Look for gender, race, or class inequalities and injustices.
Response Requirements:Use QASI/RATE when responding to the two bullets (each bullet requires its own paragraph).
- How is inequality emphasized in the story?
- Who has the power and how do they use that power in the text?
Inequality has plagued our history. And it is emphasized in The Secret Life of Bees because of the way whites treated blacks in the story. On page 32 one man says to another “‘Did you ever see one that black?’” In which he didn’t even call Rosaleen a she. The man was talking about her as if she were an animal. Or even like she wasn’t even there or listening. Which emphasizes a great deal of inequality. It happens less now, but it still happens where people are degraded for belief, sexuality, race, and color. And it’s horrible that it still happens today even if it’s small.
ReplyDeleteThe police have the power in the text in this case, when the white men start beating Rosaleen. The police instead of stopping the men and taking them to jail for beating, they take Rosaleen away for disrespect. As the police said on page 33 “‘You’re under arrest... Assault, theft and disturbing the peace.’” And I do understand the theft part of the arrest, but Rosaleen was assaulted first and she didn’t disturb the peace either. The men started it by remarking with a rude comment. She only defended herself and they retaliated by beating her and she was the one ending up getting arrested. This was unfair. And like Wolves of The Beyond by Kathryn Lasky, pups that were different, with a defect were left out to die. It was unjustified and cruel. The pups didn’t deserve that and neither did Rosaleen.
#sk8-14
Inequality is emphasized in The Secret Life of Bees in many ways. The most obvious injustice is seen with the treatment of African Americans. On page 31, the reader is shown how white men treat black women when one of them looks at Rosaleen and says, ““Where‘re you going, nigger?”” When Rosaleen responds that she is going to register to vote, the men comment on her being a good citizen and then say, ““Did you ever see one that black?”” Further injustice is demonstrated when Rosaleen is arrested for dumping snuff juice on the rude men’s shoes and hit in the head with a flashlight for not apologizing. This is only one scene that emphasizes inequality due to race. This is only one type of inequality emphasized in the story. Another inequality demonstrated is gender inequality. T. Ray doesn’t seem to like women. He says hurtful things to Lily about her mother. He is unkind to Lily and he forces her to kneel on grits as punishment. Inequality is woven throughout the book.
ReplyDeleteWhite men are shown to be the authority figures in The Secret Life of Bees. They are the ones who make the laws, they tell other people what to do, and they don’t have to follow the same rules as everybody else. For example, even the police officer, Mr. Gaston, admits he cannot control the men in town when he says, ““I can’t say what men riled up like that will do”” Gaston carries a gun, but would only use it to kill rattlesnakes. He threatens to pull it out and shoot Rosaleen when she doesn’t move away from the men. She ends up having a gash in her head and the cop did nothing to help her. The men clearly stick together. They are the authority figures in The Secret Life of Bees.
#musketeers23
ReplyDeleteOne of the main re-occurring themes in the story is inequality. Both women and African Americans are treated unfairly. Not only are these people called horrible names and spoken down to, but they are also physically abused. On page 7, Lily is recalling the day her mother died, “I saw him take her by the shoulders and shake her, her head bouncing back and forth.” This shows that Lily’s mother was forced to endure abuse since T-Ray believed men were more powerful. African Americans such as Rosaleen were also treated unequally. In one scene of the book, while Lily and Rosaleen are walking, a group of white men start to verbally and physically abuse Rosaleen.
In the book, the character with the most power is T-Ray. As a white male at this time period, he feels that he is in charge of everyone else. He is constantly abusing Lily, and before Deborah died, he did the same to her. One of the ways that T-Ray uses his power to physically abuse Lily is with grits. On page 24 Lily talks about the torturous abuse, “He poured a mound of grits the size of an anthill onto the pine floor. “Get over here and kneel down.”” As shown, T-Ray uses his power to do harm, instead of attempting to use it for good.
How is inequality shown today? Inequality is emphasized in the text by having the colored people being mistreated because of their color. Rosaleen got beaten up by three white men. This shows the inequality because of her color. According to page 33 it states “You’re under arrest.” He told Rosaleen” This shows that Rosaleen got in trouble for something that the three white men caused. This shows how the white men weren’t questioned and it untimely shows how inequality was shown and emphasized in the story. Rosaleen was picking a fight she could never win. It was like Rosaleen against an army of men, a battle she could never win. In Social Studies I learned about how slaves were mistreated. This is similar to Rosaleen because they were mistreated just like Rosaleen was. This is how inequality was shown in the story.
