Significant Items and motifs in the Secret Life of Bees

A motif is a literary technique that consists of a repeated element that has symbolic significance to a literary work. Sometimes, a motif is a recurring image. Other times, it's a repeated word, phrase, or topic expressed in language. A motif can be a recurring situation or action.

One of the most obvious motifs in The Secret Life of Bees is bees! They are mentioned throughout the novel, they are even on the cover of the book. But what do the bees have to do with the story?

"The men of the experiment are like the ant; they only collect and use. But the bee…gathers its materials from the flowers of the garden and of the field but transforms and digests it by a power of its own."

--Leonardo da Vinci

Motifs in the Secret Life of Bees

Bees serve as Lily’s undeclared guides throughout the novel. In the beginning, the bees fly to her room to communicate the message that she should go off on her own and leave T. Ray’s house. When she started leaving, where was she headed? She was headed to Tiburon because of the honey label she found in her mother’s belongings. And that’s where she found out the truth about her mother. In Tiburon, Lily agrees to work with the Boatwright sisters instead of paying rent, and the job she accepts to do is beekeeping. She lives in the honey house and when August asks Lily what she loves, she lists bees close to the top of her list. Bees suggest rebirth, exploration, sexual maturation, and personal growth, which are things that Lily has gone through. They guide Lily, accompany her, and drive her forward.

For every important decision Lily makes in the novel, bees, honey and other things relating to bees play a role. From when she figures out that she is in love with Zach, when she licks honey off his finger, to realizing she loves August, when she lets the bees rest on her body. Lily discovers that the “secret life of bees” is similar to her own life. Their diligent care for their mother, their continuous ability to keep going in work, and their ability to survive inspire Lily. Finally, their dependency on an all-female community resembles her own reliance.

The repetition of bees in the Secret Life of Bees is an intentional act the author has done to further explain and symbolize Lily’s life and her experiences.

Tune in for the next blog :)

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References:

“The Secret Life of Bees: Motifs | SparkNotes.” SparkNotes, www.sparknotes.com, https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/secretbees/motifs/. Accessed 6 June 2022.