Melinda Did The Right Thing In The Book Speak

In the book Speak, Melinda called the cops on a party. This one single act turned her into an outcast but nevertheless, I believe that she did the right thing. I believe that she did the right thing by calling the cops because the party was dangerous, there was alcohol, and Melinda was sexually abused. Anyone in this situation would have made the same decisions.

One reason that Melinda did the right thing by calling the cops is because the party contained alcohol and Melinda was surrounded by people who were older than her and had less regard for rules. In the book, when Melinda is remembering what happened that night, the text states, “I’m mumbling like a deranged drunk. His lips lock on mine and I can’t say anything,” (135). The alcohol in Melinda’s system caused her to create unstable decisions such as wandering out into the woods at night without adult supervision or at least a responsible friend. It also barred her from speaking her mind and telling Andy Evans how she felt. When Melinda is …show more content…
In the text, it says, “His teeth ground hard against my lips. It was hard to breathe,” (135) This shows that Melinda was physically and emotionally hurt because she could not even breathe. If Melinda had not called the cops almost immediately after, the party could have gotten wilder and completely out of control. For example, the text states, “I stood in the middle of a crowd and I called 911 because I needed help,” (136). This shows that not only was Melinda damaged externally, she was also hurt internally. As one reads the book, they can observe that the whole year, Melinda barely speaks as a result of the fact that she is still not able to cope with what happened at that party. Imagine more young teenage girls going through that. Melinda definitely did what we would all do in this situation. She called the police and told them that she was in