ReplyDeleteWho has the power in the Secret Life of Bees? The white men have the power in the story and are able to get Rosaleen arrested and use their power to beat her up because she wouldn’t apologize. According to page 46 it states “He hit me until the policeman said that was enough.” This shows that since the white men have power, they can do things to colored people like hurting them. Rosaleen was like a sitting duck, waiting to get pummeled. In Language Arts I learned about Anne Frank. She was Jewish and her people didn’t have the power. They were beaten just like Rosaleen. The white people had the power and they used it to hurt people.
4musketeers18
ReplyDeleteInequality. Racism. Female power. These are all themes of The Secret Life of Bees by Sue M. Kidd. Of these themes, inequality is thoroughly emphasized throughout the story. One example of inequality is when the protagonist, Lily, suggests that she and Rosaleen rent a room at a motel. Rosaleen responds by saying, “Lily, child, there ain’t gonna be any place that will take a colored women.” Even after the Civil Rights Act had been passed, African Americans were still being denied rights. They were being treated as less, they were being made feel inferior. The African Americans’ situation remind me of Atheists during the Dark Ages. In the Dark Age, anyone who refused to follow Christianity, was treated as less and abused, similar to African Americans in the early 1960s.
Power. It is what thousands of people are willing to die, lie, and kill for. In The Secret Life of Bees, power is given to Caucasians. Some Caucasians use this power to make African Americans feel inferior. For example in the book, some Caucasian men abused Rosaleen. Sue M. Kidd wrote, “Blood ran from a cut beneath her eye.” In the early 1960s there was a tangible tension between these two races. The way power was used by some Caucasians reminds me of Emperor Constantine, who used to brutally kill members of the Roman Empire who didn’t adopt Christianity.
4musketeers18
Has anyone ever told you that you didn’t belong and you got beat up for just standing there? Black people in the south have. Inequality is emphasized in the story by using racial comments and abuse. This inequality is mostly toward black people, and more specifically black women. Black people in the south at this time had very difficult lives at this time mostly because they were not seen as regular humans. They were seen as a good to buy and trade. In the story, black women got smacked, punched, spit on, and whipped. On page 33 Sue Monk Kidd says, “Blood ran down from a cut beneath her eye.” Rosaleen, a black woman, was bleeding because she was just beat up. After this happened, the men didn’t even get in trouble. This shows how inequality is emphasized in the story because a black woman got beat up, and then the people who beat her up were not in trouble. Rosa Parks was a black women who sat in the front of a bus which is usually only for white people. She stood up for her rights by not moving when told to. This is how bad the inequality was in our history.
ReplyDeleteIs there ever that one person or group of people that control you? For the black people in the south, that one group was the white males. The white males have the power and they use this power to humiliate others. They may humiliate them by calling them names in pubic, spreading rumors, or beating them up. The white guys feel good after they do this because it makes them feel like they are the kings of the world. On page 32 the white man said to Rosaleen, “Clean it off!” He is saying this to her because he thinks he can control her like a robot. Rosaleen refuses to do this because she is determined to not be controlled by the white men. In school, I heard a story of a kid who never includes some kids at recess. The kids are black and feel that is why they not included. This is humiliating to them to stand and watch like it is for Rosaleen to be told what to do.
SK8-9
You see inequality a lot in the book. the sence of "Wow something really isnt right here" is definatly put to use in this book. its empeziezed by a coupls things. firstly rosealen getting beat up and put in jail. Secondly when the store clerk says "they dont want to buy it becouse it depicts the virgin mary as a colored women". and even T-Ray is somewhat racist in a way. this is all a part of the book and i think the author really put these things into good use over the theme of the book..
ReplyDeleteIn the book its obvious that the white people have the upper hand. They arent treating any of the african americans well and they are just taking advantage of the power that they gained before the civil rights movement. some of the white people are nice (like lily and some of the others) but mostly everyone is out to get everyone at this point. the people are in an outrage over letting the colored children into their schools and they are really making a fuss about something that might be b9ig to them but really the goverment dosnt really care about.
