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Part 4, Chapter 20
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
A discouraged Melinda waits in the high school lobby, too upset by her conversation to go home. Suddenly Ivy shows up, and asks if she can show Melinda something. Together they walk to the bathroom together, and Melinda sees that many other girls have added to her writing on the wall about Andy, calling him a “creep” and a “bastard,” and saying that he should be arrested for his sexual aggression and his lack of respect for women. Melinda feels as if she could fly like a bird.
At one of Melinda’s lowest points, Ivy provides her with hope. Seeing other girls’ hatred of Andy Evans makes Melinda realize that she’s not alone. Andy didn’t target her because she was stupid, or because she deserved to be targeted. Rather, he is a predator who has hurt many women before her. This realization gives Melinda a feeling of freedom—marked by her thoughts of being like a bird—as she escapes from a large amount of her self-hatred.
Themes
