An entry on Critical Lens Theory
In todays world, feminism is a concept that is widely talked about. The social standard of men being the most dominant figures are being broken, and women are climbing to the top. Before it was uncommon to see a woman in a job such as engineering or medicine that is typically possessed by a man. In this day and age, however, things are changing. More and more women are striving for greatness and changing the game.
In the 1950s and 60s however, feminism was less common. Women typically had stereotypical “female” jobs or stayed home to watch children. Most men were the “bread winners” and made most of the money to support their family. In the Secret Life of Bees, there are multiple characters that posses this feminist mindset that was uncommon during the time period the book was set in.
June Boatwright
June Boatwright, one of the women that takes Lily in when she runs away from home, definitely shows some feminist qualities. June objects getting married because she doesn’t want to get hurt. She was going to get married one before but “he didn’t show up to the wedding” (Kidd 103). Because of that, June blocked away all thoughts of ever getting married again. I think that June felt that she could never trust a man with her happiness. This is why when she met Neil, even though she liked him, she refused to marry him in fear of getting hurt. Neil tried “everything to get June to marry him” but she still swore she would never marry (Kidd 103). This actually reminds me of the book Little Women when Joe refuses to marry Teddy. Joe swore she would be a spinster and didn’t want the complications of love. Although Joe was never left at the alter, I was reminded of this book because instead of getting married Joe just wants to live with her sisters, and even tries to convince her oldest sister, Meg, not to get married. In the Secret Life of Bees, June, August, and May are all unmarried and live together, like the life Joe wanted in Little Women. During this time, it was unheard of for women to refuse marriage, and although these books are set in different time periods, they share very similar qualities.
Lily
“‘I’m staying here, ‘ I said. ‘I’m not leaving.’ The words hung there, hard and gleaming. Like pearls I’d been fashioning down inside my belly for weeks.
‘What did you say?’
‘I said I’m not leaving.'”
– Kidd, The Secret Life of Bees (296)
Lily, also shows some feminist qualities in The Secret Life of Bees. Lily stands up to her father by running away to find out what happened to her mom. When her dad discovers her location and and tracks her down to the Boatwright house, Lily stands up for herself and refuses to go home. This shows that even someone who is young and a woman can stand up to an older male. by saying “I said I’m not leaving“, Lily is erasing the social standard of the time and finally breaking the chains with her abusive father (Kidd 296).
These feminist qualities Kidd has chosen to implement into her novel help to show that women can choose their own destiny, and shouldn’t back down. June chooses to not marry, and Lily chooses to escape from her father.
Thank you for reading! You are almost to the END of these blogs! Keep reading until February 14th!
-Julia
Bee Kind Blog 