Journal Entry
ReplyDeleteInequality is emphasized in the story by the words and actions. Lily is treated unfairly by T. Ray. Whenever Lily would get punished T.Ray used the worst punishment he could do, Martha Whites. On page 5 it says, “Martha Whites were a form of punishment only T. Ray could have dreamed up.” Lily would have to kneel on the pile of grits for as long as T. Ray wished. Lily was not very social in school. She was always alone and had no friends; students treated her differently since she didn’t go to football games, sock hops, or slumber parties. Rosaleen was unfairly because of her race. Rosaleen was an African American living in a very segregated place that gave her no rights. When Lily and Rosaleen were going to sign Rosaleen up for voting, some very opinioned men started to say stuff to Rosaleen. Rosaleen was approached by the men and they said that she can’t write her own name. On page 32 the men were saying hurtful things about Rosaleen so she did,”…Rosaleen lifted her snuff jug, which was filled with black spit, and calmly poured it across the tops of the men’s shoes… writing her name—Rosaleen Daise--- just the way she’d practiced.” In the south during this period of time it was very segregated between the blacks and whites. On page 87 it says, “But she’s white, August. “ It seemed that June ( the one who said that) didn’t want Lily there because of her skin color. The Secret Life of Bees shows the irrationality of racism by exposing black and white characters with pride and humanity. The inequality has relation to the Holocaust; Jewish people were treated differently because of their religion and who they were. During the Holocaust six million Jews died because of this.
Words and actions have the power and it is used in the text. The words that are said cause the actions which gives them power over the characters in the book. Rosaleen’s actions to the opinioned men speak more than words. Using her snuff and black spit to tell them how she felt and her ability to write. She was arrested because of this. Lily actions lead her to leave T.Ray and bail Rosaleen out of jail. On page 41 it says, “In a matter of seconds I knew exactly what I had to do ---- leave. I had to get away from T.Ray… Not to mention I had to get Rosaleen out of jail. ” This quote shows what actions Lily did in the book. Lily also wrote a letter telling T. Ray that he shouldn’t lie and not to come after her. Her actions led her far on her journey with bumps in the rode. She had the power in her because of the actions and words that she used and did. This power relates to Martin Luther King Jr. MLK used his words and actions to show his feelings to people without violence. He did this because he believed it was the right thing and needed it to be done. His actions and words led him to where he needed to be it showed everything that he had done. Words and actions have the power not only the characters.
Journal Entry
ReplyDeleteInequality is emphasized in the story by the words and actions. Lily is treated unfairly by T. Ray. Whenever Lily would get punished T.Ray used the worst punishment he could do, Martha Whites. On page 5 it says, “Martha Whites were a form of punishment only T. Ray could have dreamed up.” Lily would have to kneel on the pile of grits for as long as T. Ray wished. Lily was not very social in school. She was always alone and had no friends; students treated her differently since she didn’t go to football games, sock hops, or slumber parties. Rosaleen was unfairly because of her race. Rosaleen was an African American living in a very segregated place that gave her no rights. When Lily and Rosaleen were going to sign Rosaleen up for voting, some very opinioned men started to say stuff to Rosaleen. Rosaleen was approached by the men and they said that she can’t write her own name. On page 32 the men were saying hurtful things about Rosaleen so she did,”…Rosaleen lifted her snuff jug, which was filled with black spit, and calmly poured it across the tops of the men’s shoes… writing her name—Rosaleen Daise--- just the way she’d practiced.” In the south during this period of time it was very segregated between the blacks and whites. On page 87 it says, “But she’s white, August. “ It seemed that June ( the one who said that) didn’t want Lily there because of her skin color. The Secret Life of Bees shows the irrationality of racism by exposing black and white characters with pride and humanity. The inequality has relation to the Holocaust; Jewish people were treated differently because of their religion and who they were. During the Holocaust six million Jews died because of this.
Words and actions have the power and it is used in the text. The words that are said cause the actions which gives them power over the characters in the book. Rosaleen’s actions to the opinioned men speak more than words. Using her snuff and black spit to tell them how she felt and her ability to write. She was arrested because of this. Lily actions lead her to leave T.Ray and bail Rosaleen out of jail. On page 41 it says, “In a matter of seconds I knew exactly what I had to do ---- leave. I had to get away from T.Ray… Not to mention I had to get Rosaleen out of jail. ” This quote shows what actions Lily did in the book. Lily also wrote a letter telling T. Ray that he shouldn’t lie and not to come after her. Her actions led her far on her journey with bumps in the rode. She had the power in her because of the actions and words that she used and did. This power relates to Martin Luther King Jr. MLK used his words and actions to show his feelings to people without violence. He did this because he believed it was the right thing and needed it to be done. His actions and words led him to where he needed to be it showed everything that he had done. Words and actions have the power not only the characters.
