Reading the book Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson was required reading when I was in high school, yet the book was very controversial in its content.
Now, having seen Jessica Sharzer’s film based on the book, and having new knowledge and concepts in mind, I felt it was important to write this article regarding the film itself.
Let me first say that everything mentioned below is not facts, just interpretations. I do not argue or debate the author or film-maker’s original intent, nor do I claim to know the full meaning of each symbol/idea presented in this article. However, once one delves into the world of symbolism, it is hard not to notice when a pattern arises, and such was the case with this film. The subtle undertones and imagery presented in the film made it appeal to me even more so than the plot itself.
On its own, Speak is a highly moving, underrated film which fans of the novel will surely appreciate. Due to my need to dissect everything, I don’t want to ruin the movie for you. So please see it first before reading this, and then have it handy again while reading this, if possible. (You can view the whole film on Youtube).
SPOILERS AHEAD!!!
Speak is a film about the traumatic experience of high school student Melinda Sordino (played by Kristen Stewart). Due to her experience, she’s lost friends, hope and pretty much all connection with the outside world. Her isolation and sorrow run deep, mostly due to misunderstanding from other people. In this way, she unwillingly becomes an outsider in a world that once welcomed her. As she says in the book: “I am clanless — I am Outcast.” She has a hard time feeling admiration or sympathy for anyone as a result of her own pain going unrecognized- hence she views people like her teachers as caricatures and refers to them with nicknames the entire novel (“Hairwoman”/ ” Mr. Neck”). Her only source of inspiration and clarity come from an art teacher, who pushes her to express herself, and her pain, through art.
Gnosis in simple terms means knowledge and wisdom; the most important knowledge being knowing oneself- interior knowledge. There are many layers to Gnosis concerning how humans were created and the illusions of the material world, but for this article we’ll be focusing on the aspect of awakening/enlightenment. This awakening essentially can reveal to an individual their divine qualities- a reflection of the true, original creator of mankind. While one may not be aware of it, often one goes through a Gnostic-like process when they’re faced with an extreme crisis yet come out the other side spiritually, intellectually and tangibly transformed. Often times people speak of becoming enlightened or illuminated, meaning metaphorically to be in the light or aware of higher, more divine levels of reality. Yet what isn’t emphasized is how to truly be made enlightened, often one has to first be “in the dark,” not necessarily in ignorance, but rather in a place where one is completely shut off from normal, conventional societal ways. To descend into such a dark place usually takes an outside event or crisis of some sort, which may cause extreme sorrow and suffering, but inevitably forces the affected person to confront their inner demons and allow their ego to collapse. Often such negative events seem out of one’s control, or don’t make sense initially, yet upon closer examination, one can see that their individual experience is really an experience of the universe (or an experience ofSophia, as I’ll mention later).
Moreover, we might believe that when we die our soul goes to a better place, but rarely do we undergo a transformation of the soul in life. This transformation often pushes an extreme burden of pain upon one individual, yet when this “spiritual death” occurs, “spiritual rebirth” is made possible. This simply means that we all have several versions of the being we call “self,” and when we experience intense pain to the highest degree, we essentially purge the piece of ourselves that fears- namely, the piece of ourselves that fears death. Hence, a spiritual rebirth is one’s spirit being reborn when the person is still technically alive- a spirit without fear.
Such is the case of Melinda and her trauma in Speak.
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Roses are frequently used symbols in Gnosis, and we see them in Melinda’s bedroom the moment the film begins. While roses for centuries have been symbols of secrecy, they also have been associated with martyrdom, guidance and silence. Due to her trauma Melinda has been physically and metaphorically silenced, while her wounds, though invisible, certainly cut deep. As far as guidance, we see roses again later in the film, reflecting the unfolding of Melinda’s consciousness.
