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Character analysis

Andy Evans (IT)

in Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

Andy Evans, mostly referred to as "IT" in Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson, serves as the main antagonist of the story. He’s a popular, older student at Merryweather High School, and the rape of Melinda Sordino at a summer party before the novel starts is the traumatic event that propels the narrative forward. Andy lacks psychological depth or any hint of redemption; instead, he represents predatory power and the silence that protects such behavior. His charm and social standing shield him from facing consequences—he dates Rachel Bruin, Melinda's former best friend, which forces Melinda to endure the painful closeness to her attacker. When Melinda writes "IT" on a bathroom wall as a warning to other girls, and later reveals the truth to Rachel, the story begins to shift toward justice. The climax occurs when Andy traps Melinda in her art closet and tries to assault her again; this time, Melinda fights back, breaks a mirror, and presses a shard against his throat until other students rush in. The lacrosse girls who arrive confirm that there are other victims, highlighting Andy's predatory behavior. He is expelled from school, and at last, Melinda is believed. Andy's character arc is intentionally flat—he doesn’t evolve or change—because Anderson concentrates on the survivor's journey, not that of the perpetrator. Even when he’s not physically present, his influence casts a heavy shadow over Melinda’s entire freshman year.

About this character

Form
Novel
Author
Laurie Halse Anderson
First published
1999

The person01–03

01·Who they are

Who is Andy Evans (IT)?

Andy Evans — referred to almost exclusively as "IT" in Laurie Halse Anderson's Speak — is a senior at Merryweather High School whose social capital functions as a kind of armour. Handsome, athletic, and well-regarded by the school's social hierarchy, he embodies a particular and recognisable type of predator: one whose charm is indistinguishable, to most observers, from genuine likability. Anderson makes a deliberate stylistic choice in denying him a full name for most of the novel. By reducing him to the pronoun "IT," Melinda strips him of the humanity he weaponises — and, crucially, of the name that gives him power. He is not a complex villain with competing desires or private doubts. He is, by design, a force. Anderson concentrates her psychological depth entirely on the survivor, and Andy exists as the gravity well around which Melinda's silence and suffering orbit.

02·Arc & motivation

What is Andy Evans (IT)'s arc and motivation?

Andy Evans has no arc in any traditional sense, and that flatness is the point. He does not grow, reckon, or change. His motivation, as the text presents it, is dominance — the exercise of power over those he perceives as accessible targets. He raped Melinda at a summer party before the novel's first page, and the entire freshman year unfolds in the aftermath of that act. His continued presence at Merryweather, his dating of Rachel Bruin, his easy social life — all of it represents the institutional and communal failure to hold predators accountable. The absence of remorse or consequence for most of the novel is not a gap in Anderson's characterisation; it is the characterisation. Andy's "arc," such as it is, belongs to the people around him: whether they believe, protect, or finally stop him.

03·Key moments

What are Andy Evans (IT)'s key moments?

The foundational moment — the rape at the end-of-summer party — is never rendered in full on the page. Anderson withholds it, releasing details in fragments throughout the novel, mirroring the way trauma surfaces in a survivor's memory. This structural choice keeps the focus on Melinda's experience rather than Andy's act.

His sustained presence through Rachel is among the novel's most quietly cruel dynamics. Seeing Andy in the halls, watching him date her former best friend, means Melinda cannot achieve any geographic or emotional distance from her trauma within the space where she is supposed to be safe.

The bathroom-wall warning — Melinda writing a caution about "IT" for other girls to find — is the first act of public resistance. It is anonymous, fragile, and yet significant: the message circulates without Melinda's name attached, suggesting she knows instinctively that naming herself as accuser will not yet be believed.

The confrontation in the art closet is the novel's climax. Andy corners Melinda in the space she has cultivated as a refuge and attempts to assault her again. This time, she fights back — grabbing a shard from a broken mirror and holding it to his throat until the lacrosse girls force their way in. The detail of the mirror is resonant: the same art room that has helped Melinda find her voice becomes the site where she uses it physically, literally.

The cast04–05

04·Relationships

What are Andy Evans (IT)'s most important relationships?

Melinda Sordino is, from Andy's perspective, a target selected and then effectively silenced. His rape destroyed her friendship group, her academic performance, her ability to speak, and her sense of safety — all consequences he never faces until the novel's final pages. The power imbalance between them is total until the art-closet confrontation, when Melinda physically reverses it.

Rachel Bruin is both Andy's shield and an unwitting instrument of Melinda's pain. His relationship with Rachel forces proximity and signals to Melinda how thoroughly his reputation insulates him. When Melinda warns Rachel directly, Rachel's initial rage — directed at Melinda rather than Andy — captures exactly how social trust in a charming boy overrides loyalty to a grieving girl. Rachel's eventual shift toward belief is a quiet but important signal that Andy's protection is eroding.

Ivy, Nicole, and the lacrosse players collectively represent the communal accountability that individual institutions failed to provide. Their confirmation that Andy has victimised other girls dismantles the "isolated incident" logic that predators rely on.

05·Connected characters

How is Andy Evans (IT) connected to the other characters?

Melinda Sordino

Andy raped Melinda at a summer party before the novel begins, an act that silences and isolates her for the entire school year. He is the source of her trauma, referred to only as "IT" until Melinda reclaims her voice. His second assault attempt in the art closet becomes the scene of her resistance and turning point toward healing.

