The use of significant items and motifs throughout The Secret Life of Bees
Motif 1: Bees
One motif in The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd are the bees that seem to follow Lily as she embarks on her journey. The bees represent Lily’s growth as a character and her relationships since her relationship with the bees seems to be a more overt depiction of her other relationships.
In the beginning of the story, Lily is at war with the bees and only has a few within the jar she keeps. Likewise, she has few relationships which aren’t pleasant ones like her relationship with T. Ray and the kids that dislike her because of the rumours of the incident with her mother. Shortly after Lily arrives in Tiburon, she meets August who treats her like family and teaches her how to nurture her relationships along with how to nurture the bees. She soon finds herself accepted by many bees and many people.
Motif 2: Mothers & Mother Figures
Another motif explored in this novel is the use of mothers or mothering figures as a guide. After Lily loses her own mother, she desperately searches for a new one to love her and teach all the unspoken rules of life. The first mothering character is Rosaleen who guides Lily out of her home with T. Ray as they follow the label of black Virgin Mary, mother of Jesus, to Tibouron. They find themselves at the house of the 3 sisters and the Daughters of Mary, all of which act like mothers to Lily and lead her to the statue of black Mary. She realizes that she is loved by Mary, the universal mother, no matter her or Mary’s skin colour.
My friend Anna found another motif in the film of The Secret Life of Bees! Check it out:https://www.annaklimchuk.com/post/the-sound-of-music-from-radio-static-to-an-orchestra
Did you notice any other motifs or significant items in this book? Let me know them and I'll try to spot them!
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