The Secret Life Of Bees Summary

The Secret Life Of Bees Summary
The secret life of Bees, is about a fourteen year old girl named Lily who is White. She lives with her father T. Ray who is a peach farmer in Sylvan,
South Carolina.In the first chapter Lily is waiting for the bees that live in the walls of her bedroom, as they do every night. T. Ray does not
believe her story about the bees, so she decides to collect the bees in a jar to prove him wrong. Rosaleen her nanny and housekeeper is the one who
looks after Lily. Lily remembers her last memory of her mother Deborah, who died when Lily was a small child. T. Ray told Lily she accidentally
shot her mother while T. Ray and Deborah were fighting one day. Lily decides to tag along with Rosaleen to the town, where Rosaleen is planning to
go vote. Instead, a group of...show more content...
Ray picks up Lily at the prison and tells her that the men who bothered her will most likely kill her. Lily gets frighten by this since Rosaleen is the
only person in her life who truly loves Lily. At home T. Ray tells Lily that on the day her mom died, Deborah had come back to pick up just her
clothes planning to leave Lily behind. Lily notices that the bees have escaped from the jar she put them in, which Lily takes advantage and plans to
run away. The theme for this book is racism by not only illustrating black and white characters with self– respect and society but by also showing how
Lily struggles with overcoming her own racism. Lily is not a racist in the same way that the group of men that harassed Rosaleen are racist, but she
does witness some prejudice and stereotypes at the beginning of the book. She infers that all African– Americans are like Rosaleen, an uneducated
working housekeeper. When Lily encounters unique, educated, thoughtful August Boatwright, she must change her expectations and fight her mindset.
At first, Lily feels shocked that a black person could be as smart, sensitive, and creative as August. Admitting and combating her impact allows Lily to
realize the truth about the bias of
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The Secret Life of Bees Essay
Hannah Boyer Mr. O'Mara English IV; Period B 8/25/08 The Secret Life of Bees Bees, honey, the Black Madonna, the 1960's, the power of
women, what do all of these things have in common? All of these things are what one would think of when reading the book, The Secret Life of
Bees. Those who have read The Secret Life of Bees know that it is not a book about different kinds of bees and how bees live their lives, but it is a
book about a poorly treated girl named Lily who runs away from home. She runs away to Tiburon, South Carolina with her friend Rosaleen. While in
South Carolina, she makes friends with three black women who make honey, a black man named Zach, who she comes to love, and a group of
Catholics known as The...show more content...
They both become friends with August, June, and May Boatwright as well as the whole Daughters of Mary group, Mr. Forrest, who is a lawyer,
and his daughter named Becca; however, it took Lily a little longer to become friends with June. Lily and Rosaleen also became friends with Zach
and in the end Lily and Zach ended up falling in love with each other. Lily, Rosaleen, the calendar sisters, Zach, the Daughters of Mary, Mr. Forrest
and his daughter, Becca all ended up having a different view of whites and blacks in the end of the story. The theme dealing with a loss is a theme
that shows up a lot throughout the book. Lily is having to deal with the death of her mother and not having anyone there to make her feel loved.
Only in the end of the book, she ends up with too many mothers to even count. She has August, June, the black Mary, Rosaleen, and all of the
woman in the Daughters of Mary group. August, June, and May also had to deal with the death of May's twin sister April. The death of April is
especially hard on May and towards the end of the story May kills herself. The death of May is not only hard on August and June but also on Lily,
Rosaleen, Zach, and everyone in the Daughters of Mary. Each loss that they had to deal with would bring each of them closer and closer to each
other. For example, if Lily wouldn't have missed her mother and left, she and Rosaleen would probably not have even met the calendar sisters and
everyone