Rachel Bruin

Andy dates Rachel during the school year, which forces Melinda into painful proximity to her rapist. When Melinda finally warns Rachel about Andy's true nature, Rachel initially reacts with fury and disbelief, but later, after Andy behaves badly toward her, she appears to accept the truth—marking a partial restoration of their fractured friendship.

Ivy

Ivy is among the students who see the warning Melinda writes about Andy on the bathroom wall. She and the other lacrosse girls who intervene during the art-closet confrontation confirm that Andy has victimized other girls, collectively stripping away the social protection his popularity had afforded him.

Nicole

Nicole is part of the group of lacrosse players who burst into the art closet during Andy's second assault attempt. Their intervention and corroboration of Andy's predatory behavior help ensure he faces consequences, underscoring that his abuse was not an isolated incident.

Principal Principal

After the art-closet confrontation and the testimony of multiple victims, the school administration—represented by Principal Principal—removes Andy from Merryweather High, signaling the institutional accountability that had been absent throughout the novel.

Study06–07

06·Questions

Questions readers ask about Andy Evans (IT)

Why is Andy Evans called "IT" in Speak?

Melinda refers to Andy Evans almost exclusively as "IT" to strip him of the name that gives him social power. Anderson makes this a deliberate stylistic choice: by reducing him to a pronoun, Melinda denies him the humanity he weaponises against her. The withheld name serves as both a psychological survival strategy and a thematic statement — "IT" indicates that Andy functions in the novel as a force of predation rather than a fully humanised character.

What does Andy Evans do to Melinda Sordino before the novel begins?

Andy rapes Melinda at an end-of-summer party before the novel's first page, and that act sets the entire story in motion. Anderson never renders the assault in full; instead, details surface in fragments throughout the narrative, mirroring how trauma resurfaces in a survivor's memory. The rape destroys Melinda's friendships, her academic performance, and her ability to speak openly about what happened to her.

How does Andy Evans's relationship with Rachel Bruin affect Melinda?

Andy dating Rachel — Melinda's former best friend — forces Melinda into constant, painful proximity to her rapist within the school. It also illustrates how thoroughly Andy's charm and reputation insulate him: Rachel's initial furious disbelief when Melinda warns her shows that social trust in a likable boy can override loyalty to a grieving girl. The relationship forms one of the novel's most quietly cruel dynamics.

What happens to Andy Evans at the end of Speak?

Andy is expelled from Merryweather High School after he corners Melinda in her art closet and attempts to assault her a second time. Melinda fights back, pressing a shard from a broken mirror against his throat until the lacrosse girls force their way in. Those students confirm that Andy has victimised other girls, dismantling the "isolated incident" logic that had protected him, and the school administration finally removes him.

Why does Andy Evans have no character arc in Speak?

Andy's intentional flatness is Anderson's central design choice: he does not grow, reckon with his actions, or change at any point in the novel. His static nature reflects the reality that predators rarely self-correct, keeping the narrative focus entirely on Melinda's survival and recovery. Anderson concentrates all psychological depth on the survivor; Andy exists to demonstrate how predatory power operates, not to earn a redemption story.

How does Andy Evans's popularity protect him throughout the novel?

Andy's athletic reputation and social standing at Merryweather function as armour, making him appear likable and trustworthy to teachers, peers, and even Rachel. This charm is indistinguishable, to most observers, from genuine goodness, which is why Melinda's unspoken accusations carry no weight for most of the year. Anderson uses Andy to critique a culture that mistakes likeability for innocence and allows institutions to overlook predatory behaviour.

What is the significance of the art-closet confrontation with Andy Evans?

The art-closet scene is the novel's climax and marks the moment the power imbalance between Andy and Melinda physically reverses. Andy invades the one space Melinda has cultivated as a refuge and attempts to assault her again; she grabs a mirror shard and holds it to his throat until the lacrosse girls intervene. The mirror is resonant — the same art room that helped Melinda find her inner voice becomes the site where she uses it outwardly and forcefully.

How do Ivy, Nicole, and the lacrosse players contribute to Andy Evans facing consequences?

When the lacrosse girls burst into the art closet, their intervention stops Andy's second assault and their testimony confirms he has victimised multiple girls, not just Melinda. This collective corroboration is crucial: it strips away the "isolated incident" defence that predators rely on and provides the institutional pressure needed for Principal Principal to expel Andy. Their solidarity represents the communal accountability that the school had failed to provide all year.

07·Essay angles

Use this in your essay

Tool · Essay angles

  • The politics of naming: Analyse how Anderson's choice to call Andy "IT" rather than by name functions as both a narrative and thematic strategy. What does the withheld name say about power, dehumanisation, and Melinda's psychological recovery?

  • Institutional failure as complicity: Argue that Merryweather High School's structures

    social, administrative, and disciplinary — enable Andy's behaviour as much as he does himself. Where does the text implicate the institution?

  • The flat antagonist as feminist device: Consider whether Andy's intentional lack of psychological depth is a strength or a limitation of the novel. How does Anderson's refusal to humanise him serve the story's central argument about survivors?

  • Charm as camouflage: Examine how Andy's popularity and social standing function as tools of predation, and how the novel critiques the culture that mistakes likeability for innocence.

  • Silence and its beneficiaries: Explore who profits from Melinda's silence throughout the novel

    Andy, certainly, but also teachers, administrators, and peers. Build a thesis around the idea that *Speak* implicates an entire community in the protection of its most charming members.

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