Speak

Melinda works through her trauma as the year progresses, and alongside this process, she also develops her skills as an artist and her ability to express her emotions and experiences through art. At the beginning of the school year, Melinda describes art class as a dream that follows a nightmare; it is her refuge and the only place she feels like she can enjoy herself at school. Melinda also admires her teacher, Mr. Freeman, for his expressiveness, creativity, and passion for art and education. Mr. Freeman designs a year-long art project in which the students must pick a random object and “spend the rest of the year learning how to turn that object into a piece of art […] [and] figure out how to make [their] object say something, express an emotion, speak to every person who looks at it” (12). Melissa’s object turns out to be a tree, and she initially declares it too easy. Mr. Freeman warns that she cannot choose another object; she must instead adapt and find out how to express herself through the form of a tree. As Melinda begins her journey into artistic expression, she learns The Importance of Art as a Form of Self-Expression and Healing.

Melinda’s trees help her process and express how she feels when she cannot speak with words. Mr. Freeman often steps in to interpret her works for her, and she finds his analyses quite accurate most of the time. Melinda’s first trees are watercolor creations of lightning-struck trees, symbolizing how she feels after being traumatized. She is alive, but barely; she is clinging to what remains of her freedom and dignity. Next, Melinda makes a sculpture out of turkey bones, using twigs to create the legs. It represents the decay inside her and the fact that a part of her is dying as she remains silenced. Melinda notes her progress with her trees:

There has been some progress in the whole tree project, I guess. Like Picasso, I’ve gone through different phases. There’s the Confused Period, where I wasn’t sure what the assignment really was. The Spaz period, where I couldn’t draw a tree to save my life. The Dead Period, when all my trees looked like they had been through a forest fire or a blight. I’m getting better (151).

Each of Melinda’s creations is kept inside her closet hideaway at school, where she can reflect on her progress and what each piece means to her. Each represents How Personality and Perception Change as a Result of Trauma.

Melinda suffers many setbacks and frustrations in art class, but never gives up. Mr. Freeman tells Melinda to “be the tree” (153) and reminds her that “nothing is perfect. Flaws are interesting” (153). After many attempts at carving a tree out of a linoleum block, Ivy suggests that she let go of perfection and just sketch it. This approach helps Melinda create her final project, an imperfect sketch of a tree that represents her growth and healing: “It wasn’t my fault. He hurt me. It wasn’t my fault. And I’m not going to let it kill me. I can grow” (198). Melinda’s tree art helps her speak through art and eventually speak out verbally, thus helping to illuminate the novel’s theme, Finding One’s Voice After It Has Been Lost.