Analysis Of The Book ' The Secret Life Of Bees '
Liv Monroy
Ms.Lesnick
English 1 Accelerated
27 August 2014
Protecting the Heart Fifty six. That's how many lives were lost to suicide on a daily basis in the United States during 1964. Imagine fifty six of your
classmates, lying dead on the floor. Bullet wound in this one's head, a rope tied around this one's neck, blood dripping out of a gash on this one's
wrist. Nobody expects suicide to affect them. But then, it does. In The Secret Life of Bees, by Sue Monk Kidd, May Boatwright was one of those
fifty six people. As a young girl, she lost her twin sister to suicide, and her life was forever changed. Suddenly, May was overwhelmingly sensitive.
Everybody else's problems were now her very own. She couldn 't discern the difference between them all, and her brain became a jumbled mess.
Tears often plague her cheeks, and when a young Lily Owens shows up at the Boatwright's doorstep along with her maid Rosaleen, those tears
seem to appear more often than ever. As Lily becomes aware of May's situation, she tries to be as careful as possible, and is helped by May's two
other sisters, August and June Boatwright. They slowly help May adjust, and as they shelter her, May seems to be getting better. But the girls are left
shell shocked when they discover May's lifeless body in the river. Committing suicide was the lowest point for May. May struggles with her own mind,
and constantly battles with depression. By committing suicide, May did not resolve her own problems caused by the

The Secret Life of Bees A family is a basic social unit consisting of parents and children. It is considered a group of people where one can look to for
acceptance, safety, happiness and love. Families are the foundation to a human beings life because it is where one can be welcomes into the society.
Individuals are nurtured and given tools so they are capable of learning and experiencing the world. Living in an unhealthy environment may impact the
way someone thinks and acts physically and emotionally, in the novel The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd, Lily Owens, a young fourteen year
old girl who lives in South Carolina, loses her mother at the age of four because of a devastating tragedy leading to her...show more content...
In a matter of seconds, I knew exactly what I had to do– leave" (Kidd, 41) When Lily can no longer handle her harsh, unyielding father she decides to
run away. T.Ray and Lily have a fight and T.Ray bluntly tells Lily, "The truth is, your sorry mother ran off and left you. The day she dies, she'd
come back to get her things, that's all." (Kidd, 39) In that moment it causes Lily to be very confused and makes her feel unimportant and unloved.
"Some things were not possible in this world. Children did not have two parents who refused to love them. One, maybe, but for pity's sake, not
two." (Kidd, 41) When Lily hears the truth about her mother did, she is outraged by this statement and she runs away. Lily writes a note to T.ray
telling him not to bother looking for her. She decides to sneak Rosaleen out of the hospital before she returns to the jail and they run off to Tiburon,
South Carolina. Lily hates her father and with the choices she makes, in a matter of time, Lily is forced to be responsible for herself and Rosaleen,
she must learn how to be independent. Lily and Rosaleen will take a journey that will change their lives and shape their future forever. Lily who loses
her mother at a very young age of four shapes her life around the indistinctive memory of her mother's death. Lily has been profoundly affected by her
own mother's death; she believes that living with someone else's death can be more painful than dying.

The Secret Life Of Bees Theme Essay
In the book The Secret Life of Bees, author Sue Monk Kidd uses the literary devices of theme, theme development and symbolism to make the story
complex and interesting. These devices thoroughly advance the story bringing more meaning and room for interpretation. The author describes several
themes in the story, allowing the reader to learn from the experiences described by the story. The author also includes hints of symbolism throughout
the book, creating depth and dimension by bringing meaning and importance to even the simplistic of things. Finally, the author embraces them
development through furthermore elaborating on her strong theme Throughout the story, The Secret Life of Bees, Sue Monk Kidd elaborates on the
prolonging theme,that people grow and change overtime through their experiences. This theme is furthermore developed through actions and
experiences of the author. This theme is seen within the characters, Lily and May. At the beginning of the story Lily is described as a slightly
prejudiced girl towards African American people, but after meeting the Boatwright sisters, she grows to love and appreciate them as cultured and
intelligent people. Kidd writes, "I thought they could be smart, but not as smart as me, me being white. Lying on the cot in the honey house, though all
I could think was August is so intelligent, so cultured, and I was surprised...show more content...
One big element of symbolism was May's wailing wall. The wailing was is brought up throughout the story and May, as well as shown visiting the
wall several times as a way to lay out their worries and the burdens they carry. Since May felt all the suffering in the world inside her, she would
constantly go to the wall as a coping device. This wall then symbolizes worries of the world, and by laying all the worries on the wall, one could
potentially rid themselves of these