Colors themselves can be symbolic. In this beginning scene, Melinda is dressed in grey, which could reflect a neutral or transitional period of self-examination and judgment, as well as the planet Saturn. Grey is also associated with the dead, reflecting how Melinda feels as she draws stitches on her lips to resemble a skeleton or empty shell.
We also see her room in shades of red, purple and violet, which are very symbolic and meaningful to Melinda’s character. Violet in itself is considered a spiritual or mystical color, encouraging one to enhance their intuitive abilities while staying grounded in reality, while purple, though similar, can represent both noble and corrupt character. Essentially purple and violet can both be derived from the colors red and blue (energy and stability). As I’ll mention throughout this piece, Melinda is struggling to attain the philosophic and spiritual powers that violet represents, though often she battles with forces of falsity disguised as truth, represented by colors similar to violet.
Melinda gets on the school bus to Merryweather High. In Gnosis, the letter M has extreme significance, hence one might assume the names Melinda and Merryweather High were no coincidence (although Merryweather is an actual high school in NY apparently). M is in the middle of the alphabet, and is often associated with Mother Night, or the abyss of nothingness from which everything was created and everything will return. In many ways M is correlated with the number 13, which is often associated with spiritual death and rebirth. Above all, M can represent the female Mother figure and/or the serpent, the latter whom is considered a hero in several Gnostic circles.
Melinda enters the empty school-bus and sits down next to the emergency exit- a sign of her distress. You should also take notice of certain shots in the film where we see Melinda running/walking towards the camera or away from the camera, particularly when she’s running along a corridor/path of some sort with Exit signs. Exit signs are universally known as indicators of a doorway which is used in case of emergency or need to escape. The word Exit literally means “to go out,” and so it seemsExit signs in art could be symbolic of breaking free from restraint- when one door closes another one opens — Of course when tragedy falls on us, this idea is often difficult to conceive.
Next, we see the bubbly new student named Heather sit next to M on the bus (for brevity, I’ll be referring to Melinda as “M” from now on.) Notice that M is wearing violet colors and Heather is dressed in pink; this could be foreshadowing how Heather will befriend M yet will eventually betray her. I find that shades of pink, while not always signifying betrayal, can represent false character. The color pink in itself is initially calming but passive- in other words, M needs someone or something to help her speak up and stand up for herself, not something or someone that encourages her to keep quiet. Even without the color pink we can tell Heather is annoyingly nice and probably superficial, but by wearing pink Heather is representing people who are easily swayed by the opinions of others. M needs to get angry and express her rage, not tone it down.
Throughout the film, the high school is in the process of changing its mascot. They change it from one symbol of fertility to the next (Trojans to Hornets), while at one point they were called the Blue Devils. Eventually, at the end of the film, they decide on the Wombats. This is interesting, as the official high school name then becomes Merryweather Wombats- M/W. Supposedly in the Semitic alphabet, the letter S used to be shaped like our modern-day W- hence, M/W could also be seen as M/S, or the initials of Melinda Sordino. The letters M/W are also direct reflections of each other, while they could also be seen as the union between sacred Male/Female- this contrasts with the strictly masculine associations tied to Trojans and Hornets. The letters M, W, and S have throughout history been associated with the serpent.
We then come to M’s first art class, “the only class that will teach you how to survive,” according to M’s teacher (played by Steve Zahn). His name, appropriately, is Mr. Freeman. When they go to pick their assignments for the year, Ivy, one of M’s ex-friends, picks “clown,” which is symbolic of how M feels for the majority of the film, and signifies how Ivy will feel later once she learns of the true source of M’s pain. M picks “tree,” (ironic as her ex-friend’s name is “Ivy”) and tries to put it back, but Mr. Freeman debates: “You just chose your destiny, you can’t change that.”
