The Importance of Laurie Halse Anderson’s novel “Speak” in the #MeToo Era

Originally published in 1999, Laurie Halse Anderson's groundbreaking novel "Speak" highlights the deep-rooted effects of rape culture and the importance of speaking out.

Countless stories have been written since the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements that have changed the dynamics of Hollywood, the Olympics, and dozens of other institutions.

Countless stories have been written since the #MeToo and #TimesUp feminist movements that have changed the dynamics of Hollywood, the Olympics, and dozens of other institutions. Women have come forward with stories of their own experiences with sexual assault, and as art is a reflection of reality, more and more new books, television shows, movies, and visual art pieces are being released. Most significantly, similar tales from older media are being rebooted or released to show that the movement has not lost momentum and that those stories deserve to be heard. Such is the case with Laurie Halse Anderson’s 1999 novel “Speak,” which was made into a graphic novel and published on Feb. 6.

One year ago, on October 2017, allegations of sexual assault rocked the nation as the New York Times and the New Yorker revealed Harvey Weinstein’s sexual and physical abuse of countless women. As the allegations grew, survivors of sexual assault took to Twitter and various forms of social media to speak about their personal experiences with sexual violence, using the hashtag #MeToo. The powerful hashtag was initially used in 2006 by Tarana Burke, who used the hashtag to discuss the prevalence of sexual assault among women of color. It became viral when actress Alyssa Milano used the hashtag after the Harvey Weinstein reports, to show the prevalent instances of sexual misconduct that women experience.

The #MeToo movement expanded as survivors of sexual assault spoke about their own experiences with harassment, most prominently at the workplace or from people they knew personally. The #TimesUp movement was started as a response to #MeToo, and this viral hashtag empowered other survivors to call out powerful men across media, politics, publishing, Hollywood, and other various industries. The #MeToo movement has spread internationally, across countries, cultures, and borders. The movement demonstrates the magnitude of those affected by sexual assault, and offers solidary to those affected by trauma. Their website, metoomvmt.org, offers survivors and advocates a database that provides services, resources, and a glossary of terms to “give a voice to your experiences.”

Before the #MeToo movement even began, the young adult novel Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson was published in 1999 and tells the story of a teenage girl struggling to find her voice after she was sexually assaulted. The groundbreaking novel tells the powerful story of high school student Melinda Sordino who was raped at a party just before her freshman year. During the party, before Melinda has a chance to speak into the police, the phone is ripped from her grasp and the students realize she called the cops. When school starts three months later, her peers bully her periodically and blame her for the arrest of some students from the party. She struggles to say what happened to her, especially as her peers shun her, and as a result Melinda does not tell anyone she was raped.

Before the #MeToo movement even began, the young adult novel Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson was published in 1999 and tells the story of a teenage girl struggling to find her voice after she was sexually assaulted.

Both “Speak” and #MeToo highlight society’s failure to denounce the perpetrators of sexual violence, although Speak takes place on a smaller scale at a local high school. Throughout the novel, Melinda barely speaks, preferring to stay mute rather than tell anyone what really happened, and none of the students ask her. The vocal point of the novel comes when Melinda’s ex-best friend, Rachel, starts dating Andy, and Melinda is conflicted as to whether she should come forward with her truth, or stay silent and risk her friend getting hurt. In an effort to save her friend, she writes “GUYS TO STAY AWAY FROM” on a bathroom wall, placing “Andy Evans” as the first name. When she returns to the wall, there are comments from other women that say, "He's a creep," "He should be locked up," and "Call the cops.” In a way, the bathroom wall is her high school’s version of #MeToo, before there was the technology or platform to make her voice heard.

Once she sees the wall, Melinda realizes that there are multiple women who have been harassed or assaulted by him, and that she is not alone. When Rachel breaks up with Andy, Melinda breathes a sigh of relief. However, when Melinda is alone in the janitor’s closet, her “sanctuary,” Andy attacks her after realizing she is the only other person who could’ve told Rachel what happened. In a climactic scene, Melinda fights back and reclaims what he stole from her in the forest - her voice. She is able to open the closet door, symbolically shining a light on his crime, and she discovers other students standing in front of the closet who were ready to break the door open. The ending of “Speak” uplifted survivors of sexual assault and rape, as Melinda eventually fights back against her perpetrator, finds allies, and begins her healing process.

Anderson is no stranger to writing authentic teenage experiences, given that she incorporates stories from her own life into her novels. Similar to Melinda from “Speak,” Anderson shared her experience of being raped at age 13, and she told her therapist about what happened to her for the first time 25 years later.

Both “Speak” and #MeToo highlight society’s failure to denounce the perpetrators of sexual violence, although Speak takes place on a smaller scale at a local high school.

“Speak: The Graphic Novel,” the modern reboot, serves as a timely reminder of how little our culture has changed since its original publication. Emily Carroll, whose work “Through the Woods” has won multiple awards for its design, illustrates the graphic novel. The graphic novel is the same plot as the original, but it is the artwork that makes the written word shine. Carroll does a fantastic job of visually showing Melina’s healing process, and at times the art isuncomfortable to look at as Melinda is visibly affected by this traumatic experience. The illustrations present the same emotional energy as the novel, but it is twice as effective as the readers visually see the way in which Andy, or “IT” as Melinda calls him, terrorizes her mentally and physically. The font choice, the trees sprinkled on the corners of the pages, and the black- and-white color use all demonstrate Melinda’s sense of isolation throughout the novel.

At the same time, the illustrations also evoke a sense of hope once Melinda opens up, and the last line of the novel “Let me tell you about it,” is the only line of white text on a dark background. It is necessary for novels like “Speak” to be published, especially in this format, so that young teenagers have the language and visualization necessary to understand events that happened in their own lives.

The idea of a woman getting ostracized from society for speaking up about her experiences is no strange phenomenon, clearly shown by multiple stories shared throughout the #MeToo movement. However, it is disquieting to know that it took almost 20 years since the book’s publication to get to this point, and the work is still not done. Women who come forward, even in the time of #MeToo, face immense pressure from the public to prove their credibility. The culture in workplaces of various industries has yet to shame or blame all high-profile perpetrators of sexual violence, and there are still conversations about consent and victim blaming that need to be discussed.

According to Bustle, Anderson states that not much has changed since the initial publication, because parents, schools, police, and judicial systems still “ignore or belittle victims demanding justice.” Although social media and the #MeToo movement has advanced the conversation on an international level, there needs to be discussions in schools and inside family homes about rape culture, consent, and sexual assault to enact real change.

As a tribute to the #MeToo movement, Anderson is releasing a free verse memoir titled “Shout!” based on her own experiences with sexual assault. The memoir going to be published on March 12 2019, and the Goodreads summary calls it “vulnerable as it is rallying, as timely as it is timeless.” Anderson will be using this memoir to advocate for sexual assault survivors alongside deeply personal stories from her own life that she has never written about before.

According to The Washington Post, Anderson sees this novel as her “responsibility to help others move away from #MeToo to #UsToo,” so survivors are no longer isolated and have a sense of community, which she did not have after her assault. She further states that writing her memoir is “a second liberation for me,” as her rage at a society where sexual violence is normalized fueled her reflections. She calls “Shout!” a “declaration of war against rape culture and a celebration of survival.” Similar to the ending of “Speak,” her memoir will be one of resilience, hope, and strength for all survivors.

Hopefully, her memoir will inspire survivors to find the courage to speak up, tell their truth, and say #MeToo.

If you or anyone else you know experienced any form of sexual assault, RAINN, the Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network, is the nation’s largest organization for sexual assault survivors. They can also be contacted at National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673.