ipl-logo

The Secret Life Of Bees By Sue Monk Kidd

1051 Words5 Pages

Have you ever read a novel that starts off with a suspenseful beginning and a peaceful ending? Well, this is The Secret Life of Bees. The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd, is a heartwarming story of a young girl named Lily Owens, who sets out on a journey with Rosaleen, her stand-in mother, to uncover the truth about Deborah Owens and her past. It explores themes of love, race, and the power of sisterhood. In The Secret Life of Bees, August has had the greatest impact on Lilly's growth and development because her calm leadership is an important source of energy that's needed within the sisterhood community as she comes to terms with her family. She also teaches Lily to forgive herself for her imperfections and to forgive others as well, …show more content…

For example, the novel states, "Because you weren't ready to know about her. I didn't want to risk you running away again. I wanted you to have a chance to get yourself on solid ground, get your heart bolstered up first. There's a lot of time for things, Lily. You have to know when to prod, when to be quiet, when to let things take their course. That's what I've been trying to do.” (340). August knew that Lily wasn’t going to be ready to hear all the news. So she waited it out, she helped her become stronger, helped her become more independent, she cared for her and when it came to the right time she shared what needed to be told. The story states, “You know, some things don’t matter that much, Lily. Like the color of a house. How big is that in the overall scheme of life? But lifting a person’s heart—now, that matters. The whole problem with people is—” (213-214). Overall, August has many reasons for the growth and development of Lily Owen, including the fact that August opened up her home to her, providing care and support for her. August even gave her advice and taught her valuable

Show More
Related

Secret Life Of Bees Quotes

805 Words | 4 Pages

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd is a novel about Lily, who runs away from home to Tiburon, after she and Rosaleen, her “stand-in mom” were arrested. Lily killed her mother at a young age, and she feels guilty about it. When Lily and Rosaleen are at Tiburon, Lily finds a picture of The Black Madonna at a store, which was the same picture that Lily’s mom had. This leads them to a pink house, where they meet August, June, and May. August is the oldest and is seen as the leader of the house. Before each chapter of the novel, there is a quote.

Read More

The Secret Life Of Bees By Sue Monk Kidd

161 Words | 1 Pages

"The Secret Life of Bees", by Sue Monk Kidd, is a first-person narrative through the eyes of 14-year-old Lily Owens, a white girl in 1964 South Carolina who runs away with her African-American maid Rosaleen in search of clues to reveal her mother's past. From the gecko, Lily discloses the abusive conditions of living with her father, T. Ray, since the violent death of her mother that she expresses was her fault and longs to find some answers that will help her move on. As further events unfold, Rosaleen and Lily manage to escape to Tiburon, a city she finds her mother had spent time in, and hunt down an African-American honey farmer, August Boatwright, to whom they find after stumbling across her honey jar with a Black Virgin Mary on it. August

Read More

The Secret Life Of Bees By Sue Monk Kidd

696 Words | 3 Pages

August is the most influential character in The Secret Life of Bees because of her generosity to Lily and the truths she tells her. The first reason that August is the most influential character to Lily is that she let Lily and Rosaleen live in their house. “"Well, you can stay here

Read More

How Is Diction Used In The Secret Life Of Bees

764 Words | 4 Pages

When Lily lost her mother and has T. Ray taking care of her, she starts questioning her mother of why she left them. “Your sorry mother ran off and left you. The day she died, she’d come back to get her things, that’s all,” (Kidd, 40). When Lily heard T. Ray say this to her, she was shocked with depression and thinking that T. Ray might of lied to her about what he said about her mother. The lesson is that Lily is depressed and questioning herself on why her mother decided to leave her.

Read More

The Secret Life Of Bees By Sue Monk Kidd

168 Words | 1 Pages

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd is a novel about race, faith, and growing up in the American South in the 1960s. The story follows Lily Owens, a 14-year-old girl from Sylvan, South Carolina, and her struggles with not only struggles with the usual hardships associated with growing up, but also an abusive father and a dead mother. After being pushed to the limit by her father, she runs away from home with her “stand-in mother” to the town of Tiburon, South Carolina, having seen it on the back of an image of a honey label her real mother had owned. She is taken in by the eccentric trio of black beekeeping sisters and is immersed into their world of bees, honey, and the Black Mary. Through Lily’s interactions with the sisters and her

Read More

Character Analysis Of Lily In The Secret Life Of Bees

812 Words | 4 Pages

In the novel, “The secret life of Bees” by Sue Monk Kidd, the main character, Lily, is a teenager who is conflicted by the haunted memory of killing her own mother, and living in an abusive household. The series of events throughout the novel, transitioned her from helpless, depressed, shy girl, into a powerful, confident and empowering woman. She turned from a victim in an abusive household, into a superhero. Her ability to elude T.Ray, mature with August, and stand up to her enemy, developed her into her truest form, a hero.