We do see a star necklace around Ivy’s neck, which reflects the possibility of Ivy and M’s friendship blossoming again in the future. The same goes for M’s ex-best friend Rachel, who in English class we see wearing a shirt with a star design on it. (Note- I forget at this time what direction these stars were configured- but if they were configured with a singular point pointing upwards [vs. the two points- or horns] then indeed the star should be considered a positive symbol). Essentially, stars or pentagrams are thought to represent the spirit force which can overcome or influence the elements in nature. Thus by her former friends wearing star symbols, the viewer might assume that M’s spirit will overcome the lower forces against her – or perhaps conversely, that the current spirit of her friends will undergo a change, as such when they learn of M’s secret.
There are also several telling images of art throughout the room. For example, when Mr. Freeman is standing before M, we see a painting of a sun in the background, by his head- perhaps reflecting the way in which Mr. Freeman becomes a savior or figure of redemption for M. Behind M, we see a painting that looks like a figure in red with a silver or grey object over its head; at first glance, it appeared to me like a Knight, which is also a symbolic figure in Gnosis, especially in relation to the letter M and the number 13.
When M goes up to draw a tree, her tree is two curved lines with a circle on top- a far cry from the creative presentation she gives Mr. Freeman at the film’s conclusion. This also reflects the simplicity with which M’s friends were viewing the situation at the party, when in actuality the situation was far more complex.
On the way home from school, we see the bus has a license plate that reads “816.” This is just a side note, but the number 8 is symbolic in several religions (turned sideways it is the infinity symbol,) while 8 also represents the state of Sophia. Being in the state of Sophia essentially means that one is lost, going through a deeply hard time in life with many battles to face. Sophia is sometimes known as the mythical, universal Mother (read more about Sophia, here). “816” are also the numbers aligned with each other on the Square of Lo Shu (aka the Magic Square of Saturn), while some numerologists concur that the numbers 6 and 8 are difficult life numbers to overcome (as ascending to 7 reflects entering the spiritual realms of life, while ascending to 9 reflects peaking in the spiritual realms of life).
We also come to notice shots of M’s address, which is “212.” This could reflect her inner division, which she must overpower and overcome in order to heal; two separate entities (corporeal and spiritual) must become one in order for transcendence to occur.
M’s mother enters her room to give her a red sweater with violet-colored roses on it, and she puts it on the doorknob, in which the camera focuses. Besides the significance of roses and the color violet, which I mentioned above, this could symbolize the lock to M’s inner door which she must open. The hanger could also represent the symbol of the cross transformed into a crucifix (as roses are affixed to it)- hence a mystical process is underway.
We also see M’s room wall covered with hanging globes and white stuffed rabbits, which of course could signify that M’s world is “hanging by a thread,” and she is about to go “down the rabbit hole .”
I find the next scene of the film to be particularly telling. M is sitting alone in her living room watching TV. You’ll notice that, due to the lamp-lights on beside her, the room is divided into Light and Shadow. Under each lamp shade, or under the Light, is a miniature replica of a rose on one table, and a replica of a tree on the other. As we already know, roses and trees hold symbolic value in this film.
Behind M we see four candle-like structures hanging on the wall in the Shadow. If you look closely, you’ll notice that these candle-holders very strongly resemble the shape of Baphomet, the Pagan horned God. From a Gnostic perspective, Baphomet represents philosophy and wisdom- another version of the Sophia mentioned above.
Also in the Shadow, on the table in front of M, is a newspaper and a thick book of some sort, which we might presume is the Bible; these objects could represent false ideas or conventional ways of society that M must abandon.
Perhaps the most interesting object in the Shadow is a strange, grotesque art piece which closely resembles both an empty tree branch and a set of horns. One of the “branches” on this object seems to be pointing at M, menacingly. If we examine M herself, you’ll notice that due to her seating position she is half in the Light and half in the Shadow. Thus, the object on the table positioned as so could be symbolic of M’s need to fully enter her Shadow- similar to Jung’s shadow archetype. Only when she lets go of the material illusions she’s surrounded with, and allows herself to become completely vulnerable, can M start the healing process. In the film, once this happens, we begin to see M start to express herself more openly and creatively. (In addition, the book is divided into sections of marking periods, which correspond with seasons- M’s eventual redemption comes in spring, at the end of the school year- Spring represents regeneration and rebirth of the harvest after a cold, fruitless winter- Thus, an empty tree branch could signify the winter or tough times ahead that M must face).
