Melinda: A PTSD Life
“The conflict between the will to deny horrible events and the will to proclaim them aloud is the central dialectic of psychological trauma”(Judith Lewis Herman). Laurie Halse Anderson wrote Speak as a way to symbolize the trauma that a person goes through after a tragic accident. Not only did she just write about it, Anderson’s father was a veteran who suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder. Anderson writes about Melinda’s ptsd as evidenced by her display of the three classic symptoms: flashbacks, hyperarousal, and emotional numbness.

Melinda's flashbacks are apparent throughout the book. Many times she delves into the recesses of her mind to relive the event that scarred her. An example of this is when she cannot