stay silent because she didn’t want the same incident to happen again. Lastly, Melinda is becoming more confident and she isn’t scared of Andy Evans. At the end of the novel, Mr. Freeman was asking Melinda about the incident, and instead of Melinda being scared she decided to tell him all about it: “You’ve been though a lot, haven’t you… let me tell you about it” (198). Melinda doesn’t want to remain silent anymore, she wants to share her experience with everyone because she is becoming mature and realizing that it wasn’t her Nagpal4 fault. Therefore, at the end of this novel Melinda experienced stage three of Bildungsroman which is experience/ maturity. Throughout the novel, the character Melinda Sordino progresses through the three stages of Bildungsroman.
The three stages of Bildungsroman are innocence/ immaturity, test and trials, and experience/ maturity. Throughout the novel Melinda struggled to find her way thorough high school due to Andy Evans raping her at the summer party. At the end of the novel Melinda was no longer scared of anyone and she was more open to her friends, parents and teachers. Melinda has shown tremendous growth and improvement throughout the novel, from being silent and hidden in a closet to opening herself up and telling everyone what she’s been through. The lesson learned is to always go on with your life no matter what comes in the way, whether it is good or bad. This reflects Melinda’s life because she got raped but she still went on with her life, and now she is living her life like a teenager her age should
live.
Throughout the passages, Laurie Halse Anderson establishes the Central Idea through the use of Characteristics and Imagery, revealing that the loudest words are the ones that aren’t spoken.
The short story Eleven by Sandra Cisneros, focuses around the main character Rachel as an insecure developing girl who lacks the experience to handle everyday encounters. Rachel, an eleven year old girl truly encapsulates the thoughts that are present within an adolescent. The lack of confidence in herself, excessive fear of being judged, and ideas of growing up are ideals that are relevant within each and every one of us. The reader is able to relate to Rachel because her feelings and experiences that are described by the author are similar to what most people have been through and are currently experiencing. The characterization of Rachel is expressed through the author’s usage of point of view, imagery, and repetition.
At the beginning of the year, I noticed that Melinda wasn’t very active or social. For the most part, she avoided most social activities. She seemed to prefer to be alone inside her closet. But during the second semester, I noticed that this started to change. “I start on the leaves suffocating the bushes”(p.166). This quote describes Melinda going outside and doing yard work on her own without being asked to, which I don’t think she would have done before. Another example is when she asked her dad to bring her some flower seeds(p.168). There quotes prove that Melinda definitely becomes more active during the second half on the year.
Melinda makes minimal contact with her friends and as a consequence, loses her friends after these actions. Little did Melinda’s friends know, she was avoiding them unintentionally. On the first day of school, when Melinda sees her friends again, she realizes they want nothing to do with her. “I see a few friends, people I used to think were my friends, but they look away” (Anderson 8). This quote proves that Melinda was able to understand that her friends were not really her friends anymore. There are many reasons why victims may isolate themselves after this experience. “Victims are three times more likely to suffer from depression, six times more likely to suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder, 13 times more likely to abuse alcohol, 26 times more likely to abuse drugs, and four times more likely to contemplate suicide” (Who are the Victims 3). This quote from the article may help readers understand why victims suffer from diagnosis’ like depression, which cause them to isolate themselves. As a final point, victims of sexual assaults can connect to Melinda because they may isolate themselves after this type of
The plot of the book, Speak is that Melinda Sordino, a freshman at Merryweather High went to an end of the summer party with some of her friends. Things take a turn for the worst when a senior named Andy Evans sexually assaults her at the party without her friends knowing about it. Melinda is frightened, afraid, and does not know what to do so she calls 911 busting the party, and causing her friends and everyone at that school to hate her, even if they don’t know her.
The first stage is Stage 5 Identity vs Identity Confusion in adolescence (Rogers, 2013). All of a sudden at the age of 14 Emilia started to change and become involved in drugs. This may have occurred due to her mother’s dependence on her to help with the housework and helping with her younger brothers and sisters. She could have begun to feel confusion on her true identity as a normal teenage girl or a mother figure to her siblings. Getting involved in drugs may have been her way of rebelling against her parents for not paying attention to her when she needed them or for placing her in this position as a caretaker.
...st in school by learning about Hitler and the horrible historical events that have happened in the world. Her maturity is expressed by what she has learned about the world around her and can apply those things to her every day life. Moreover, Scout has matured greatly in the novel and she has learned many lessons about life, family, and womanhood.
Berger, K. S. (2012). The developing person: through childhood and adolescence. (9th ed.). New York, NY: Worth Publishers.
Both characters change after an event that takes place in their life. In Speak Melinda changes prior to the raping. A change is evident, because during the meeting with her parents the principal says, “Melinda. Last year you were a straight –B student, no behavioral problems, few absences. But the reports I’ve been getting…well, what can we say?” (Anderson, 114). She must have been a straight-B student in the eighth grade, since none of her progress reports for the ninth grade year have all B’s. Not only Melinda’s grades change, but also her social status. She states, “I have entered high school with the wrong hair, the wrong clothes, the wrong attitude. And I don’t have anyone to sit with. I am Outcast” (Anderson, 4). She doesn’t talk to any of her friends from middle school except for Ivy, who she occasionally talks to. Tyler changes physically and mentally after doing the
The story " A white Heron" is about a nine-year-old girl named Sylvia. The author starts the cycle/framework by implying through the character's age that Sylvia has a certain innocence that only a young child early in life can possess. This is the first stage in the cycle of human experiences, the innocence stage. Sylvia had moved from the city to the country in order to live with her grandmother when she was eight years old. Sylvia used to live in a crowded and noisy manufacturing town with her parents. After Sylvia moved to the country, she seemed to come alive, like being born again. The fact that the author has Sylvia move from the city to the country shows that Sylvia has entered the second stage in the cycle. The second stage for Sylvia is about her going on a quest in a since where she will figure out who she will become through life experiences, the other stages in the cycle.
“Maturity is when your world opens up and you realize that you are not the center of it.” –M.J. Croan. Maturity comes in steps, where we are always progressing and learning further about ourselves and how others perceive us. Scout gradually becomes more mature throughout the novel, leaving behind her innocence while also reconstructing her empathy and tolerance for others. Similarly Scout and I were both naïve to the world around us, but because of witnessing first-hand the inhumanity around us blatantly displayed a lack of empathy people contain within them. This was a learning experience for myself because it brought home racial discrimination in an event that will forever impact the way I treat others of a different race, color or religion.
Stage 4 of Erickson's theory of personality development lasts from age 6 to the beginning of adolescence. The main theme of this stage is industry versus inferiority. Here is where the child learns to function ...
Many adolescent go through this stage where it can be the most confusing and the most poorly understood stage (Omotoso, n.d.). The fact that this stage can be understood means there can be more problems. When many negative events occur the adolescent may try to find ways to deal with their situation (Understanding Child Traumatic Stress, n.d.). An example of this would be, in The Family, when Wallis tries to aide her mother in any means necessary, regarding her career as a public figure. The reason why Willis does this is because she feels guilty (Understanding Child Traumatic Stress, n.d.). At the stage of adolescence, they are learning to handle intense physical and emotional reactions in order to take action in the face of danger (Understanding Child Traumatic Stress, n.d.). The only way that Willis knew how to deal with this was by lying for her mother, to her
Erik Erikson developed eight psychosocial stages that occur through life. These stages help parents of younger children understand what the child is thinking and why they are acting the way that they do. For a person to become a well-rounded adult they need to succeed in each level. This essay will discuss the first six stages into young adulthood.
Bildungsroman is a novel about growing up. In novel northern lights layra is the protagonist.