Secret Life Of Bees Essay
I'm not sure how Kim choose The Secret Life of Bees for her students. I've never read the book, but I've seen the movie. The book/movie definitely
addresses the topics on the role of women, along with the issues of racism and faith. The book is set in 1964 in South Carolina at the height of the
Civil Rights Movement. Jim Crow Laws existed and 'separate but equal' plus the struggle for equal voting rights. These can and are sensitive and hard
topics to address, but worthy.
We are reminded in The Rationale for Differentiated Instruction in Mixed–Ability Classrooms, that learners need to find meaning in what is trying to
teach. They need to relate to the characters in the novel. Kim needs to help her students identify these connections with the characters in the novel.
There needs to be buy in for her students, I would also suggest she be cautious, but the fact that the class is culturally diverse she used be thankful and
celebrate, embrace, support, and encourage open expression. She needs to build a classroom community of trust and respect prior to this assignment.
It is actually one of the first things as a teacher we need to do to ensure a successful school year. Students must feel safe and supported. Kim needs to
be have a conversation prior to the reading and let them know that some difficult topics and feelings are going to arise throughout the reading....show
more content...
By allowing her students to study other literary texts it would provide the students a chance to compare other novels to The Secret Life of Bees. In
addition, giving them background knowledge. The assignment could also be varied allowing students to write from the various points of view or to
compare the

The Secret Life of Bees
In Sue Monk Kidd's novel The Secret Life of Bees there is a psychological allegory present, which is proven by the characters in the story. The
psychological allegory is based on the theory by Sigmund Freud, this theory states that in the human brain there is three major psychological portions,
the id, the ego, and the super ego. The id is the portion that induces selfishness and hatred and other "bad" actions, the super ego is the opposite of the
id, putting others before ones self and caring for others, the ego is the perfect balance between the two and is almost always the psyche portrayed be
the protagonist. In this novel it is T. Ray who illustrates the id, through his bad treatment of Lily, his lack of...show more content...
Ray to let Rosaleen out of jail, and T. Ray refuses " What I ,mean is, I wouldn't be surprised if he flat out killed her " (p30) T. Ray know Rosaleen
might die but he still wont try to help her because it would mean standing up to the people of his community. He is only thinking of himself, which
is a quality of the id. T. Ray also only thinks of himself when Lily leaves him, instead of considering the fact that she might be happier without him.
T. Ray has found Lily at the Boatwright house and is insisting she come back "I spent half my summer looking for you, and I'm taking you out of
here" (290) T. Ray spent half his summer looking for Lily because he was happier with her, instead of thinking of Lily and considering the fact that
she might be happier with out him. In this he was only thinking of himself and was demonstrating the id. Through all of these excerpts it can de
determined that the character of T. Ray demonstrates the id in the psychological allegory, through his bad treatment of Lily, his lack of caring with
Rosaleen, and the way he only thinks of himself.
In this novel the character of May Boatwright portrays the super ego, by her unbiased caring, by her innocence, and by her need for perfection. May
cares for every one no matter what race or gender, and created a wall to pray for the people of the world. May has just heard that Zach is in jail and is
upset "I'm going to the wall" (p187) May knows Zach is in trouble so she

