Academic Vocabulary
This is another name for an educated guess - something you do when you read between the lines.
Here is an example:
“At first, mom was pretty good about preparing notes on the kitchen counter and sticking them in the fridge, but I knew that would end. I come home to a note that says, ‘Pizza. 555-4892. "
Melinda does not have a good relationship with her parents.
What is an inference?
Language that gives human qualities to things that aren’t human
Ex:
Ex: The rose seemed to be desperately reaching for the sun.
My guitar gently weeps.
The wind howled.
The tree branches slashed angrily at her face.
What is personification?
Through this character's experiences, the theme topic of trauma is developed.
Melinda
An object, process, person, animal, color or season that represents a big idea
What is a symbol?
These are aspects of the book that aren't part of the story but that do give you hints about the setting, plot and characters. You can analyze these things before you even read the book and make some pretty good predictions about what will happen in the book.
Examples:
-book cover
-chapter titles
-section titles
Text features
Exaggeration for effect
Ex:I'm so hungry I could eat a horse.
What is hyperbole?
By using a script/screenplay structure in the dinner theater scene, this theme message is developed.
This season often represents death, hardship, and loneliness. In Speak, it represents the most difficult, saddest time in Melinda's life.
What is winter weather symbolism?
This is language that doesn't literally mean what is written on the page, but has a deeper meaning that readers are expected to interpret
Ex: metaphor, simile, hyperbole etc.
What is figurative language?
The message of the story - something that the author wants readers to learn about human nature and what it means to be human. This message can be stated in 4 ways: a lesson, a cause, an effect, and an explanation of the way human emotion works.
Ex: Trauma can sometimes cause isolation and low self-worth.
The theme! (theme statement)
The character who helps Melinda realize how important it is for her to speak up. He is an inspiration to her, and he helps to develop the theme of speaking up for yourself.
David Petrakis
This process symbolizes Melinda's growth and change from an insecure young woman with damaged sense of self-worth, to a secure and confident young woman.
The process of Melinda completing the tree art project.
This is a very common type of figurative language. A comparison between two very different things - uses like or as
Ex: Love is like a rose.
What is a simile?
When animal characteristics are used to describe humans
Ex: The worker bees buzzed quickly around the office, while the queen bee sat in her cushy chair.
What is zoomorphism?
This scene develops the theme of popularity, ultimately leading us to the theme statement that people (in high school and sometimes beyond) will do anything to be accepted and to be popular.
What is the scene where Melinda and Rachel are in the bathroom, and Rachelle is smoking candy cigarettes to be cool.
My tree is definitely breathing. Little shallow breaths like it just shot up through the ground this morning. This one is not perfectly symmetrical. The bark is rough. I try to make it look as if initials had been carved in it a long time ago. One of the lower branches is sick. If this tree really lives someplace, the branch better drop soon, so it doesn't kill the whole tree.
What is the tree symbolism scene that shows that Melinda has grown and has come to feel better about herself?
The name for this type of figurative language comes from a Greek word meaning to "transfer" or "carry across." This figurative language "carries" meaning from one word, image, or idea to another. Identify what two things are being compared, and then thinking about their similarities, will help you to interpret this type of figurative language.
Ex: Love is a rose.
What is a metaphor?
This is not the theme statement - it is the way the theme is revealed in a novel or story. There are lots of ways a theme can be revealed:
-through the character learning a lesson about the world
-character change
-character foils
-important scenes
What is theme development?
In this scene, Melinda comes full circle. This scene develops the theme of self-worth and personal growth. In this scene, Melinda leaves behind the shame she felt earlier in the book, and she uses her anger and newfound confidence to make a positive choice for herself. There are two possible correct answers for this.
What is the scene when Melinda fights back against Andy Evans?
You could also say the scene where she tells Rachel about the rape and she uses the word rape.
Melinda tells Rachel: I didn’t call the cops to break up the party. I called - them - because some guy raped me. Under the trees. I didn’t know what to do. I was stupid and drunk and I didn’t know what was happening and then he hurt - raped me. When the police came, everyone was screaming, and I was just too scared, so I cut through some backyards and walked home.
I think about lying down. No, that would not do. I crouch by the trunk my fingers stroking the bark, seeking a braille code, a clue, a message on how to come back to life after my long dormancy. I have survived. I am here. Confused, screwed up, but here. So, how can I find my way? Is there a chainsaw of the soul? An ax to take my memories or fears? I dig my fingers into the dirt and squeeze. A small, clean part of me waits to warm and burst through the surface. (188).
What is tree symbolism that shows Melinda's character change - that she slowly coming back to life and healing.