Inequality is emphasized in this story by showing that the African Americans still are being abused and mistreated even though the Civil Rights Act was passed. Even though Rosaleen was now allowed to vote, the townspeople were not happy about it. In the story when Rosaleen and Lily are stopped by the men playing cards, the men aren't nice to Rosaleen. "Well, look what we got coming here, where're you going...?" "I'm going to register my name so I can vote, that's what." "Did you hear that? We got ourselves a model citizen." This shows that even though African Americans were allowed to vote and be citizens, there still was no equality for them.
ReplyDeleteThe power is in the hands of the white people and they use it by mistreating the African Americans. They don't treat them equally and they see African Americans as different. The white people don't give African Americans as many rights and freedoms as they should have. In the story Rosaleen was taken to jail even though she was standing up for herself. "You're under arrest. Assault, theft, and disturbing the peace.' Rosaleen had been beaten and she didn't have a say in what happened. This shows that the power belongs to the white people.
#7eleven8
The quote about the loss of a queen is relevant to the first chapter by the loss of the queen representing the loss of Lily’s mom, Deborah. Both Lily and the fellow bees don’t know what to do with themselves without their so called “queen”. In the novel, it states, “Rosaleen had worked for us since my mother died.” This quote shows that Lily has experienced the death of her mother. Although her family found someone else to care for Lily, Rosaleen will never be as good as the original queen. I have friends with step-parents after their parents either died or were divorced. They may love their step-parents, but they will always have a special slot for their perfect queen, just like Lily has for the mother.
ReplyDeleteLily is affected by the queen’s absence by her self-esteem being lowered drastically. Lily feels very poorly about herself now that she lives a life of torment under T-Ray, and is shrouded by the guilt of the faded memory of shooting her mother. Lily often makes remarks stating how she feels about herself. The author states,” You can tell which girls lack mothers by the look of their hair. My hair was constantly going off in eleven wrong directions…” This shows that Lily thinks of herself very negatively, which is most likely a result of the loss of her mother. Some people who have low self-esteem slip into depressions or take their own lives. Hopefully, Lily will boost her self-esteem before she goes down a dark path.
Please do not count the first comment as the essay, the next one is the real essay
ReplyDeleteInequality is emphasized in the story by segregation being extremely prevalent in the setting. Even with the passing of the Civil Rights Bill, people still treat African-Americans as those less than them. In the novel, it states,”…Thinking that soon [the soda fountain] would not just be for white people anymore.” This shows that there is obvious inequality between races in the time the story takes place. Fortunately, people like Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X would fight this inequality. This allowed for an equal world for everyone.
ReplyDeleteIn the novel, the white people have the power, and they use it to clearly take advantage of the African-Americans. The white citizens who are racists can do whatever they want to African-Americans and not be punished for it. Rosaleen states in the story,” ‘Two of them held me down while the other one hit me…’” Rosaleen’s words tell just how racially unequal the people were. The white men beat Rosaleen, all under the supervision of a policeman. The Little Rock 9 were nine African-American students transferring to a white school in Littlerock, Arkansas. They underwent the screaming and shouting of hundreds of racist citizens, and the screamers weren’t stopped or punished. It is a marvelous thing that these racial problems are near non-existent today.
Inequality in the book is represented by the language, acts of the people,and how some are treated. Rosaleen for example was just going on with her day walking with Lily when some white men stopped her and made fun of her for being African american. when Rosaleen responded to his remarks by spilling tobacco spit on the white mans bootsthat spelled out her name the man beat her and then later on Rosaleen was sent to jail for this.
ReplyDeletethe people that have most of the power in the text is the whites and you can tell because of the way Rosalen reacts around them. she refuses to go into store because she is scared that they will call the cops on her. even though most people treat Rosaleen differently Lily still sticks with her and never really lets her go and thats how true friends work they never leave each other no matter what.