The Secret Life Of Bees Essay
The Secret Life Of Bees – Set 2 Question 1– Kidd's decision to write The Secret Life of Bees in the perspective of young Lily Owens allow the
reader to deeply understand the internal struggles that have faced her from a young age. Through out the novel Lily is looking for acceptance,
understanding, and love, all things that she hasn't felt for as long as she can remember. These feelings, or lack there of stem from the mystery and
guilt surrounding the death of Deborah Owens, Lily's mother. A young three year old Lily is presumably the cause of Deborah's accidental death,
and it's something she's never been able to get over. "This is what I know about myself. She was all I wanted. And I took her away" (Kidd 8). The
direct look into the heart and mind of Miss. Owens allows the reader to become connected and invested into the story. This being said if her...show more
content...
Whith out this faact Rosaleen never would have went to register and ran into the men that had beat her. Which inturn would mean that Lily probably
never would have it to the Boatwright's house where she finally learned about her mother. This point in history was a hard time for the African
American society and setting the book then aloows kidd to include their hardships. This is also a time when NASA was begining to try to land a man
on the moon, a task that no one thought possible. While the country wanted to beat the Russians, August wasn't ready for the mystery to be over.
"'Look at her good Lily,' she said, ''cause your seeing the end of something'" (Kidd 113). Including this historical event lets the reader see deeper into
August. The author was able to show just how connected and wise August really is. She isn't ready for that mystery of a beautiful object so far away to
end. August knows that beauty untouched is somehow more

Not everyone in the world has a perfect family and may experience certain events in childhood that can affect the way they see and how they display
themselves. Motherless Lily lives unhappily with her emotionally detached father, who claims that as a child, Lily accidently killed her mother. "It was
you who did it, Lily. You didn't mean it, but it was you" (299). After hearing this and helping break her only friend and black caretaker, Rosaleen out
of jail, the two runaway to a place where Lily suspects her mother once spent time. While on this journey, Lily must find out the truth and come to
terms of who her mother really was, and to help understand her own life. While on their way to uncovering more and more

The Secret Life Of Bees Analysis
The sun shimmered brightly in the morning sky, sending rays of warmth on to the land below it. Birds started to chirp and the bees started to buzz.
The bees began their work in the golden, honey–filled hive. Most of them flew out, wandering around looking for blooming flowers, to get sweet
nectar. Other bees nursed the young, took part in the building the impressive hive piece by piece, or guarded their home. Everyday, the bees are making
their colony stronger...but what does this mean? Each bee has a significant role in the hive, and a bee does its job so every bee in the hive survives.
In other words, a beehive would not exist if the bees did not work together as a whole. The way a community of bees works is not only fascinating,
but also similar to the human world. Sue Monk Kidd incorporates various concepts in The Secret Life of Bees, and uses bees to develop the
significance of those concepts. Kidd makes connections between bees and how they represent...show more content...
In the book, we see that one challenge bees face is surviving on a hot day. The bees themselves aren't capable of doing anything about the
uncontrollable weather and we know this when the author writes, "'When it gets over a hundred,' she said, 'the flowers dry up and there's no food
for the bees. They stay in the hives fanning themselves. Sometimes they just roast.'" Because it is harder for bees to survive by themselves, another
society helps them. August and Lily make sure the bees in their area can survive by taking sugar water for the bees. This connects to our world
because smaller communities help each other when needed. For example, the United States provides foreign aid to help other countries develop. As
well as that, we have a myriad of organizations like the Red Cross that support and provide help to other people when needed. While the concept of
societies helping each other seems simple, it would be difficult to maintain if nobody was leading

The Secret Life Of Bees – Set 2 Question 1– Kidd's decision to write The Secret Life of Bees in the perspective of young Lily Owens allow the
reader to deeply understand the internal struggles that have faced her from a young age. Through out the novel, Lily is looking for acceptance,
understanding, and love, all things that she hasn't felt for as long as she can remember. These feelings, or lack there of stem from the mystery and
guilt surrounding the death of Deborah Owens, Lily's mother. A young three year old Lily is presumably the cause of Deborah's accidental death,
and it's something she's never been able to get over. "This is what I know about myself. She was all I wanted. And I took her away" (Kidd 8). The
direct look into the heart and mind of Miss. Owens allows the reader to become connected and invested into the story. This being said if her...show more
content...
Without this fact Rosaleen never would have went to register and ran into the men that had beat her. Which in turn would mean that Lily probably
never would have it to the Boatwright's house where she finally learned about her mother. This point in history was a hard time for the African
American society and setting the book then allows Kidd to include their hardships. This is also a time when NASA was beginning to try to land a
man on the moon, a task that no one thought possible. While the country wanted to beat the Russians, August wasn't ready for the mystery to be over.
"'Look at her good Lily,' she said, ''cause you're seeing the end of something'" (Kidd 113). Including this historical event lets the reader see deeper into
August. The author was able to show just how connected and wise August really is. She isn't ready for that mystery of a beautiful object so far away to
end. August knows that beauty untouched is somehow more