Read More

The Secret Life Of Bees By Sue Monk Kidd

211 Words | 1 Pages

Set in the year 1964, “The Secret Life of Bees” written by Sue Monk Kidd is a novel written about the coming of age and maturation of Lily Owens, a young girl struggling to heal from the pain of her mother's death. Growing up without a mother was hard enough for Lily, especially when she was deemed as the underlying cause for her death. Lily was surrounded by her abusive father T-Ray, and her stand-in mother Rosaleen until with a little help from the bees, she decided it was time for her to escape. Throughout the novel, bees were used as a powerful symbol. The bee colony represented an unspoken guide for Lily, a portal of communication, and the relationship between the women in the novel.

Read More

The Secret Life Of Bees By Sue Monk Kidd

418 Words | 2 Pages

Have you ever felt like a lost bee, buzzing around with a broken wing, searching for a place to belong? That’s what happens in “The Secret Life of Bees” by Sue Monk Kidd. Lily Owens, the main character, runs away from home after a series of unfortunate events and her abusive father T.Ray. After searching for something related to her mother, Lily stumbles upon the Boatwrights house where August, the head of the Boatwrights, takes Lily in. Overall, August has most influenced Lily's growth and development.

Read More

The Secret Life Of Bees By Sue Monk Kidd

1056 Words | 5 Pages

The story states, “Lily can have a home here for as long as she wants," August said”(Monk Kidd 427). This shows August telling T-Ray, Lily’s dad, that she can live with her for however long she wants. This also shows that August gave Lily a home when she didn’t want to go live with her abusive dad. August gave Lily support and a place to live. This shows that August had the most impact on Lily’s growth and development because without August, Lily would be homeless.

Read More

Sue Monk Kidd's The Secret Life Of Bees

522 Words | 3 Pages

This quest for understanding leads Lily to the Boatwright sisters, who offer her a sense of belonging and connection rooted in their shared history. For instance, August Boatwright becomes a maternal figure to Lily, guiding her through the complexities of her own identity while imparting lessons gleaned from generations of family wisdom. She told her to come sit with her as she told her a story that her “mother used to tell [the sisters] when [they] got tired of their chores” to hopefully help them continue going (Kidd, 90). Lily denied she was tired of her chores, but she still thought it was a “good story” and she should “just listen” (Kidd

Read More

How Does Lily Mature In The Secret Life Of Bees

1164 Words | 5 Pages

In Sue Monk Kidd’s The Secret Life of Bees, readers are drawn into the journey that Lily Owens embarks on to find the strength to make her own decisions and grow as an individual. Her sense of humour helps her to survive, and she finally comes to an understanding of her yearning for her mother, and her growth takes her beyond her father’s lack of humanity. Lily develops into an outspoken young lady throughout the novel by making difficult decisions, meeting new people and learning how to stand up for herself. Lily finds her strength by making difficult decisions that are life changing.

Read More

The Secret Life Of Bees Theme Essay

1401 Words | 6 Pages

The Secret Lives of People The Secret Life of Bees, by Sue Monk Kidd, is an interesting story that connects human lives to bees. The story takes place in 1964 during the Civil Rights Movement and fourteen year-old Lily Owens leaves her abusive father and her home in Sylvan, South Carolina to go to Tiburon with hopes to find information on her mother. Throughout the story, Lily struggles with many internal conflicts and also meets several mother figures along the way.

Read More

The Secret Life Of Bees Quote Analysis

1426 Words | 6 Pages

Continuing, another theme that led us through Lily’s adventure of growing up was her discovering how important storytelling was. She was going through gruesome horrid things, and when she read things like Shakespeare she realized how important it was because it helped her escape to a fantasy world for a little bit of time. Lastly, Lily learns the power of the female community. Lily grew up without a mother, so for a large chunk of her life she didn’t know the real power the female community held.

Read More

The Iliad: The Military Influences In Contemporary Culture

164 Words | 1 Pages

The influences that that both have in contemporary culture is the military have learned a lot since the Trojan War. The military is not naïve like the soldiers were during the Trojan War. Soldiers are alert on anything that may be mysterious, they work carefully, and if they see something suspicious they know what to do. Soldiers know how to prepare for current war or a possible war that may happen. For example, Students at West Point, which is an elite US military academy where the majority of military students minor in "terrorism studies", shows that The Iliad is part of their literature course.

Read More

Lily Character Analysis Essay

624 Words | 3 Pages

She learns that people are not always perfect and that love can be shaped by bonds rather than blood. Lily is more self-sufficient as the book progresses. Since Lily has accepted the truth, she has matured and become content with herself and her life. Lily changes and grows in different ways throughout the course of the novel, she changes emotionally and grows physically. Emotionally Lily is able to love and forgive, she is able to respond to her emotions.

Read More

More about The Secret Life Of Bees By Sue Monk Kidd

Open Document