In The Secret Life of Bees, Sue Monk Kidd alludes to the first lunar landing to communicate that the mystery of the moon is more intriguing than its discovery. For example, August explains her distress when she hears of Ranger 7’s mission to the moon: “‘Now it won’t ever be the same, not after they’ve landed up there and walked around on her [the moon]. She’ll be just one more big science project’” (114). August further explains that the moon is fascinating because of its ambiguity, and now that humans have access to it, the moon’s mystery is uncovered. Thus, the reality of scientific discoveries replaces the mystical beauty that the previously untouched moon once held. On July 31, 1964, Ranger 7 lands on the moon and sends pictures back to…
This heartfelt, captivating novel starts out with a very troubled fourteen year old girl named Lily Owens who lives with her father and their black maid Rosaleen. Her mother is dead due to an accident partially caused by Lily. As the story begins, Rosaleen gets thrown in jail and beaten up by three white men because all she wanted to do was to go into town and vote. Lily then decides it’s the time for them to run away to find the town Tiburon, South Carolina. This was the town written on the back of a picture of black Mary, which belonged to Lily’s mother.…
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In Sue Monk Kidd’s The Secret Life of Bees, August acts as the unorthodox religious leader of the Daughters of Mary and contributes to Lily’s character and growth. August proves to be a leader, and a positive influence towards Lily in every action she performs. She welcomes Lily, a white girl, into her house during the 1960s, a time when racial segregation was prominent. By doing so, August goes against the popular social views, and jeopardizes her reputation for Lily. August teaches Lily many life lessons such as love, hope, and the importance of religion. Because of August, Lily becomes stronger, and more aware of the society in which she lives in.…
In the article “Birds and Bees? No, Let’s Talk about Dollars and Cents” the author, Ben Stein writes to his son and addresses the most valuable life lesson there is in Stein’s eyes. This life lesson is capital, and the positive effects it can provide to your life. Stein is writing to his son to inform him about the “smart way” to invest your money, Stein uses past generations as an example to show just what capital can do for you. The purpose of this letter/article is for a father to have a heart to heart with his son and to instill an important life lesson to him, to teach and prepare as a parent is supposed to. Stein loves Tommy, his son, and just wants the best for him. You really know he is down to earth and genuinely believes in the advice…
“The Queen, for her part, is the unifying force of the community; if she is re moved from the hive the workers very quickly sense her absence. After a few hours, or even less, they show unmistakeable signs of queenlessness”(1)…
For the past month I have been engaging in a literature circle where my group and I have been reading and analyzing the book The Secret Life of Bees. The author Sue Monk Kidd conveyed the message that family is not defined by blood. In the beginning of the book Lily thought that she can only find a mother and daughter bond from her biological mother. She was extremely persistent and her one goal was to learn more about her mother and find out what life would have been like if her mother was still alive. She constantly feels her mother's absence and feels as though no one besides her real mother can fill this whole. As the story progresses we see Lily’s ideas change as she realizes that motherhood is much more than a biological relationship. She opens her heart to the people who love her and accepts them as her own mother-figures. Lily’s views…
She reminded me that the world was really one big bee yard, and the same rules work fine in both places. Don’t be afraid, as no life-loving bee wants to sting you. Still, don’t be an idiot; wear long sleeves and pants. Don’t swat. Don’t even think about swatting. If you feel angry, whistle. Anger agitates while whistling melts a bee’s temper. Act like you know what you’re doing, even if you don’t. Above all, send the bees love, every little thing wants to be loved.” August explains to Lily that bees have a secret life, and people fail to realize how difficult their life really is. Lily realizes how a bee and her are so much alike. When bees do not have a queen they cannot function. Like Lily who greatly misses her mother, little did she know you can introduce a new queen to the hive. Lily’s new ‘queens’ were the Boatright sisters and Rosaleen. She found people who could properly love her, the bees showed Lily how adjusting to a different environment can greatly impact her life for the better.…
There are many different ways to classify a person, some good and some bad. In Rosiland Wiseman’s essay “The Queen Bee and Her Court” she says, “We need to give girls credit for the sophistication of their social structures”. She’s right, the way girls separate each other into different cliques is very complex and multilayered, but sometimes it can be very harmful to some of the girls. If you classify someone has a “Queen Bee”, or “The IT girl”, they are going to feel empowered and special. But what about the girls you call “Losers”, or “Wannabe’s”. They are going to feel depressed, like they don’t fit in, or that they’re weird or not as good as those other girls.…