Secret Life Of Bees Essay
If I were to recommend one of the books that I read this summer to a friend, it would be The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd. This book is
not just about one girl's journey about rising above her abusive father and standing up for herself, but it proves that family is not determined by
blood. Although her father is the only family she has following her mother's death, she can't even bear the thought of calling him "daddy." Her only
friend is Rosalyn, the black maid, who takes on the role of her mother. Lily's love for Rosalyn is what prompts her to start her journey to Ti born,
South Carolina. Throughout her journey, she finds out who is really there for her when she needs it the most. I would like to believe that this is a life
lesson that everyone will learn at some point in their life....show more content...
This summer, I worked at a summer camp for eight weeks and met some of the most amazing and altruistic people. Although I was three years
younger than them, they took me in and some of them even "adopted" me as their younger sister. They looked out for me and taught me that
family is something that you can find anywhere, even miles away from home. They are the people that you would drive four hours to see for one.
Family are the people that you go to when you have a bad day. They are the people that you know you can always rely on. Family are the ones that
treat you like family. Of course, you always have your real family that will love you unconditionally no matter what, sometimes circumstances
draw families apart. The way I see it is, if someone wants to be a part of your family, they will be no matter what. They will find a way to be in
your life, because there is always room for family. This is why there is such a thing as those family friends that show up to your house on
thanksgiving with a smile on their face. It doesn't matter if they are family or not because they are family in your

The Secret Life Of Bees Message Essay
As the years pass many things get old and lose worth, like books, but what can never get old or lose value is the message each book holds with it
forever. In the very beginning of the book, "The Secret Life of Bees" by Sue Monk Kidd, the understanding of the message delivered is that Lily's
mother died while she was very young, and she does not know what happened. Even though this book takes place in the early sixties and moves
forward to almost early seventies, but no matter what time period of the events taking place or the circumstances, the challenges Lily faces in Secret
Life Of Bee's are still relevant even today.
Seeing things from an adult point of view showed and taught Lily how things worked in the real world, no matter it being right or wrong. In the
very beginning of the book Lily states "People who think dying is the worst thing don't know a thing about life." (pg. 2) this being her looking back
into her own past from an older perspective and it efficiently disproves many people's viewpoints about life. Dealing with a loss of a loved one and
missing the said individual, can be more harmful to the people around you more than death itself. It's a prolonged torture that can never really be
stopped, only something that you find out how to live with and deal with. The loss of her mother seems to loom over her for her entire life, a feeling
which she could not shake until she found solace in the honey barn, which felt like more of a home to her...show more content...
In The Secret Life of Bees there are many new and old ideas that can and will always be applied in one way or another. Facing hardships at a young
age and using that experience to make smarter choices and having better outcomes is a part of life, and this novel showed that. So of course, this
book will always be required to be read by people everywhere because the content it holds will always keep the same effect throughout the

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd Essay
Racism: Then and Now. 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...show more content...
Lily shows her non–racist side in the very beginning of the book, after Rosaleen has been put in jail for spitting on a very racist white man's shoe.
She willingly sneaks into jail and attempts to free Rosaleen, but gets sent home with the racist and mean father, T. Ray. She once again tries to
free Rosaleen, and this time sneaks into a hospital to free her. Lily is successful this time, and runs away with Rosaleen. Many quotes from the
Secret Life of Bees express the views of different characters on racism. " She was black as could be, twisted like driftwood from being out in the
weather, her face a map of all the storms and journeys she'd been through. Her right arm was raised as if she was pointing the way, except her
fingers were closed in a fist. It gave her a serious look, like she could straighten you out if necessary." In this quote, Lily describes the Black Virgin
Mary, the lord of the Sisters of Mary, and later learns the significance of this statue, which is to look within yourself to find your true, hidden self.
When Lily has her earlier conversations with Zach, she has a slight edge of racism in her voice. When Zach tells Lily that he want to be a lawyer,
she says: "I've just never heard of a Negro lawyer, that's all. You've got to hear of these things before you can imagine them." However, despite this
fact, she supports Zach's

