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Part 1, Chapter 6
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Speak, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Coming of Age
Communication versus Silence
Appearance versus Reality
Family and Friendship
Isolation, Loneliness, and Depression
Memory and Trauma
Summary
Analysis
Melinda hides in a bathroom and watches as a student who is cutting class outwits the incompetent Principal Principal. As the two miscommunicate and the student escapes, Melinda mentally mocks the hapless administrator. She laughs as Principal Principal walks away from the interaction, clearly trying to understand what he did wrong.
Melinda thinks that adults know little about the lives of high schoolers, and is contemptuous of their attempts to try. As an outsider, she is able to observe the actions of others rather than participating; her isolation, therefore, makes her more perceptive.
Themes
