Analysis Of The Secret Life Of Bees By Sue Monk Kidd

In Sue Monk Kidd’s, The Secret Life of Bees, an open jar symbolizes Lily’s opportunity to escape T. Ray’s repression. For instance, after a fight with her father, Lily noticed the bee jar was empty and she “...heard a voice say, Lily Melissa Owens, your jar is open” (41). In this example, the jar represents her situation, and Lily is the bee that escaped. Previously, T. Ray restrained Lily like a jar imprisoning a bee. When the jar opened, a new opportunity presented itself and Lily grasped the chance at freedom. She decided to run away similarly to the bee leaving the jar. Soon after this realization, Lily escaped from T. Ray and the yoke he forced upon her. This author provides Lily with an alternative to enduring her father, thus advancing

‘The Secret Life of Bees’ includes loveable characters that each have their own unique personalities. In Erin Collazo Miller’s book review, he states that “’The Secret Life of Bees’ has loveable, well written characters.” Lily is determined to find out about her mother; even if it means going to Tiburon, South Carolina. In ‘The Secret Life of Bees’ it says, “I always promised myself one day, when I was grown up enough, I would take the bus over there. I wanted to go everyplace she had ever been.” (pg.15) Rosaleen is a strong and brave woman who doesn’t give up on what she wants. In the ‘The Secret Life of Bees’ it says, “Coming alongside the men, Rosaleen lifted her snuff jug, which was filled with black spit, and calmly poured across the tops of the men’s shoes…” (pg.32) Rosaleen is on her way to vote when these men give her a hard time. She however, doesn’t let them get in her way. She is brave to do something like that.

In The Secret Life of Bees, Sue Monk Kidd alludes to the Cold War to demonstrate the tension of the Civil Rights Era. For instance, “‘What happened?’ I asked. “Did they drop the atom bomb?’ Ever since we’d started bomb drills at school, I couldn't help but thinking my days were numbered” (19). Lily uttered this statement because the news broadcast on the television agitated Rosaleen. Alternatively, what Lily thought was the start of another war, was actually the signing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. As for the Cold War, this was a time of great tension between the United States and the Soviet Union that lasted from around 1947 until the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. In fact, most Americans worried that the Soviet Union would drop

“The Secret Life of Bees” by: Sue Monk Kidd was a book that really showed me how African American people were actually treated in the early 1960s. How they could actually be beaten just for not apologizing to a white person. They were treated very cruel by some people, but, not by all people. Lily Owens was a young girl in the year 1964; who lived in South Carolina. She loved African American people. She loved how interesting they were, and she adored the stories they had to tell. Her best friend was an African American woman who worked on her father’s peach farm. That woman’s name was Rosaleen, and she helped Lily feel better all the time when she was sad. Especially, when her father abused her. Lily thought Rosaleen was her only friend, until she ran away to a place called

In the “Secret Life of bees” written by Sue Monk Kidd, Lily and Rosaleen have a strong relationship that brings them closer together. A lot of moments are good and bad. Since Deborah past away Rosaleen has been there for Lily as a housekeeper willing to help. But Lily doesn't consider as a housekeeper she sees her as a friend and mother. Although, Lily sometimes gets embarrassed or fights with Rosaleen, but is always willing to apologize for her errors.

Lying and keeping secrets are things that can emotionally tear a person apart from the inside out. Small things can be kept secret with no harm and no foul done. But the bigger secrets that are appalling or immoral are the ones that will eventually find its way out, with no guarantee of how someone will handle that truth. In The Secret Life of Bee written by Sue Monk Kidd, Lily Melissa Owens, a fourteen year old girl who runs away from a father that does nothing but neglect her, towers up lies and keeps secrets from people who care about her. Keeping the truth about her life slowly eats her apart until she comes clean with her true identity.

The Secret Life of Bees Chapter 14 Essay In The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd, a young girl named Lily struggles with growing up with only a harsh father and a housemaid while trying to find her own place in the world. At the age of four, Lily accidentally shoots her mother while trying to help her in a fight against Lily’s dad. Ever since that day, Lily has a difficult time trying to be a lady and trying to cope with her somewhat abusive father. One day, when Lily is fourteen, the housemaid Rosaleen is sent to jail for pouring dip spit on white men’s shoes but later gets assaulted by the men and is taken to the hospital where Lily goes to sneak her out.