The sky is perfect – the most beautiful shade of blue with soft, white clouds dotting the sky. Although the sun scorched the world below it, the weather was perfect. Too bad the people soaking up the sun weren’t. People who were racist to other races and skin colors, arrogant, and perfect examples of the inequality displayed in this book. On page 35, it states, “the dealer (white) lifted the flashlight over his head, then down, smashing it into Rosaleen’s forehead. She dropped down to her knees. I don’t remember screaming, but the next thing I knew, Mr. Gaston (white policeman) had his hand clamped over my mouth.” This displays how terribly a white, “mature,” man is treating an innocent, black woman. All Rosaleen wanted to do was casually pass through town, and a conceited white man had to cause trouble, leading up to the arrest of Rosaleen. Although Rosaleen didn’t deserve to be arrested, once she was, she was beat up once again. And the policeman didn’t even try to help her. This shows us that it was okay for people to treat others of a different race like dirt in this time, and the racist peoples were the ones who were off the hook and always innocent. It was even okay for a policeman to stand there and watch a black women be beat up. What type of sick minded town are people living in? One that’s full of inequality and racist remarks/actions.
ReplyDeleteUnderneath the smiling sun also lie the people with power – anyone with the skin color of white. It’s questionable enough to wonder why THEY have all the power, but it’s even more questionable as to why they use their power so terribly. On page 38, it states, “what I mean is, I wouldn’t be surprised if he flat out- killed her.” He’s referring to a white man killing a black woman. How terrible is it, that white people have so much “power,” and they use it to harm others of a different race. And in these times, that’s okay. The people with the power only use it to hurt others and bring down other’s happiness. So the sun may be shining bright, but perhaps the world underneath it isn't.
Inequality is shown in this book even when it takes place after the Civil Rights Act. It is seen when the book mentions an African American tries to vote but was beaten. The same thing happened to Rosaleen when the three racists were beating her and the cop wasn't doing anything but making things worse! Once T-Ray broke it up Rosaleen was sent to jail while the racists wait for an apology from her. Later on in the story she was beaten again then sent to the hospital.
ReplyDeleteT-Ray had the power since he was the one who broke up the fight when the racists were beating Rosaleen. When Lily tried to defend Rosaleen Lily was ordered back to the car by T-Ray. The racists still wanted to beat Rosaleen but T-Ray was the one who ordered them to calm down. When Mr. Gaston drove Rosaleen away T-Ray drove Lily home, plotting the biggest punishment for Lily.
All throughout 1960’s America’s newspaper headlines were flooded with events occurring with the civil rights movement. The papers in the northern part of the country seemed to be unbiased while the new headlines in the south were incredibly biased and felt that the white race was superior compared to the African American race. This caused many in citizens to take sides, equality for all or white supremacy. In the book The Secret Life of Bees, inequality is a big theme in the book. Inequality is portrayed in the book because Rosaleen doesn’t have the freedoms white people have because she is African American. On page 60, the text states “Lily, child, there ain’t gonna be any place that will take a colored woman. This shows that because Rosaleen is African American she will not be able to get a room in a motel while Lily, being white could. If Lily and Rosaleen needed a room now in the US they would get it without any problem. That would happen because America made a turn for the better and doesn’t have inequality issues today.
ReplyDeleteThe Freedom Riders, a group of white and black college students who were braver than all the lions in the world put together. These students were fighting for racial equality. In the book The Secret Life of Bees, white males have all the power in society. The book shows this because on page 35 the text states “the dealer lifted the flashlight over his head, then down, smashing it into Rosaleen’s forehead.” At that time Rosaleen was with a police officer. The officer did nothing not only because Rosaleen was African American, but because the man who hit her was white. Just like the Rosaleen the Freedom Riders were beaten brutally. This was all ok because the people who injured the Riders and Rosaleen were white.
Inequality is emphasized in the story because people treat Rosaleen badly since she is African American. On page 32 it says, “’Did you ever see one that black?’ said the dealer.
ReplyDeleteAnd the man with his combed-black hair said, ‘No, and I ain’t seen one that big either.’” This shows that the men were being very mean to Rosaleen just because of her race. She would not be treated this way if she were white. This can relate to the picture of Elizabeth Eckford and Hazel Bryan. Hazel was screaming and yelling mean things to Elizabeth only because she was African American just like the men were saying mean things to Rosaleen because she is African American.
