The Secret Life of Bees is a well-acclaimed bildungsroman and historic novel written by Sue Monk Kidd about the protagonist Lily Melissa Owens, and her growing personal independence, her expanding knowledge of the world, her revelation about the family in the past, and her spiritual journey. The entire novel was written in first-person angle about Lily’s experiences and thoughts, focusing largely on the spiritual aspect; nonetheless, Sue Monk Kidd did also elaborate her thoughts about the issue of racism, about feminism, and about the embarrassing social position of black women in the mid-20th century, and these issues, yet remaining a hot topic today, served as one significant theme of the entire story. Lily Owens, despite being a white girl
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Rosaleen Daise, a black woman who worked as a peach picker in the orchard of the father of Lily Owens and the guardian of her long since the death of Lily’s mother Deborah Fontanel, watched TV and cheered at the announcement that the Civil Rights Act had just been signed and that from now on black men and women like her could vote just like those white men and women. In the next day, Rosaleen, accompanied with Lily, she goes to town with the intention of registering to vote. However, she meets a group of three men on the way who harass Rosaleen for her appearance and what she plans to do. Infuriated by the words of them, Rosaleen angrily fought back by spilling chewing tobacco juice on their shoes, which led to them calling the police, who arrested Lily and Rosaleen for affronting …show more content…
Nevertheless, Rosaleen, to some extent, served as the role of mother to Lily and took care of her until she is about to reach fourteen. When she is taken away from her family because of the hostile encounter with the three racist white men, Lily decides to escape and search for an answer about her mother’s mysterious past. To some degree, the arrest of Rosaleen catalyzed Lily’s will to search for a stronger female community, one that can truly let her feel her
Rosaleen Daise, a black woman who worked as a peach picker in the orchard of the father of Lily Owens and the guardian of her long since the death of Lily’s mother Deborah Fontanel, watched TV and cheered at the announcement that the Civil Rights Act had just been signed and that from now on black men and women like her could vote just like those white men and women. In the next day, Rosaleen, accompanied with Lily, she goes to town with the intention of registering to vote. However, she meets a group of three men on the way who harass Rosaleen for her appearance and what she plans to do. Infuriated by the words of them, Rosaleen angrily fought back by spilling chewing tobacco juice on their shoes, which led to them calling the police, who arrested Lily and Rosaleen for affronting …show more content…
Nevertheless, Rosaleen, to some extent, served as the role of mother to Lily and took care of her until she is about to reach fourteen. When she is taken away from her family because of the hostile encounter with the three racist white men, Lily decides to escape and search for an answer about her mother’s mysterious past. To some degree, the arrest of Rosaleen catalyzed Lily’s will to search for a stronger female community, one that can truly let her feel her