Melinda Relationship

Friendship. What is friendship? Wikipedia defines friendship as “a relationship of mutual affection between two or more people. Friendship is a stronger form of interpersonal bond than an association.”, which is exactly what I think is friendship. I know most of my friends for many, many years and throughout these years we had fights and good moments and this is what forms this strong “interpersonal bond” also known as friendship. In our novel Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet Henry and his friends faces different challenges throughout the story which strengthens their ties. In Jamie Ford’s novel Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, Ford communicates the theme that friendship is needed especially during difficult times through the character’s actions in the books.

The night Alice got raped, it seemed as her college friends were in total shock, as one was too scared to even scrub Alice’s body down when she hardly had the strength to. They did show pity, but it was not enough to show that they supported her. Alice’s friends were also hard to get in contact later in the book when she ran into her rapist again. The one friend she did get ahold of, Ken, seemed too terrified to even help Alice when she was asking for a simple task from him. She even agreed to not bother him much since his frantic panic seemed like her mothers. Not many of Alice’s friend seemed to last in the book either, even in the end they eventually all moved on, ignored it, or their friendship ended.

The friends almost played the role of companions and helpers. They felt shocked when they knew Alice was raped, some even passed out after hearing this and they tried to give her help as much as they could, such as her best friend Mary Alice coming to the hospital to talk to her and gave her what she needed most, a small smile. But some were foggy and off to the side. They were watching her life as if it were a movie. Knowing a victim is like knowing a celebrity, particularly when the crime is clouded in taboo.(Sebold, 23 ) Alice’s experience also effected the behaviors of her friends, for example, Mary Alice had done instinctively what few people do in the face of a crisis: She had signed on for the whole ride. (Sebold, 27)

Melinda isn't speaking to anyone, and no one will talk to her, except the new girl, Heather, who moved from the state of Ohio. Realistically, Heather being the new girl just wants to make friends. Heather doesn't know what is really going on with Melinda because she just moved to town. Heather has no idea what happened the night when Melinda called the police, which busted a summer party. In fact, no one knows, except for Melinda, what happened to her at the party? She is convinced that because she is a victim, no one understands her. The whole world, including her world, is out to get her and so it is best for her to remain silent.

There are many valuable aspects in life that may mean a lot to a person. In this case, friendship is one of the most important relationships a person can have. Human interaction is something necessary to survive, having a friend is essential to the well being of everyone. However, not all relationships with people can be considered a friendship because some may take advantage of others to gain something for themselves. Whereas, other friendships may last years and remain strong between the two people, but if there is no trust then there is a possibility of losing a friend. On the other hand, positive friendships still exist and are the ones to cherish and appreciate the most. The novel Speak written by Laurie Halse Anderson is based on a fourteen year-old girl named Melinda, who was sexually assaulted at a summer party. She called the police for help but since none of her friends knew what occurred, they assumed she called to get them all in trouble. This made her an outcast and she spent her ninth-grade year by herself. The theme of friendship is evident in the novel Speak as it impacts the protagonist Melinda. This is seen through Melinda 's friendship with Rachel, Mr. Freeman, and Heather.

This quote show that Melinda is an outcast, “ I have no friends. I have nothing to say. I say nothing" (Anderson 116). This quote shows that Melinda is insecure because, while Melinda is in the guidance counselor's office, her counselor is telling her that she’s been failing her classes and Melinda feels insecure. She feels out of place in the environment. Melinda is self-conscious that she feels she has to try to be pretty in order to gain her popularity back. Since Melinda has lost some friends coming into high school, she’s been feeling down on herself and depressed. Also, Melinda shows that she is insecure by saying, “ I am an outcast “( 8 Anderson). This proves that Melinda is insecure because before the start of High School Melinda was a very popular girl which is now an outcast. Until things went wrong for Melinda and she called the cops. Melinda had called the cops because she had been raped when she was drunk, so her first response was to call the cops. The cops had shown up, making everyone leave the party because of underage drinking and everyone knows Melinda has called the cops. Since that has happened she feels insecure by being an outcast. Because of this Melinda no longer is popular nor has no friends. Melinda feels she is insecure because she’s an outcast and has no friends which these feelings lead

They both continuously attempted to one up the other and refused to lean on one another during hardships. Melinda was not blind to this, in fact she modeled her own methods of handling stress after them. So after melinda was raped, she did not turn to her friends and family for support. She kept all of her struggle to herself and attempted to deal with is alone. Consequently, she grew very distant from those around her.

There are over six billion people on Earth today. Each of those people has countless relationships, which extend further into an immense network of relations among thousands of individuals. These relations can be romantic, professional, unconditional, mutual, or the strongest of all, friendship. Friendship is a term used to denote co-operative and supportive behavior between two or more beings. In this sense, the term connotes a relationship which involves mutual knowledge, esteem, and affection and respect along with a degree of rendering service to friends in times of need or crisis. Friends will welcome each other's company and exhibit loyalty towards each other, often to the point of altruism.

