Symbolization in Speak

Throughout the novel, Speak, we are faced with multiple types of symbolism. Our author goes to some deeper thinking about what is truly going on in the mind of Melinda, our main character. Our main character is a young girl in high school who's reputation at school has taken a different turn from what it used to be. She used to have the majority of the school as friends and she also used to receive good grades but as we see at the end of each marking period, although we don't get to see her last grades, that he grades are changing.

Melinda is taking at art class and on the first day of classes they are each to pick a slip of paper out of a globe, which states what they will be creating all year. Melinda draws out a tree. At first she read this and tries to return it but the art teacher does not let her. Through the semester we see Melinda draw countless numbers of trees and each one of them symbolizes something, where it's something that has happened to her or what she is feeling. At the beginning when she is having a hard time creating the teacher the teacher says that she needs to think beyond the trees and let the trees come second. One trees is depicted with a lighting going through the middle of it. It's like she has something happen to her that was quick and made her feel helpless much like the tree did when it had lightening going through it. Comparing that to the tree who is dying a slow and probably very painful death as in the diseased tree. Melinda is what is considered an outcast and has no friends, which as stated above is completely different then before. The trees are used for her as a exit to show but not tell at the same times what is going on in her world. And in the end it really does help her to express herself and make herself come out of her haze.

As stated above they have four marking periods where the grades are handed out. Throughout the year when we get to see her markings we see they slowly get worse and worse. By the third marking period we see her grades as D's and F's, except for of course art. As stated in class, I agree with the fact that these four marking periods are like the four seasons. The first marking period is like summer, not too out of the normal but not exactly what she wants. The second marking period is like fall, things are slowly starting to die off and so were he grades. With her grades being slightly under average, so under C's. And the third marking period as being winter, when things are at their worst. We see snow on the ground and things around us are cold and dead, much as with her grades. Her grades are at an all time low and things does seem to be getting any better. But then we get to spring, which is the forth marking period. Things are starting to come alive and good thing too, cause so is Melinda. Her art work is truly helping her to see what she can do without those friends and how she can become stronger. Although we don't get to see her last markings we do see her grow and come out from being an outcast.