At the end of this scene, as if someone was mocking us, the television breaks into dialogue: “Do you see it?” “There’s nothing there my love.” Indeed, this scene could not have just been filler.
M is then off to another day of school when her mom pulls out of the driveway, asking why she’s not wearing her new sweater. Her mom says it’s un-returnable, and this is the first of many exchanges where it seems like M is distant from her parents. However, it is important to note that the rose-filled sweater is going to be kept by M, and that when she is ready, she will wear it.
We also see M’s father noticeably pass by a light-bulb in this scene. The light-bulb could represent some unseen connection between M and her father (or rather, the father archetype), while it could also represent the oncoming, dualistic emotions M will feel of both clarity and confusion (if light is “enlightenment,” imagine a light-bulb flickering on an off).
Next, on the bus, Heather talks about joining clubs, but “not Latin- something cool.” Latin of course is where our modern-day language stems from. We soon see from various statements made that Heather is not a real friend (when M and her are standing by the scoreboard in gym class, notice Heather is on the “guest” side, as if foreshadowing further the fact that her friendship with M will be temporary).
We then come to another telling scene: History class. It is run by the ever-appropriate “Mr. Neck,” an immediately we notice a whistle around his neck, which he hangs on a poster containing all the US presidents. It dangles down to the slogan, “We the People,” as if saying that we the people should stand up for our rights and “blow the whistle” on any person in power who attempts to take our rights away. M cleverly says in her thoughts about history: “They always say we’re going to end up at the present, but we always end up in the industrial revolution.”
Mr. Neck says, “Tell me why my son can’t get a job.” Students raise their hands and he ignores them before stating, “reverse discrimination.” He then distinctly ignores the hand of a Chinese boy and picks Heather (blonde, blue-eyed). She mentions “Native Americans,” and Mr. Neck arrogantly writes “N.A.” on the blackboard (Non Applicable). Then the African American boy speaks up, and Mr. Neck instantaneously rejects him, closes the debate and demands the students open their textbooks. Dave Petrakis then stands up in class and blows the whistle on Mr. Neck’s outright hypocrisy. Dave eventually becomes M’s ally, which is interesting if you consider the David and Mary biblical parallel.
We then see M encounter both her attacker (Andy- the wolf in sheep’s clothing) and Mr. Neck (king fascist), and as the hunted will often do, she runs from them both- However, she ends up finding the janitor’s closet as a result, which ends up becoming her source of refuge at school.
Let’s examine next the telling “summer party scene,” in which M’s trauma takes place. M is seen wearing the color orange, which is a color that generally encourages activity and socialization, as it contains elements of the colors red (energy) and yellow (happiness). It also is symbolic of the fall season (harvest) and the planet Jupiter. From my memory, M’s shirt is more accurately a reddish-orange, which corresponds with desire and passion as well as the former elements mentioned. The scene takes place in a thunderstorm, which is symbolic of both fertility (rain nourishing the crops) and masculine power (the lightning bolt- Zeus). Lightning is also representative of destruction and death (in this case, a spiritual death), and can be associated with the zodiac sign Aries- a bold, impulsive, aggressive sign (aka Andy)- as well as the planet Jupiter. We also see Christmas lightshanging in the trees, which can be viewed negatively if you think of them as omitting “false light.” Essentially, all of these forces came together on the night of this party, or the “holiday gone bad,” wherein M experienced temporary bliss before experiencing her trauma.
It is now Halloween, and we see a scarecrow hanging on the light-post of M’s house, perhaps reflected how hollow M feels at this point in the film. M and Dave seem to be the only students not in costume at school.
