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“I didn't go to the mall, the lake, or the pool, or an- swer the phone. I have entered high school with the wrong hair, the wrong clothes, the wrong attitude. And I don't have anyone to sit with.
I am Outcast.” (Anderson,4)

This shows how in the beginning of the book, Melinda thought of herself as an outcast and not someone who belonged. She thought of herself as someone with no friends and no one to sit with. She started to out with no friends and no one to sit with and ended up being braver than she’s ever been.

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“The Basketball Pole waves to a table of friends. Of course. The basketball team. They all swear at him—a bizarre greet- ing practiced by athletic boys with zits. He smiles and throws a Ho-Ho. I try to scoot around him.
Thwap! A lump of potatoes and gravy hits me square in the center of my chest. All conversation stops as the entire lunch- room gawks, my face burning into their retinas. I will be for- ever known as "that girl who got nailed by potatoes the first day." The Basketball Pole apologizes and says something else, but four hundred people explode in laughter and I can't read lips. I ditch my tray and bolt for the door.” (Anderson,8)

In the beginning of the book as I said, she said she didn’t fit it. As the quote shows above, food was thrown on to her and she was laughed at and she ran away. She was humiliated and didn’t know how to act when harassment like that happens. She has grown so much since this point, she knew her worth and finally felt like somewhat a high schooler at the end or at least she felt braver.

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“Mr. Freeman: "You are on fire, Melinda, I can see it in your eyes. You are caught up in the meaning, in the subjectivity of
abandoned”
I used this quote to show Melindas growth because Mr.Freeman is telling Melinda that he can see her slowing start to brake out of her shell. She is now starting to love art and Mr.Freeman

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“I open up a paper clip and scratch it across the inside of my left wrist. Pitiful. If a suicide attempt is a cry for help, then what is this? A whimper, a peep? I draw little windowcracks of blood, etching line after line until it stops hurting. It looks like I arm-wrestled a rosebush.”

“Mom sees the wrist at breakfast.”

Mom: "I don't have time for this, Melinda."

I used this quote because this is showing how much Melinda is struggling in this part of the book. It is also showing how her mom isn’t there to support or help her through this tough time. This quote is showing how Melinda is going to overcome bug problems by herself

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“A sound explodes from me “NNNOOO!!” I follow the sound, pushing off the wall, pushing Andy Evans off-balance, stumbling into the broken sink” (Anderson 194).

I chose these 3 quotes because it’s showing the readers that she is finally speaking and using her voice. She is taking control and standing up for herself. By saying no she is giving all her power to stand for herself so he won’t hurt her.

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“I grab for anything, my potpourri bowl— I throw it at him, it bounces to the floor” (Anderson 194-195).

This was another quote I chose because it showing how she is finally letting go and accepting her pain and is finally allowing herself to grow from this. She is finally standing up for herself to Andy.

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“Shards of glass slip down the wall and into the sink. IT pulls away from me, puzzled. I reach in and wrap my fingers around a triangle of glass. I hold it to Andy Evans's neck. He freezes. I push just hard enough to raise one drop of blood. He raises his arms over his head. My hand quivers. I want to insert the glass all the way through his throat, I want to hear him scream. I look up. I see the stubble on his chin, a fleck of white in the corner of his mouth. His lips are paralyzed. He cannot speak. That's good enough.” Melinda interjects, “I said no” (Anderson 195).

This shows how brave she was after all her attempts at running away or avoiding her feelings, she finally stood up for herself when she should’ve done it a long time ago and she has made tremendous progress leading up to this moment.