A Tree Grows in Brooklyn – Summary

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Book 1 

Book 1 includes the first six chapters of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and provides background information about the Nolan family and specifically Francie Nolan, the novel’s protagonist. The setting is a poor immigrant area of Brooklyn called Williamsburg. There is a tree growing in the area that survives no matter how poor the soil or water. The tree is called the Tree of Heaven by some of the residents; it grows only in the neighborhood where the poorest people live. 

The book opens on a typical Saturday. Francie and her younger brother, Neeley, spend part of the morning collecting metal scraps to sell to the junk man. The children keep half the money, and half is put in the tin can bank at home. Francie’s mother, Katie, works as a janitor cleaning three buildings. Francie’s father, Johnny, drinks and does not support the family. He is charming but irresponsible. His job is singing at weddings and in restaurants. He earns . . . Read More

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson – Analysis – Essay

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In Anderson’s novel Speak, the protagonist’s English teacher remarks: ‘‘It’s all about SYMBOLISM.’’ The teacher is referring to Nathaniel Hawthorne’s work. However, because of the stress placed on the word symbolism (placing the word in all capitals), one might question whether Anderson is referring to her own writing as well. If she is, what symbols does she create and how does she use them? 

Literary symbolism is the use of a person, object, image, word, or event that suggests a deeper meaning beyond its literal one. For example, the snowstorms through which the protagonist of this novel must walk are both literal storms and a symbol of conditions in Melinda’s life. The snow blots out much of the landscape, exemplifying Melinda’s feelings of isolation. The harsh coldness of the blizzard symbolizes Melinda’s struggle to find warmth in her personal relationships. The snowstorm is just one of the many symbols that the author uses to give more depth . . . Read More

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson – Setting

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Date Rape 

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the definition of date rape is when ‘‘forced sex occurs between two people who already know each other.’’ Date rape occurs in about half of all rape cases reported. ‘‘Even if the two people know each other well, and even if they were intimate or had sex before, no one has the right to force a sexual act on another person against his or her will.’’ The Department goes on to state that rape should not be confused with passion or love: ‘‘Rape is an act of aggression and violence.’’ Another major point that the Department clarifies is that the victim of a rape should not feel that he or she brought it on by the clothes they were wearing or how they might have been acting: ‘‘Rape is always the fault of the rapist.’’ 

In a report offered by the U.S. Department of Justice, the number of incidents of date rape has slowly declined. In the . . . Read More

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson – Literary Devices – Writing Style

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Suspense 

Anderson does not reveal what is bothering her protagonist until well into the story. This creates suspense, which keeps her readers turning the pages to find out what is going to happen next and why Melinda is acting so strangely. Authors tend to use various forms of suspense to keep their readers engaged in the story. Suspense can also put readers in an active, rather than passive state, as they attempt to guess what happened by putting together the clues the author provides. Not all novels have to be classified as mysteries in order to create suspense. Most good novels have some element of suspense. Some are more subtle than others. Suspense is most obvious in crime novels and psychological thrillers. However, all well-written novels will provide enough unanswered questions to sustain the reader’s curiosity and thus offer suspense.

Narrative Sequence 

Throughout Anderson’s novel, the . . . Read More

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson: Themes

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Trauma and the Restorative Power of Speech 

The trauma of the rape that Melinda experiences before Anderson’s novel Speak even begins influences the entire story. Because of that trauma, Melinda’s mental state continues to deteriorate as the story progresses. As she attempts to find, within herself as well as in the world around her, places in which to hide, she sinks deeper into silence. So many people disallow her a chance to reveal her inner fears, shame, and confusion. Her peers have already judged her and decide to ban her from their groups. Her parents do not have time or patience to encourage her to open up to them. Only Melinda’s art teacher perceives that something is troubling her. He is the only one who understands that sometimes words are either too difficult or too inadequate to express the deepest emotions. However, he also understands that in order for Melinda to heal, she must find a way to articulate her feelings. That is . . . Read More

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson: Characters

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Rachel Bruin 

Rachel was the protagonist’s best friend from elementary school through middle school. She is the one person that Melinda wishes she could talk to. However, Rachel believes that Melinda ruined her summer because of the police raid on the last party before school resumed. 