We then witness a Genesis-like scene in biology class, as the class is experimenting on apples. M picks up the apple, an immediately reminisces to when she was an innocent child, picking an apple from a tree. In this trance, she bites the apple in class. Her partner Dave then says, “What are you doing, we need that!”
Heather then leads M to the cafeteria table where the “Martha clan” is seated. The Marthas are represented as a group of three, semi-uptight girls. Again echoing biblical symbolism, we get the impression that the Marthas would make good hostesses or housewives. M’s attacker, Andy, then comes to the table of Marthas and menacingly puts his arms over M- almost resembling a pyramid, with M at the bottom. In the corner of this shot, by Andy’s arms, we see a pair of white rabbit ears (someone’s costume), which definitely could be indicating that M will very soon “fall down the rabbit hole” or enter the Shadow. Corresponding with the Alice in Wonderland theme, notice that the Marthas are drinking tea. Also note that while the Marthas are rude towards M, and while they semi-flirt with Andy, they also somewhat reject Andy, which of course, Andy doesn’t like. In this sense, just as Martha and Mary were biblically tied to each other somehow, so are the Marthas and Melinda- both have or will gain a sense of female empowerment and gender equality (The Marthas are wearing flapper costumes for Halloween- flappers were associated with the feminist movement- while later in the story M does a report on the suffragettes).
As M runs from Andy again, she enters Mr. Freeman’s classroom. When she enters the doorway, we notice to the left is a drawing of a woman with auburn hair, like M’s, as well as a voodoo-looking doll, which has an orange shirt on. This does not mean Mr. Freeman is doing voodoo, but this could very well symbolize the transformation that M will soon embrace. Behind her is a door that says 124 D, with the number 3 dangling below it, directly above M’s head. The third aspect of the common trinity is the Holy Spirit, which in Gnosticism is commonly represented by Sophia. If you think about the holy trinity, all aspects are essentially male, while the Holy Spirit seems sexless. Androgyny is also a key in Gnosis, and if you think of Sophia as simply “nature,” androgyny certainly applies. When she enters, Mr. Freeman says, “Hey, it’s the tree.”
M then flashes back to better memories with her friends. Last Halloween, the four of them were witches, and we see them happily running (away from the camera) down a lit pathway. The scene has a purple/grayish glow, and we see birds circling in the corner. M draws from this vision the shape of the walkway they ran down, which on paper appears like a pyramid. Mr. Freeman then glances up at his own painting, which in earlier scenes also contained the shape(s) of a pyramid. This could represent how M, and perhaps Mr. Freeman, feel that there is some force of power restraining them. (Of course, the Pyramid could be a reference to the All-Seeing Eye– generally thought of as a restraining force).
Mr. Freeman then shows her how to focus on her anger. This is when we start to see M truly descend into her Shadow.
From this point in the film, we also start to make comparisons between M and her father and student Dave and M’s mother. M’s mother does not hesitate to stab away at a turkey, while her father essentially is the one who makes dinner. In biology class, M almost faints when dissecting a frog, while Dave is fine with it. M’s mom seems the breadwinner, in comparison to most patriarchal views. Dave is going for pre-med while M wants to pursue art (science & spirituality).
In art class, when M brings out the chicken bones, we notice (perhaps for the first time unless I missed it,) that M has a ring on her “ring finger.” In several films now, I have noticed the heroine wearing a ring on this finger although they were unmarried. I feel this is symbolic of one’s spiritual marriage (or the Gnostic Bridal Chamber).
When trying to find something else besides chicken bones to help in her art project, M picks up a toy-snake from a box, entangled in a plastic palm tree- another Genesis association. Her resulting art project produces this touching statement from Mr. Freeman: “I see a girl caught in the remains of a holiday gone bad…Her flesh picked off, day after day — ” (“Holiday gone Bad” aka “Paradise Lost” – with the woman – Eve – suffering the most).