In the book, the white people have the power. Some of them use it in the worst ways possible. On page 46, Rosaleen says, “’Two of them held me by the arms while the other one hit me-the one with the flashlight. He said, ‘Nigger, you say you’re sorry.’ When I didn’t, he came at me. He hit me till the policeman said that was enough.’” This explains that white people had much more power than the colored people. Also the policeman was just standing there and doing nothing, which shows how this type of behavior by white men was normal. I predict that because of these surroundings, an African American who upsets those men again might even be killed. Rosaleen might have been killed if the policeman hadn’t stopped the men.
South Carolina, a state known for its racism and inequality among the citizens even after the Civil Rights laws became active. In the book, The Secret Life of Bees, throughout the story there are moments of racism which really emphasizes how it actually was around the 1960s. An example of racism in the book would be when Rosaleen gets beat up by three Caucasian men when they were the ones who started the fight by taunting her with mean comments. All Rosaleen wanted to do was register to vote but she couldn’t even because an event of inequality stands in her way. On page 31, one of the men say “Well, look what we got coming here.” This quote was then followed by others, but the other quotes were more of racist remarks than anything else. To top off this scenario, Rosaleen gets arrested because the sheriff was a racist and all the men who did the taunting don’t even get a warning. The reason this event emphasizes inequality the best is because around the 1960s time period, events like this happen. Even today, there is hate groups that dislike the opposite skin color so much that they will do whatever it takes to make their life miserable just like how the three men created a problem for Rosaleen which was jail time.
ReplyDeleteWhy can’t people just realize that there shouldn’t be a dominate race over all the others because that’s not beneficial for most of the people. In the text of The Secret Life of Bees, there was one race that ruled above another in South Carolina and they used this power like evil villains. The dominate race in the story were the Caucasians and the target who had to feel their wrath would be all the African American citizens. The Caucasians used this power for immoral things towards the opposing race. Rosaleen ran into the three men in town who pulled her aside to taunt her about her skin color. They were spitting out harsh remarks and wouldn’t stop. So once Rosaleen had enough of it she took her tobacco juice and poured it all over their fancy and elegant shoes. After this, Rosaleen couldn’t see the light of day. She was beat up by the three men without anyone doing anything to help her including Lily, all Lily did was told her to say sorry. But if you were in Rosaleen’s shoes, you wouldn’t want to say sorry after what these men have done to you because they don’t deserve it. Later, the sheriff showed up but only to arrest Rosaleen not any of the Caucasian men. This was because the sheriff was a racist and didn’t even give her a chance to state her side of the story but was immediately thrown to jail. On page 38, T-Ray says to Lily, “What I mean is, I wouldn’t be surprised if he flat-out killed her.” This quote means these Caucasian men would have a fun time harming the opposing skin to the end just because they can with their power even though there is no reason to dislike people different from you. Today’s world is much different in the U.S.A. because there is no dominate race, gender, or class. Everyone is now equal today compared to back than because citizens finally realized that although every person is different, all people should be treated with equality.
“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.” Martin Luther King Jr. quoted this in his uproar against inequality and segregation in the U.S. In his uprising for freedom and equality he achieved success by reducing inequalities because of race. In this novel however, inequality is emphasized greatly throughout the book. To begin inequality is obliviously shown early in the book when Rosaleen goes to register to vote and the racists of the town pick a fight and beat her up later when she’s in jail. “It seemed like I was now thinking of Zach forty minutes out of every hour, Zach, who was an impossibility.” The unequal part about this scene is how Lily believes that Zach is an impossibility and this is because he is black and she is white. Also, the fact that June stopped playing the music when Lily went to touch the heart of Our Lady of Chains because she’s white is an opposite version of the inequality. All of the inequality shown throughout this novel so far is like a war between two nations, except it’s with races instead. All of this inequality is very similar to the inequality of men and women in certain areas of life such as wages, which many women are now fighting for equal wages.