Rachel hangs out with foreign exchange students at school. She takes up the habit of pretending to smoke candy cigarettes to give her a more European flair. When Melinda runs into Rachel in the girls’ bathroom, Rachel responds to Melinda’s statements with grunts or foreign phrases. Melinda learns that Rachel changes the spelling and pronunciation of her name to Rachelle, to sound more French. 

When Melinda sees Rachel falling for Andy, Melinda wants to warn her. Melinda finally gets up the courage to do so, but Rachel thinks Melinda is jealous. However, it is because of Melinda’s warning that Rachel finally sees who Andy really is. When he . . . Read More

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson: Summary

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First Marking Period 

Anderson’s novel Speak begins with the protagonist, Melinda Sordino, on her way to the first day of high school. Melinda is very nervous about boarding the bus, though the reason for her tension is not provided. The school bus is empty when she gets on, but she carefully contemplates where she will sit. Although sitting in the front of the bus reminds her of being in elementary school, she decides sitting close to the front door is her best choice. By the time the bus arrives at school, Melinda is the only student who sits alone. All her old friends have shunned her. 

Inside the school gym, Melinda looks to find someone to stand with. She recognizes the different groups by types, such as the athletes, the cheerleaders, the Plain Janes. Her middle-school friends look her way and laugh. Melinda assumes they are laughing at her. No one motions for her to join them. When she spots Rachel Bruin, who used to be her . . . Read More

The Scarlet Pimpernel – Analysis – Essay

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Baroness Orczy is generally credited with creating the literary figure of the disguised superhero in 1905 with The Scarlet Pimpernel. The character of Zorro was created some fourteen years later, Superman was introduced in 1938, and before long an entire genre was flourishing. The comic book proved the favored medium for superhero stories, which mostly featured impressively masculine figures and so were naturally enjoyed in particular by boys, who would be drawn to the fantastic action and, perhaps less consciously, the dramatic depictions of how to be a man. In his introduction to Orczy’s novel, Gary Hoppenstand notes that the heroic qualities of the Scarlet Pimpernel can be traced to a variety of later fictional figures. For example, the ‘‘hedonistic protagonist who knows his wine and clothes’’ can be found reincarnated in Ian Fleming’s James Bond, who debuted in the novel Casino Royale in 1953. The ‘‘trickster hero who is able to readily escape any life-and-death . . . Read More

The Scarlet Pimpernel – Setting – Historical Accuracy

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The French Revolution 

Within the greater setting of the French Revolution, which began in 1789, The Scarlet Pimpernel takes place beginning in September 1792, a month marked by what became known as the September Massacres, in which raging mobs murdered more than a thousand suspected criminals—many of whom were innocent—held at five different prisons. Orczy establishes the horrors of this period of time in the opening chapter, the only one that takes place in Paris, the heart of the nation’s violence. Every day, condemned aristocrats—men, women, and children alike— would be wheeled to the guillotine and executed, before enthusiastic audiences of commoners. Renowned were the tricoteuses, old ladies who passed the time knitting just beneath the platform where victims were beheaded; the Scarlet Pimpernel successfully poses as one of these chilling women. 

Thus, Orczy plunges the reader into the most sickening violence of the . . . Read More

The Scarlet Pimpernel: Literary Devices

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Superhero in Disguise Character 

Orczy’s most famous work is often cited for giving rise to the genre of the superhero with an alter ego or secret identity. As Sarah Juliette Sasson notes, ‘‘Superheroes had not been invented when the baroness wrote her novel, but the Scarlet Pimpernel’s chivalry, courage, and impressive powers make him, in certain respects, their ancestor.’’ Johnston McCulley presented his character of Zorro, who dons a black mask and costume to fight evildoers, in 1919 in The Curse of Capistrano. Other characters written in the mode of the Scarlet Pimpernel can be found primarily in comic books, as with Superman and Batman, characters who have received increased attention in modern films. Indeed, stories of superheroes have become a veritable obsession with modern popular audiences. Some commentators have noted that during trying or fearful times—such as an economic recession—moviegoers may be more likely to . . . Read More