M then reaches her lowest of lows, when she sees her ex-best friend Rachel going out with her attacker. Here, we begin to see M’s concealed depression converting slowly into erupting anger. Rage is an underrated yet necessary aspect of the healing process.
After having a nightmare, M’s mom comes in to comfort her; she is wearing violet colored pajamas. She says “the boogey-man went that way,” pointing to her right. The sacred feminine, or Sophia, is often associated with the left. M’s mother then points up, and swears that M will forget everything “in 5 years.” Stars have 5 points, and while this may or may not be true, one might assume that within a 5-year timeframe one’s celestial alignment would change- hence, fate changing. We then come to career day, which in itself is a perfect example of the valuable Myers-Briggs Personality Test.
In English class we see “symbolism” written on the blackboard in reference to Nathaniel Hawthorne’sThe Scarlet Letter– M can very much be paralleled with the novel’s Hester character, in that they both are made outcast but are forced to encounter those who made them as such on a daily basis. In the novel, Hester is forced to wear the scarlet letter A, representing adultery; M could be considered “branded” with the letter A by Andy (Aries)- Aries is often associated with the color red. Hester also never speaks up about who the father of her child is, nor does M speak up about the source of her pain. We also see that while M doesn’t relate to her English teacher (“Hair Woman,”) M closely resembles her now, more than ever.
As mentioned previously, M and Dave dissect a frog in biology. The teacher says, “Remember, once you remove something, it’s very hard to put it back.” This could be echoing M’s own heart and soul, which have been removed. The questions Dave asks M after she faints are also telling.
It’s now Christmastime. Pay attention to what M’s parents say about her gifts. Then, notice that M’s main present is under the tree itself- it is art supplies. It is here where we see a glimmer of hope in M, due to the fact that her parents actually paid attention to her interests, although throughout the film they seemed disconnected from her.
M then comes to school dressed in shades of violet. It is Valentine’s Day, an even Hairwoman is happy; this is a clear sign of how sex/love can liven people up, and moreover, how the rejuvenating season of spring is near.
After another unfortunate encounter with Andy, M takes a “personal day.” She goes to a hospital and, surrounded by death, realizes that she can’t run from her problems anymore. She heads past an empty bed, where her corpse does not yet belong, out past the doors with the Exit sign.
We also see M riding her bike in a park- Bicycles can represent balance, yin and yang, but also the feminine mandala or wheel- the cycle of life, which applies to women in particular as they can reproduce. This also parallels the film and book’s theme of comparing M with nature- the seeds of the tree.
We then see M having a conversation with herself, although this isn’t just a double-image. This scene is symbolic of how M has finally dissected and drawn out the other half of herself- the spiritual,Shadow half– which in turn has allowed her to begin reentering the Light (remember what I said previously about Light and Shadow). By no longer repressing or fearing parts of herself and her past, M is beginning to become whole again- She is beginning to speak. And she isn’t returning to who she was before the night of the party, but is reemerging as a different force- strong and balanced in spirit- two became one. She’s tapped into her divine spark.
Soon, M is confronted by Andy one last time. In this attack, she blinds his eyes- perhaps an Oedipal slant.
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There are plenty more symbols in this movie which I did notice, but decided not to include, and there are plenty I may have missed. What a symbol means to me will certainly mean something different to you.
Overall, Speak remains one of my favorite films and novels as it uses symbolism and metaphors to describe the soul of someone transforming from ice to liquid- conformity to individuality- hiding in safety to fighting one’s battles- losing innocence but reclaiming one’s worth- looking outside oneself to looking inside oneself- seeing blindly to seeing clearly.
In the end, Melinda confronts her outer demons by facing herself, but it takes a trip to the dark side in order to do so. This is, however, only a movie, and of course it was resolved in the end. The question is, how long does one have to stay on the dark side of Shadow before they can reclaim their Light?
Films/Plays/TV Shows for Weirdos with Wild Hearts and Soaring Souls 