ReplyDeleteThroughout the Civil Rights movement, the white people were trying to make themselves seem like higher being than people who were black. This is different than is shown throughout the Secret Life of Bees, which in the Boatwright house happens to be the black people are in control and sort of discriminating against Lily in subtle ways. “Drawing it back, I looked around me, and it was like seeing everything through a train’s thick window. A blur passed before me. A moving wave of color. I am not one of you, I thought.” This quote is how Lily felt as she extended her hand to touch Our Lady of Chains heart and then June stopped playing the music, singling and leaving Lily feeling like she’s being singled out and discriminated against. Lily realizes that she is different than the rest of them, and she truly feels like she doesn’t fit in there, like a lemon doesn’t go with a steak dinner. The racist use of power that happened to be reversed in Lily’s scenario is used often by some police as racial profiling when they think that a black person is a criminal.
As the sweat exudes from their foreheads, the sun is striking a powerful ray of calidity upon their bodies. Rosaleen is breathing hard while Lily limps by her side. They were headed to town for Rosaleen to register her name so that she would be eligible to vote. Back then, Rosaleen and other people of her race were not allowed to vote, and all of the people from different races would go against them because of their dark skin tone. But soon when they had entered town, were stopped by three white males’ playing cards. “Well, look what we got coming here.” As Rosaleen and Lily try to ignore the men. “Where’re you going, nigger?” There’s much inequality in this story which affects Rosaleen and Lily. For example, on their way to town they decided to stop at the church to rest and cool off, but when Brother Gerald answered the door it was clear to Lily and Brother Gerald that she was breaking a rule. Rosaleen was not allowed to enter the church. Rosaleen can’t go into many indoor environments because of the inequality. Since Lily and Rosaleen are the main character, and are different but so close there is a big emphasis on inequality. I recently read an article on inequality today and it stated “Blacks are still far behind on wages, jobs, and investment gains.” So inequality is still active with a wealth gap. Although it is not as serious as it used to be in the story, there is still a gap. I think that people are people and we should all be equal, and this wealth gap should be closed.
ReplyDeletePower is key when it comes to inequality, because if you have no power you’re in trouble. In this part of the story it’s all about who has the power, the one in charge controlling the situation. The white males have the power against Rosaleen. They use this advantage to get into Rosaleen’s business, push her around, and have her put straight into jail. Yes, she poured her black spit onto their shoes, but she wasn’t trying to start a commotion, just trying to do what she came to do, which was never accomplished. “They lunged at her, and everything started to spin.” This relates to Rosa Parks when she didn’t give up her seat on the bus. Rosaleen would not apologize for what she did to the men’s shoes and Rosa did not move her spot on the bus for that man. Both Rosaleen and Rosa were standing up to these men, and sticking to what they believed was right. That people should be equal and not treated differently than others. I think that they were doing the right thing. They showed people that they are just like everyone else and should not be pushed around or told what to do by others. They were both arrested but proved their point very clearly others.
Inequality is emphasized in numerous ways throughout the story. There was the story about the guy who was killed for registering to vote. The entire “Black Wing” of the hospital Rosaleen was in was described as being as dingy as a forgotten boat in an alligator infested swap. However, the most prominent and perhaps most important act of inequality was on page 32 and page 33. This was when Rosaleen spilled her snuff on the three white men after they provoked her, and then Rosaleen got arrested. The situation is relatable to somebody getting arrested for being robbed. Sadly, this seemed like a very common thing back then, and it still might happen in some third world countries. Thankfully, I haven’t heard anything like this happening recently, which is at least good news.
ReplyDeleteIn The Secret Life of Bees, it is easily the white people who have the power. They use the power that they have to improve their name, stop (or at least, TRY to stop) black people from becoming equal, and to just be really mean in general. Pages 32 and 33 showed how the three white men forced Rosaleen to apologize even though they provoked her. They were protecting their name. They tried to stop black people from getting their rights by not allowing them to vote. The part when they killed the guy for trying to vote was just plain cruel. Even though the civil war ended around mid-1800s to get a freedom from slavery, Black people did not get full rights until about a century later. If it took us 100 years to realize that the color of your skin doesn’t make you any more or less human, we can only feel lucky that we are not all drastically different.
Inequality in the story is very big. It ranges from gender to class inequalities. One inequality that is major in the plot is the inequality of race. Yes slavery has ended, as implied by the year in the book “summer of 1964”, but as history showed us, segregation soon followed. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 ended all state and local laws requiring segregation. Unfortunately this did not mean the end of hatred. The inequality of race is easily seen with passages such as “Your black @$$ is going to apologize one way or the other” and “Two of them held me by the arms while the other one hit me- the one with the flashlight.” These are said after Rosaleen a black, god mother in a sense, was arrested. Do to the immense racialism still lingering the white folks were able to beat Rosaleen.
