SPEAK BY LAURIE HALSE ANDERSON: CHAPTER SUMMARY / NOTES

CHAPTER 17 - Blue Roses

Summary

Melinda describes biology class as a class in which she tries to pay attention. They have real microscopes and are studying cells. She feels sad for her teacher, Mrs. Keen, whom she thinks could have been a famous scientist or a doctor, but instead is stuck with them. She is so short that she has to stand on wooden boxes she has placed all over the room, so the students can see her when she lectures. One day, she wore a purple dress with bright blue roses all over it and the students talked about her all day. She never wore the dress again.

Melinda’s lab partner is David Petrakis who has the potential to be cute, but makes the teachers nervous, because he is so brilliant. He looks like a kid who might get beat up a lot, but somehow no one does. She wishes she knew his secret. The only time he ever talked to her was the day she almost ruined a $300 microscope by turning the knob the wrong way.

Notes

In this scene, we see that Melinda, Mrs. Keen, and David Petrakis are in some ways very much alike. Mrs. Keen and Melinda are both the subjects of student gossip while David Petrakis speaks as little as Melinda does, at least at this point. He doesn’t acknowledge Melinda any more than he does anyone else around him. She identifies with that, but secretly seems to want him to speak to her. Blue Roses is an apt title for this chapter as it becomes symbolic for those who are unacceptable by the rest.

CHAPTER 18 - Student Divided by Confusion Equals Algebra

Summary

Melinda arrives late to math and submits a forged signature from her stolen pad. Mr. Stetman (his real name) stares at it for a long time, but doesn’t comment. She notes that it is impossible to stay focused on algebra which is surprising, as the year before, she had tested at the top of the class in math. However, she just can’t “get her head around algebra.” She and every other student in the class ask the teacher everyday why they have to study it, because it seems to have no practical use. This causes him personal pain, because he loves it so much. He talks about it like some men talk about their cars.

When Melinda cannot or will not solve one of the problems on the board, he calls her up and asks Rachel/Rachelle to help her understand it. She thinks her head is exploding with the noise of fire trucks leaving the station - this is a disaster in the making. Rachel easily begins to solve the problem, speaking to Melinda, while Melinda stands there helplessly and pulls her entire lip into her mouth, hoping to gobble herself up. She doesn’t even know that she has been asked to return to her seat until Rachelle nudges her. She can only come to the conclusion that they shouldn’t spend any time with algebra. It’s a shame, because Mr. Stetman seems like such a nice guy.

Notes

Once again, Melinda ends up in a less than flattering light before her peers. She can’t understand algebra at all and becomes a fool in front of the class for inability to solve a problem. Of all people, Rachelle is the one to volunteer to help Melinda at Mr. Stetman’s urging. However, we can see that her anger at Melinda would make her use this opportunity to further humiliate her.

Melinda’s description of her head exploding and a disaster about to happen reflects how she is constantly on the defensive, like a soldier in the midst of battle. She is under siege all the time and so her inability to understand algebra makes her cannon fodder for people like Rachelle.

CHAPTER 19 - Halloween

Summary

Her parents tell Melinda that she is too old this year to go trick or treating, but she isn’t upset; she’s thrilled. It makes it possible for her not to admit that no one had asked her to go with them. However, she keeps up appearances by stomping to her room in pretend anger. While her mother hands out candy downstairs, Melinda reminisces about Halloween the year before when her clan had all dressed up like witches. They all dressed at Ivy’s house, because she had theatrical makeup, and they ran through the night like they were really witches. They ended up with pounds of candy and finished the night at Ivy’s house where they lit a candle and held it in front of the mirror to see their futures. Melinda didn’t see anything.

This year, Rachelle was invited to a party thrown by one of the exchange student’s host family. Melinda knew she wouldn’t get an invitation, because with her reputation, she’d be lucky to get an invitation to her own funeral. Heather had decided to walk with the little kids in her neighborhood so their mothers could stay home. So, Melinda refuses to spend the night moping in her room and picks up a copy of Dracula with a bag of candy corn beside her.

Notes

Not being allowed to go trick or treating is thrilling for Melinda, because she doesn’t want to admit that she wasn’t invited by anyone. However, underneath the relief, she is hurting, because she has been left out. Her memories of the year before and how much fun she had dominates her thoughts until she decides not to mope and sits down with a good book. Perhaps, this small sign of rebellion against her despair is an indication that perhaps she is beginning in this small way to work her way through her problems.

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson: Free BookNotes Summary

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