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd is a book discussing the internal strife of a young white girl, in a very racist 1960’s south. The main character, Lily Owens, faces many problems she must overcome, including her personal dilemma of killing her own mother in an accident. Sue Monk Kidd accurately displays the irrationality of racism in the South during mid- 1960's not only by using beautiful language, but very thoroughly developed plot and character development. Kidd shows the irrationality of racism through the characters in her book, The Secret Life of Bees and shows that even during that time period, some unique people, were able to see beyond the heavy curtain of racism that separated people from each

Megan Guenther English IV Final Exam Benoit/Sandler June 9th, 2016 The Strength of Female Community Everyone needs a mother. No one said a mother needs to be biological. In the book The Secret Life Of Bees it shows how important femininity is and how powerful it can be.

The Secret Life of Bees begins in the town of Sylvan, South Carolina and tells the story of 14-year-old Lily Melissa Owens. She lives on a peach orchard with her neglectful and abusive father, T. Ray. They have Black maid named Rosaleen who is a companion and caretaker of Lily. The book opens with Lily's discovery of bees in her bedroom and the story of how she killed her mother. The eve before her birthday Lily sneaks out into the peach orchard to visit the box of her mother’s belongings which is buried there however before she can hide them T. Ray finds her and punishes her. The next day Rosaleen and Lily head into town where Rosaleen is arrested for pouring her bottle of tobacco spit on three white men. Lily breaks her out of prison and they begin hitchhiking toward Tiburon, SC, a town Lily had seen on the back of a picture of a black Virgin Mary which her mom had owned. They hitch a ride to Tiburon and once there, they buy lunch at a general store, and Lily sees a picture of the same Virgin Mary on a jar of honey. She asks the store owner where it came from and he gives her directions to the Boatwright house. They then meet the makers of the honey: August, May and June Boatwright, who are all black. Lily makes up a wild story about being recently orphaned. The sisters welcome Rosaleen and Lily into their home. They are then introduced to beekeeping and the Boatwright’s way of life. Lily learns more about the Black Madonna honey that the sisters make. She begins working

The Secret Life of Bees is full of many magnificent characters who went through hard times together and united despite their different backgrounds. Sue Monk Kidd, the author, makes me particularly admire August Boatwright. August Boatwright is a beekeeper in Tiburon, South Carolina who lives with her two younger sisters, June and May Boatwright, in a pink house. August is my favorite character because she is kindhearted, hardworking and teaches good life lessons.

In the 1960s United States started some problems. They treated color people different from whites. In the book “The Secret Life of Bees” the author talked about the civil right which is related to Jim Crow that happen in the 1960s.

In life, relatively anything can happen for a reason. Whether it occurs upon our own actions or not, instances may arise for a new change. Within the novel, The Secret Life of Bees, our main protagonist, Lily, is tested by making a life-changing decision to either return to her father, T. Ray’s captivity, or stay with the Boatwright sisters, whom she befriended on her runaway adventure. Even through tough times Lily has endured with T. Ray, when it was time for her to decide who should receive custody of her, she was still hesitant, despite knowing what her circumstances may be if she were to choose T. Ray. Even though T. Ray is Lily’s biological father, unfortunately, is not up to par to provide her with the necessities that this fourteen year-old girl needs. I strongly believe that Lily should live with the Boatwright sisters, due to many factors they can provide that makes Lily a better person.

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd is a novel about a young girl named Lily Owens who comes of age caused by many difficulties and obstacles in her life, such as living with the constant reminder that she killed her own mother. Throughout the novel there are many examples of racism, but she learns to overcome that and see everyone equally. What attracted me to the novel was the plot of the story and the conflict between Lily and her father. What kept me engaged were the many conflicts that arose during the story. It made me want to continue reading to find out how they resolved every conflict.

Literature is a piece of work through which author expresses his or her unique thoughts; one such literature is The Secret Life of Bees(TSLB). There are many things which makes TSLB a work of literary merit, for example the novel raises social concerns such as racism and it also deals with basic universal truths. TSLB is a story of a girl named Lily Owens who has grown up with the guilt of killing her own mother, Deborah. Deborah died when Lily was very young, so Lily does not know exactly what happened. Contrary to her mother, Lily’s father is portrayed as very strict and abusive. After her mother died, Lily grew up with her father and a “black” housekeeper named Rosaleen. Soon after the passage of Civil Rights Act in 1964, Rosaleen went to vote but was harassed by some racists. Ironically, she was sent to jail even though it was not her fault. After much abuse by her father, Lily decides to leave her house and go to Tiburon SC, which is loosely associated with her mother. She somehow manages to escape