ReplyDeleteThe white folk in this story have a vast majority of power. In text “Two of them held me by the arms while the other one hit me- the one with the flashlight.” The white men had power. They got away with the unjust act of beating Rosaleen. Also in passage “She dumped snuff juice on three white men!” shows that Rosaleen had obviously shifted the balance of control, but not for long it was clear right after that the white man was back in control when the book says “Clean it off!” of course Rosaleen being hope for herself didn’t, then later proceeded to get arrested, by a white man.
Week 2: Option C Inequality:
ReplyDeleteFor many years, inequality has been a big issue. Most of the negative attention was brought towards black people. In the book “The Secret Life of Bees”, inequality is emphasized a lot. One way inequality is emphasized was when Rosaleen went into town with Lily so that she could register herself to vote. Page 27, Lily remembered, “A man in Mississippi was killed for registering to vote.” While in town, Rosaleen and Lily encounter 3 white men. The men began calling Rosaleen rude names and throwing rude comments at her. They repeated, “I’ve never seen one that black, and big before.” The men wound up beating Rosaleen up because she poured the black spit from a can onto the men’s shoes. This displays inequality because they didn’t treat her like a regular woman. They called her various names and made fun of her. Since Rosaleen was a different color then they were they treated her differently and less important than a white person. Along with that, once Rosaleen was arrested for assault, theft, and disturbing the peace she eventually was forced to apologize and then hit on the head with a flashlight. They treated her so terribly, just expecting an apology from a black woman. The men did not consider her equal to them, and used violence as a threat. Since that happened, this could have led to the men eventually killing Rosaleen if she continued to refuse to apologize. She also could have gotten severely hurt which could possibly lead to T-Ray having to get a new house maid. This could affect Lily because now the only person she would have was her father who didn’t like her very much.
While walking in town Rosaleen and Lily come across three white men. The men begin to call Rosaleen names because of her skin color, and call out rude comments. I think even though the white men had more of an effect Rosaleen, Rosaleen had the power. Rosaleen had the power because she had the strength and courage to stand up to the three men and actually poor black liquid on their shoes. It takes a lot of courage to do that to someone, picturing the outcome and what could possibly happen to you. She could have been beaten up so badly she could have died. She had a lot of bravery to back talk the men and stand up for herself in a situation like that. She had the power to stand up for herself in front of white men and used something she had to show them that she’s strong enough and she’s not dumb (as they claimed). I think this is a good motto to live by because practically in this world, its every man for himself and you have to be able to fight your fears and stand up for yourself as well as be courageous and brave. Rosaleen should be admired for her actions because she had the courage to do that and bravery to be able to stand up for herself and face the men.
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Inequality is emphasized in this story through Rosaleen, an African worker on T-ray’s farm. On page 35, paragraph 9 it states, “That was when the dealer lifted the flashlight over his head, then down, smashing into Rosaleen’s forehead.” Rosaleen is the African peach farm worker that T-ray picked to act as Lily’s mom. She is confident and stands up to three racists in a store that are calling her names by pouring spit onto their shoes. As an effect of this, she is beaten by them with a flashlight as a police officer watches and is thrown in jail when the cops probably wouldn’t have even been called if she was white. As an effect of this, Lily breaks Rosaleen out of the hospital because the 3 racists are going to kill her if she doesn’t apologize.
ReplyDeleteWhite people have the power and they use it abusively in the 1960’s. On page 5, paragraph 1, the police officer says,” She was taken to the hospital for stitches, ‘she fell and hit her head’”. The white people have all the power in the 1960’s and even the cop who has more power, let the dealer give Rosaleen a concussion, by beating her for a second time all because she poured spit on their shoes. In addition to this, the police officer lied about Rosaleen saying “she fell and hit her head” to cover up what he knew was wrong. In September 2005, just after Katrina hit New Orleans, there were 2 shootings by police offices on a Louisiana Bridge. In 2011, it was determined that the police officers obstructed justice by coming up with a conspiracy of shots being fired in self-defense, altering police records, and planting a gun. The police officers in both of these stories covered up something they knew was wrong.
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