South Carolina 1964 is the beginning
of Sue Monk Kidd’s debut novel, “The Secret Life of Bees” during the ever
uncomfortable segregation period of America. Lily Owens is a fourteen year old girl
living with her dower and somewhat sadist father whom she affectionately refers
to as T. Ray rather than father. Haunted and confused about the death of her
mother, Lily has no friends other than her surrogate mother, nanny and black
woman, Rosaleen. All is quiet and normal in their town until politics and the
rights of people are put into questions, Lily decides to change her fate and
runaway with Rosaleen, who is targeted by racists to the town Lily believes
might connect them to her mother’s misty past. Sue Monk Kidd paints a vivid
picture of the horrors of the south and it’s prejudices against African
Americans and is the precursor to another famous book about black and white
relations, “The Help,” by Kathyrn Stockett. And like the other, Kidd is white.
Is this the product of white guilt or is this story one that stands alone as
just any other regardless of the authoress skin color.
The first thing to look at is the
major characters; Lily Owens, Rosaleen, August, June, May, and Zach. Lily seems
no more than our observer into the African American world as she is a guest in
August’s home. Lily and Rosaleen wander into an African American town where
white people are scarce and for once Lily is in the minority. She too though
has her own prejudices, assumptions but they are changed as she watches the
three women and keeping of the bees and business. To Lily, August shows the
supreme of wisdom knowing more than her years and shames Lily’s own thoughts on
the intelligence of African Americans.
June is equally sophisticated but brings about another part of racism that
neither Lily nor most readers would consider. May is the life and laughter of
the three and holds the most sorrow but barely as her feeble mind is able.
Though simple and kind she not completely ignorant to the world, it is just the
opposite. She knows it all and feels it all but like a pitcher with small holes
she cannot hold it all in. Zack’s introduction is late but he keeps presence on
the page. He befriends Lily regardless of her color and holds some admiration
to her. Even less on page but still present is T.Ray, Lily’s bitter father who
is still desperately looking for her. He holds the biggest secrets and yet we
only see so little of him.
Neither the characters are written
or perceived as stereotypical, at least not in the time period it was written.
I could be said that August is like the “Magical Black Woman/Man” who sprinkle
wisdom on the poor little white girl as she struggles through her inner
conflict. It would be no different than Will Smith’s role in “The Legend of
Vance,” where he mentors a white golfer. Whereas Will was figment, August is
real but still mentoring Lily as she come of age. Yet June does not warm up to Lily,
she is skeptical and downright rude to Lily because of what her skin represents
to June and her kind. So does it balance it out?
I saw the sprinkled subtext and however
I was not offended by it. To someone who believed that African American to be
limited in intellect and primal, the Calendar Sisters would be at first a shock
and later the highest admiration would follow. And for Sue Monk Kidd who had
grown up in the south during this troubled period and feeling guilty later as
an adult for not engaging in African Americans until her college years, I could
see how she would too raise their stature far from the ill conceived sterotype
of that era. I enjoyed it for what it was worth…
I wonder what the movie is like?
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