Analysis Of The Bean Trees By Barbara Kingsolver
In the novel The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver one of the main characters named Estevan says “We believe that if something terrible happens to someone, they must have done something to deserve it.” The author of the novel wrote it the complete opposite of what Estevan says, meaning bad things happen to good people and good thing happen to bad people. That it doesn't matter if you're good or bad, bad things still happen to good people and vice versa. Esteven is right, that we as Americans believe that bad people are the ones who get punished, but we are wrong because good people get punished too.
Estevan is correct, we as American's do believe that bad things happen to bad people. Those people had to of done something bad for them to have
something bad happen to them. The novel, however, does not match up with that statement. For instance, Turtle was a three-year-old girl, what could she possibly have done that got her abuse? Nothing, Turtle didn't deserve the sexual abuse she had gotten or the terrible life the that she had been dealt. Taylor is another good example in the novel that bad things still happen to good people. She left her hometown to get away from the pattern of getting pregnant at a young age, but in the midst of getting away from it, she was handed a baby, therefore, she ended up with that very thing she was trying to avoid. Lou Ann, also a person that did not deserve a druggy husband and didn't deserve to be left on her own as a single mother. But still that's what she was dealt and she handled it in the best way possible.
During a class discussion about the novel, the question “Do you think Angel deserved losing his legs in the drunken car accident?; was asked and I remember hearing someone say that they do think that he did deserve losing his legs because he was the one drinking, he could have prevented the accident from happening. If he wasn't drunk, if he wasn't drinking. That he definitely deserved to lose his legs, the consequences for being under the influence. I would have to say that their point is very valid. The accident was his fault and he now has to deal with the repercussions of his actions. That was something that he deserved. Drinking and driving does not make you a bad person is was a bad choice he made in the moment. Maybe he didn't deserve to lose his legs but, maybe he did. I think that him losing his legs gave him a different perspective on life and I think that if he didn't get into the incident, he wouldn't have stopped doing drugs and he wouldn't have left Lou Ann and that would be bad for her because she most likely would have turned into an even worse mother. He was bad for her, he was dragging her down he would have taken her to her grave faster then she should be there.
I want to point out that things happen for a reason whether they are deserved or not deserved, whether the person is a good person or not a good person. Things will happen people are going to get hurt, people get in accidents, people get cancer, people die, people lose loved ones, people get divorced, people lose their job, etc. That doesn't mean that those people deserve it or that those people are bad people. I'm a good person but life has thrown a lot at me, I've lost people, I've suffered a lot of hardships. But I'm not a bad person. I don't kill people, I'm not some terrible person that deserves the things that have happened to me. They are things that I have no control over and are out of my hands. All I can do is hope that when I do get something thrown at me I am able to deal with it properly and overcome it.
In the novel, Estevan's statement was proven to be both valid and invalid. Valid in the sense that we do think in the mindset that bad things happen to bad people. Invalid in the sense that, it is true that things happen to certain people because they did something to deserve it. I think Estevan is correct in saying that bad people have bad things happen to them, but we are wrong good things do happen to bad people and bad things happen to good people.
Estevan is correct, we as American's do believe that bad things happen to bad people. Those people had to of done something bad for them to have
something bad happen to them. The novel, however, does not match up with that statement. For instance, Turtle was a three-year-old girl, what could she possibly have done that got her abuse? Nothing, Turtle didn't deserve the sexual abuse she had gotten or the terrible life the that she had been dealt. Taylor is another good example in the novel that bad things still happen to good people. She left her hometown to get away from the pattern of getting pregnant at a young age, but in the midst of getting away from it, she was handed a baby, therefore, she ended up with that very thing she was trying to avoid. Lou Ann, also a person that did not deserve a druggy husband and didn't deserve to be left on her own as a single mother. But still that's what she was dealt and she handled it in the best way possible.
During a class discussion about the novel, the question “Do you think Angel deserved losing his legs in the drunken car accident?; was asked and I remember hearing someone say that they do think that he did deserve losing his legs because he was the one drinking, he could have prevented the accident from happening. If he wasn't drunk, if he wasn't drinking. That he definitely deserved to lose his legs, the consequences for being under the influence. I would have to say that their point is very valid. The accident was his fault and he now has to deal with the repercussions of his actions. That was something that he deserved. Drinking and driving does not make you a bad person is was a bad choice he made in the moment. Maybe he didn't deserve to lose his legs but, maybe he did. I think that him losing his legs gave him a different perspective on life and I think that if he didn't get into the incident, he wouldn't have stopped doing drugs and he wouldn't have left Lou Ann and that would be bad for her because she most likely would have turned into an even worse mother. He was bad for her, he was dragging her down he would have taken her to her grave faster then she should be there.
I want to point out that things happen for a reason whether they are deserved or not deserved, whether the person is a good person or not a good person. Things will happen people are going to get hurt, people get in accidents, people get cancer, people die, people lose loved ones, people get divorced, people lose their job, etc. That doesn't mean that those people deserve it or that those people are bad people. I'm a good person but life has thrown a lot at me, I've lost people, I've suffered a lot of hardships. But I'm not a bad person. I don't kill people, I'm not some terrible person that deserves the things that have happened to me. They are things that I have no control over and are out of my hands. All I can do is hope that when I do get something thrown at me I am able to deal with it properly and overcome it.
In the novel, Estevan's statement was proven to be both valid and invalid. Valid in the sense that we do think in the mindset that bad things happen to bad people. Invalid in the sense that, it is true that things happen to certain people because they did something to deserve it. I think Estevan is correct in saying that bad people have bad things happen to them, but we are wrong good things do happen to bad people and bad things happen to good people.