Essay On The Secret Life Of Bees
I chose to read The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd because when I read the back of the book, it seemed to portray an interesting plot. When
reading it, I knew I was right. I feel that certain people could relate to this and I know that situations like these are happening all around us even as
we speak. When reading the book, I knew who my favorite character and least favorite character were right away. My favorite character was Lily. she
is a very relatable character who goes against all odds to try to find out what happened to her mother. My least favorite character was T. Ray. He was a
lazy and abusive excuse for a parent who should be put in jail for what he's done to Lily.
Besides the main characters of this book, I could point...show more content...
This shows you what life was like in the south in the 60's through the eyes of a teenager who is around those of a different race. I would say the title The
Secret Life Of Bees partly makes sense because a majority of the book implements the topic of bees and the setting is often somehow related to
bees and honey farming. One book that I can see would be similar to The Secret Life Of Bees would have to be Maniac Magee. Maniac Magee and
The Secret Life Of Bees are similar in the fact that they both have to do with racism and individuals overcoming racial barriers to make true
friendships. The most important part of The Secret Life Of Bees was at the end when T. Ray tried to take Lily back and everyone at the honey
farm and all of the Daughters Of Mary refused to let Lily go because they considered her family. I feel this is the most important part of the book
because it showed that Lily's relationships with people she is not related to by blood(and are not the same race) are stronger than the one she has with
her own father. I would like to read other books by Sue Monk Kidd. I think she did a wonderful job writing this book and would expect her other books
to be just as

The book by the name of The Secret Life of Bees written by Sue Monk Kidd is about a white girl named Lily Owens who goes on a journey to find
more about her dead mother who passed away when she was young. She finds herself in the Boatwright's house (home of the honey makers) that is
strictly for African–American women because she believes that her mother spent much of her life there. Lily finds herself dealing with frequent racial
issues as the story takes place in Southern Carolina during the Civil Rights Movement. By the end of this book, I can say that I enjoyed the novel
because of the themes the author includes. First off, it shows the progression in Lily's ignorance in terms of being more educated. In the beginning of
the book, she thinks...show more content...
After a few hours, or even less, they show unmistakable signs of queenlessness" (Kidd 1). I did not know the symbol of bees could relate to this
story in the way that it did. Bees plays a significant symbols because of the fact that the ruler of the hives is ruled by a single Queen Bee. Similar
to August as she is the Virgin Mary and the other members are called the Daughters of Mary. Also, beehives are very protected in the manner of
the not clearly knowing what is going on inside. However, we know that there is a system and own ways to care for their homes. Just like the
boathouse, they have their rituals such as praying, collecting honey and celebrations. As well as making sure that the system runs smoothly as
everyone has a significant job and making sure that one another is safe in the home. This reminds me of the novel Life of Pi by Yann Martel. More
specifically when Pi is stranded on an island with a tiger, Pi is completely exposed to a new environment and has to adapt to all changes. At first, he
dislikes the tiger, but soon his interpretations of him as he gets to know and bond with

Secret Life Of Bees
"Most people don't have any idea about all the complicated life going on inside a hive. Bees have a secret life we just don't know anything about".
Bee's have what we call; Secret lives. Not only do bees have secret lives but humans also. Developing this metaphor that the hive is society and bees
are human, it shows that people are typically much more complex and complicated than they appear on the surface. You never know how a person
feels on the inside, unless the tell you of course, you never know what someone is going through, how they're thinking or what they're thinking, you
never know what someones life is like, unless they tell you. We only see pretty faces, shining white teeth, beautiful smiles, glistening eyes, and glowing
skin