The existence of Moses and his role in the early history of Israel is the subject of long-standing disputes. The first doubts about the historicity of Moses and the reliability of his life story surface the Middle Ages. At that time, a number of historians and biblical scholars argued that Moses was nothing but a mythological figure. They noted that the ancient written sources and archaeological sites did not contain any details about Moses. In the meantime, their opponents agreed on the shortage of historical monuments, but they believed that Exodus and Moses himself would have had minimal chances of being reflected and found in the monuments of the Bronze and Early Iron Ages. However, both sides came to the agreement that the narratives about Moses were preceded by a long oral tradition which could alter, reinterpret, distort, or supplement the original texts and stories.

It does not let her feels and looks so stupid. After Heather joins in the Marthas, she blows Melinda off and Melinda is outcast again. The students hit Melinda in the hall; the girls' bully her at the pep rally all shows Melinda is an outcast, she is unwelcome. Melinda is a coward. "The kids behind me laugh so loud I know they're laughing at me. I can't help myself '' (Anderson 4). Melinda is a timid person. She scareds to tell the truth of that night, thus her friends cannot understand her difficulties. About the event happen at the party, she chooses to escape her past and become silent. Melinda does not talk a lot, either at school or at home to her parents. She acts like she does not care and hid from everyone. When someone bullies her, she just ignores them and suppresses her true feelings. Melinda is also a negative person. '' It is easier not to say anything. Shut your trap, button your lip, can it. All that crap you hear on TV about communication and expressing feelings is a lie'' (Anderson 9). From this quotation, it is evident to see Melinda is negative. Her thinking is negative and

One of MElinda’s ex-friends starts dating the guy who raped her. She sent anonymous letters trying to make her stay away from him. That proves she has grown, and she doesn’t want others to suffer because of him like she did. “I dig my fingers into the dirt and squeeze. A small clean part of me waits to warm and burst through the surface. Some quiet Melinda girl I haven’t seen in months. That is the seed I will care for,” (chapter 86, page 188-189). Melinda is facing her fears. She went to the place where it all happened. She wanted to have peace. She was ready to move on from the situation. The bottle was now open, and her feelings were flying

In life there are many changes that can cause a true friendship to go wary such as marriage, divorce, birth of children, new careers, and sickness. However, through each of those events the two must remember to keep the intimacy, the letting down of emotional barriers and the expression of innermost thoughts and feelings, “that which makes friendships thrive must be an enjoyable one” and to “always interact” (Karbo 3). Although psychologists continue to research the formation of friendships the great philosopher Aristotle knew exactly how friendships formed and how the lasted.

Slavery was one of the most inhuman trade activity which is against the rights of men and women whom God destined to live in liberty on this earth. Slaves were in bondage and were regarded as property were not human people, they were brutally treated, worked long hours, no interest in slaves’ welfare. In Chapter 7 of the book titled From Slavery to Freedom, the story begins by reiterating the thirsty for labor in the South Central states, Lower South and the Gulf Coast region during the nineteenth century where New Orleans became the major entry port and largest slave trading center. Increased wealth in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama created demand for slave labor in cotton and sugarcane plantations. Slaves labored in cotton and sugar plantations as the main cash crops in the Southern parts including other agricultural crops. The result was the movement of slaves westward which accelerated interstate slave trade. Slaves were sold by business firms, through lottery and by slave trading firms until it was ended by Congress in 1850. Slave trade constantly separated families as it was driven by profit reason. Although Atlantic slave trade was illegal it continued from 1808-1860 because its commercial value to traders and owners of slaves. Slave codes were introduced for the benefit of slave owners and traders, sometimes they were unwilling to put slaves in prison because this action could result in loose of labor and affect investment. Slaves were talented in many

“Two wrongs don’t make a right” is a saying that a lot of mothers use with their children regarding their actions. This saying also goes hand in hand with the issue of capital punishment. Capital punishment has been a penalty for crimes in the United States since before the Declaration of Independence was created. Some states have abolished this type of penalty for criminals; however, in some states this type of punishment is still completely legal. Many state governments clearly believe that capital punishment is a valid and moral solution for severe crimes committed in their individual state. Capital punishment, however, is completely immoral, and there are a lot of risks that follow this type of penalty. Capital punishment disregards the eighth amendment in the Bill of Rights, it opposes many religious beliefs, it is expensive for taxpayers, and most importantly it creates the possibility of innocent people being penalized for a crime that they did not commit. The death penalty should be made illegal in all states in the United States in order to protect the rights and safety of the citizens.

Friendship, on the other hand, is the mutual affection established between two people. It can be called an interpersonal bond established between two individuals. A bond established out of sympathy, care, honesty, altruism, understanding and enjoyment.