So Much to Tell You free essay sample

So Much to Tell You – Exposition The author, John Marsden, of the novel ‘So Much to Tell You’, definitely explores the concepts of growth and change. These concepts are illustrated through the main character, Marina, who transforms from an antisocial girl suffering from ‘anorexia of speech’ to a more self-assured and happier, outgoing character. Marina’s development highlights her growth and change. Her transformation was documented through a journal; a book where she journals her thoughts and feelings, a book which holds the secrets that are hidden behind Marina’s mask. At the beginning of the novel, Marsden portrays Marina as an isolated and unhappy figure who doesn’t speak. Marsden uses the technique, anonymity, to convey her privacy and detachment from the rest of the world. She believes she has a condition known as â€Å"anorexia of speech†, which was brought on by an accident which involved her father. The author uses the metaphor, to symbolise that she is starved of communication, and that she has an undesirable illness. Marina begins as an unconfident teenage girl which is exposed through the use of the simile when she is describing her voice, â€Å"like a plastic bottle burning in a fire†. This simile represents that her voice and thoughts have been snuffed out. From her journal, you see that she is changing and becoming more confident. Marsden uses the technique, exclamation, â€Å"I did it! I did it! † after Marina, gave one of the girls in her dorm, Cathy, a birthday card and a present. This symbolises that she is more confident and isn’t afraid to show how she feels. Marina gave Cathy, a wombat [the present], which also suggests that she wants to come out of her ‘burrow’, this also signifies her growth. Growth happens in time. Marina came to Warrington, as a gloomy character whose true features are hidden by her phantasmagoria. But as time goes on, and certain happenings occur, some of her phantasmagoria shatters and it allows people to view some of Marina’s true emotions. The author, Marsden uses the metaphors, â€Å"I hadn’t known if I could still cry†, â€Å"something†¦seemed to break in me† to indicate that some of her phantasmagoria has shattered and fallen off and her true emotions are revealed. Marina thought that she couldn’t cry, in other words she thought she couldn’t express herself, but hen she cried she was expressing herself. The tears exposed her emotions and allowed the audience to see her growth. The use of epistolary form, when Cathy wrote to Marina, after Marina had given Cathy the present, â€Å"You seem happier lately: we’ve all noticed that†. When Marina first came to Warrington, she wanted to be invisible, however gradually she has reached out to the girls in her dormitory, and in return the girls have noticed Marina’s growth. Marina is still self-doubting and uncomfortable around others but she is starting to allow herself to think about forming friendships with those around her. Change isn’t always easy. Throughout the novel, Marden explores the concepts of change. Marina wants be able to communicate verbally again buts she worries that her months of isolation and silence may not be important anymore and she also fears that her phantasmagoria, her source of protection might be lifted. In order for Marina’s recovery from a traumatic event and to break her prison of silence, Mrs Ransome, the school councillor encourages Marina to resolve her feelings about her parents and herself because if she doesn’t she will not progress. Mrs Ransome tells Marina that the ‘cure’ to her ‘anorexia of speech’ would involve looking at feelings that had been too hard to think about. Marsden uses the metaphor ‘cure’ to represent that the key to her prison of silence might be painful to cope with. Marina is scared of facing her fears, which is shown through the use of tactile imagery, â€Å"wild birds beating their wings in a flurry inside my chest†. With Mrs Ransome, Marina begins to let down her guard, which is a form of growth and change. When Marina starts to confront her thoughts about her relationships with her family, she picks up a pen and draws a picture of â€Å"a head behind bars†, which the author uses to symbolise how Marina feels about herself and her father. The head behind bars expresses that Marina is, figuratively speaking, imprisoned in her own silence while her father is imprisoned physically. Due to Marina’s engagement with Mrs Ransome some of Marina’s mask has been lifted. Her experience with the school councillor highlights that sometimes in order for change you might have to face things that are painful to cope with. Awareness is a form of growth and change. When Marina first arrives at the boarding school, Warrington, she feels as though she is the only one who suffers, but soon she starts to recognise other people suffer as well. When Mr Lindell, her English teacher, asked the class to draw an abstract portrait, Marina was astonished by the things that girls drew. Marina noticed that many of the girls â€Å"drew things showing them on their own†¦ feeling isolated, with the group against them†. After seeing the girls’ drawings she questions herself, â€Å"I wonder if they know what isolation is. Perhaps they do† Through the use of tactile imagery, we realise that the other girls feel isolation at some point, and Marina is beginning to understand this. When Marina saw Lisa violently crying she was shocked, but when Lisa went into the bathroom and came out laughing and joking. Marina understood that she was the only who could see through Lisa’s facade. â€Å"That is her mask, I guess, just as mine is silence†. This discovery, allows Marina to realise that everybody wears a phantasmagoria in order to try hide their pain, which also allows Marina to understand that â€Å"we’re all the same†. Marina is beginning to be aware of other people’s pain that is ongoing around her, which is a form of growth and change. In conclusion, the novel ‘So Much to Tell You’, explores the concepts of growth and change through the ideas that change isn’t always easy and growth happens in time. These ideas are portrayed throughout Marina’s encounters at Warrington.