The Secret Life Of Bees Themes Essay
The Civil Right Act occurred in 1960 which allowed African–Americans more rights. In the novel The Secret Life of Bees many characters challenges
and uncover the meaning of accepting taboo ideas. Set in 1964, Sue Monk Kidd's The Secret Life of Bees suggests that accepting taboo actions does
not necessarily compromises a person's moral compass and can lead to an awareness and understanding of the world. Kidds foster the idea that racism is
to be acknowledged. In the first couple of chapters of the novel the reader sees Roseleen, an African–American nanny to Lily Owens standing up to a
group of white guys. "Rosaleen lifted her snuff which was filled with black spot, and calmly poured it across the shoes of the men's shoes moving her
hand...show more content...
Emanuel agrees in her paper "The archetypal mother: the Black Madonna in Sue Monk Kidd 's The Secret Life of Bees" saying that "[Kidd] speaks at
length about a woman's plight in both conventional society,"(Catherine B. Emanuel). August understands this progress of injustice. While talking to
Lily about her life, August confesses that she did love a man. "I loved him enough. I just loved my freedom more"(146). This shows that August had
to decide whether she wanted to have her freedom or to be married. Kidd writing about a black woman that choose a career over the traditional
lifestyle of a women reinforce the notice that anyone can improve and innovate the world as much as white man. In the novel, August shows Lily that
a woman can do anything a man can do by breaking from conventional ideas that a women can live a successful life without a man is normal. Laurie
Grobman agreed in her essay in "Teaching Cross–Racial Texts: Cultural Theft in 'The Secret Life of Bees" by saying that "August fits Levy's
description of the 'model of female creativity, the repository of women 's history and the provider of mother enduring care,"(21). August is a role
model to encourage women to break the mold of what a woman is supposed to be.
Kidd use the non–traditional religious practices to show the healing and understanding that come from the practice. August has an informal Christian
religious group called the Daughter of Mary. The Daughter of Mary prays every Sunday

Kathy Holcomb
Prof. Robert Weber
English 112
April 14, 2009
The Secret Life of Bees Critical Essay Sue Monk Kidd has carefully crafted a book rich in symbolism with special emphasis on bees. Each section's
heading features the inner workings of this communal society (Emanuel, Catherine, B. 3). An epigraph at the beginning relating to bees sets the tone
for the each chapter. The first chapter epigraph states: The Queen, for her part, is the unifying force of the community; if she is removed from the
hive, the workers very quickly sense her absence. After a few hours, or even less, they show unmistakable signs of queenlessness." Man and Insects.
The Queen bee is the novel's symbol of a mother figure and is used throughout Lily's...show more content...
Bees live in social units comprised of a queen bee and her sterile daughters. These female bees need male bees only rarely. This statement captures the
strong female presence of the Boatwright residence. The Boatwright sisters live together and do not require men to help them survive. The sisters are
very successful and have a nice house on a large plot of land. (The Best Notes, Chapter 4).
Suffice it to say, when Lily and Rosaleen follow their yellow brick road to the idiosyncratic compound of three black women bee–keepers, May, June
and August, they come upon a trio that embodies every form of maternal nurturance and emotional education Lily needs, and a comfortable nest for
Rosaleen as well. In the Boatwright sisters, for whom the black Madonna is queen, Kidd has created a wonderful fantasy, a sort of beloved
community, part Oz, part ashram, part center for racial reconciliation (Brown 1).
They live in a bright pink house, a very feminine color. The woman in the household have names pertaining to seasons. "These names span a time
frame of both sowing and reaping, spring to late summer." (Emanual, Catherine B. 2). Appropriately, August (a mature season) champions and
befriends Lily providing the wisdom and security she so desperately needs. She gently guides Lily but allows her to find her own way. Under Augusts'
wing, Lily finally finds a place to nest. She

The Secret Life Of Bees Summary

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The Secret Life Of Bees Summary