The Secret Life of Bees demonstrates the irrationality of racism by not only portraying black and white characters with dignity and humanity but by also demonstrating how Lily struggles with and ultimately overcomes her own racism. Kidd moves beyond stereotypes to portray whites and blacks with the multifaceted personalities that we find in real life. Lily is not a racist in the same way that the group of men that harass Rosaleen are racist, but she does evidence some prejudice and stereotypes at the start of the novel. She assumes that all African Americans are like Rosaleen, an uneducated laborer-turned-housekeeper. Lily imagines that all African Americans are likewise coarse and uneducated. But when Lily encounters unique, educated, thoughtful August Boatwright, she must change her assumptions and combat her prejudice. At first, Lily feels shocked that a black person could be as smart, sensitive, and creative as August. Recognizing and combating her shock allows Lily to realize the truth about the arbitrariness and irrationality of racism. Like Lily, June must also learn to overcome racial stereotypes. As individuals, humans can display a complex array of personality traits and characteristics, regardless of skin color or ethnicity.…
“The Birds and the Bees”, If you haven’t given “The talk” you’ve probably received it. I remember my mom bought me The Birds and the Bees book from a yard sale and I was mortified that I was supposed to be reading it. Naturally, I pretended to read the book for a week and then tried to hide it away in my attic. At age 11, I wasn’t exactly and expert at hiding things so it was just thrown onto an open shelf in my attic. Little did I except my 8 year old sister to be going into the attic for any reason; getting up there requires being able to reach the pull hook on the ceiling then climbing up the 45 degree angled ladder. I heard a screech from the attic, I ran up and to find my sister sitting there with a horrified look on her face as if she just witnessed a murder. I have a look of shock on my face while I’m bombarded with questions, “What the heck is this? Why do we have this book? Why is this so graphic? I think I might have gone blind! What is this?”. She never let’s me forget about how much I traumatized her. Talking to kids about the taboo topics of sex, racism, and…
Andy is a tall man, a cop, and a middle aged man. Roger is an older man who is less masculine than Andy, but still makes Aunt Bee blush. Both men treat her very similar. Aunt Bee cleans, cooks, grocery shops and makes sure everything is good with the house. The only difference is Roger is a beau and Andy is her nephew. Andy’s relationship with her is she is the housekeeper and he is in charge of the house. Aunt Bee is seen mostly in the kitchen and the one time she was outside of the house was the scene where Andy and Floyd are at the barber shop. She walks out of the store with groceries and she is with Roger. When she is at home Andy is still in charge, but in the kitchen she has power. When she is in the living room she tries to help Andy and Opie. Mackie (1990) said, “(Unmarried) men are in charge. Women are decorative accessories or helpers” (p. 16). She always makes sure everyone is clean and fed. She gets up to do the dishes and it did not phase Andy when she was going straight to the kitchen. He did not offer to help. Roger offered to help, but Aunt Bee declined telling him to go in the living room with Andy, so he does not mess up his tie. The scene used in the beginning with Aunt Bee receiving the letter. Aunt Bee is seen as dumb and Andy is smart, but it is supposed to humorous. Butch (1992) says the point of making a fool out of the wife, the feminine role, avoids undermining the…
The piece of art that most stood out to me while visiting the California African American Museum in Exposition Park, in Los Angeles, was “The Sunflower Quilting Bee at Arles ”, created by Faith Ringgold in 1996. In the art piece, 8 influential African American throughout history from the 19th and 20th Century are sitting together in a field of sunflowers holding a beautiful quilt that they have made together. It is set in Vincent Van Gogh’s sunflower garden in Arles, France, thus Ringgold included Van Gogh in her picture as well.…
Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter aka Queen Bee is a well-known film actress and singer. The fans can never get enough of her fierce, positive, and bold personality on and off stage. She once said “I felt like God was giving me a chance to assist in a miracle. There is something so relieving about life taking over you like that. You’re playing a part in a much bigger show, and that’s what life is. It’s the greatest show on earth.” We all know Beyoncé slays every single day of her life, but do we really know what she has done to become such a role model in the singing industry. Beyoncé’s early life, becoming a pop singer, and many accomplishments she has achieved is really one to remember.…
In this piece of writing I will be analysing the character of Sara Crewe. Sara Crewe is the main character of the classic novel ‘A Little Princess’, which was written by Frances Hodgson Burnett. Frances is also the author of the other classic, ‘Secret Garden’.…