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The essay below is the best work I have ever written. I did not procrastinate and spent two weeks writing this.  I actually enjoyed reading the book, because I got to choose what to read. This was written my junior year for APLAC and I never thought I would be able write something that could score me so high because I struggled so hard writing essays for this class. This reflects my hard work and my dedication to becoming better at writing.

Katherine Li

Mr. Richmond

AP Language and Composition, Period 5

25 May 2017

Black Honey

Sue Monk Kidd’s novel The Secret Life of Bees dates back to the historic Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. Kidd is a white author who grew up in the southern part of the United States, surrounded by many African Americans. The Civil Rights Movement was a dark part of the country’s past, when black people suffered immensely from racial segregation. Kidd vividly remembers “the summer of 1964 with its voter registration drives, boiling racial tensions, and the erupting awareness of the cruelty of racism” (Sue Monk Kidd). Kidd uses the segregationist setting and predominantly African American characters to emphasize the tensions that black people suffered.

Kidd demonstrates the cruel world of the 1960s mainly by showing the interactions between the white and black characters of the novel. Lily Melissa Owens is a fourteen-year-old girl who lives in Southern Carolina with Rosaleen and her father, T-Ray. Lily was only four at the time when her mother died so unexpectedly. Her father’s abuse and neglectfulness makes Lily assume that T-Ray murdered her mother Deborah, although it was Lily who is guilty. Rosaleen is the black servant of the Owens’ and takes care of Lily. Rosaleen’s ignorance and near-deafness ears causes Rosaleen to make foolish decisions. On the way to Tourborn, Lily discovers the Boatwrights: August, June, and May. August is the oldest in the family, and gives Lily motherly love. May is the youngest, and she struggles with depression due to her twin sister’s suicide. Among the Boatwrights, June has the most trouble accepting Lily into the family due to her race. The three sisters work together in a honey making business. Their family friend Zach helps them; Lily later falls in love with him, despite the racial divide.

The story begins in the Owens’ small home in South Carolina. After Rosaleen sees President Johnson on television signing the Civil Rights Act, she and Lily walk to town so that Rosaleen can register to vote. On the way, they encounter three racist men, of which Franklin Posey is the most dangerous. Rosaleen foolishly starts a fight with them, and both girls are eventually jailed. T-Ray picks Lily up from the police station and scolds her for her foolish behavior, saying hurtful things about how Lily’s mother “ran off and left” (39). When Lily discovers that the bees she collected in her jar have escaped, she is inspired to escape from her life with T-Ray. Before leaving the city, she attempts to rescue Rosaleen, who resides in the emergency room after having been traumatically beaten by the same white men. The two successfully escape from the hospital and hitchhike their way to Tiburon. In Tiburon, they discover a jar of honey with a picture of Black Mary, which reminds Lily of her mother. This jar leads the pair to the Boatwright’s house, where her mother had previously stayed. August takes them in; however, when the Boatwrights question Lily and Rosaleen about their reasons for coming to their house in Tiburon, Lily lies about her family out of fear of being evicted. Little does Lily know, August recognizes her as her Deborah’s daughter. After living at the Boatwright’s house for several months, Lily comes to develop a different perspective of the black community.

During the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s, many black people suffered tremendously from the violent acts of the white population. White people partook in all types of vicious, horrendous acts, including the use of tear gas and beating African Americans with bats. Paula Eckard believes that the relationship among “Rosaleen, the Boatwright sisters, the Daughter of Mary, and Our Lady of Chains demonstrate[s]… that black characters can enhance the goals and qualities of white characters” (Eckard 127). In this time period, white people were brainwashed to believe in their own racial superiority, causing them to treat the black population like slaves. For example, when Rosaleen does not apologize to the white men, she is assaulted and has to be taken to the emergency room. Physical abuse would be considered illegal, but since the situation involved white men attacking an African American woman, the police excuse her beating as “a fall and hit” to the head (44). Lily, as a friend to Rosaleen, is tremendously impacted by this scene, as she worries that Rosaleen might even be killed by the same white men. White people often fail to see the black person’s perspective, and typically are unaware about these type of immoral issues happening among the blacks. Through this difficult situation, Lily’s personality becomes more caring. When Lily learns that Franklin Posey might kill Rosaleen, her “arms felt weak in their sockets” (38). Terrified, she helps Rosaleen escape from the hospital in order to help her gain freedom and to start a new life. As Lily and Rosaleen move into the Boatwright’s house, “Lily’s immersion in their world allows her . . . to shift her egoistic perspective to one that recognizes the humanity of others” (Brown 11). By associating with many other black people, Lily comes to recognize the unfairness of the racial divides in her current society. She discovers that many of the beliefs held by white people about the black race are just false notions. Black people are just as human as white people, and everyone deserves justice. Lily would not have been able to recognize this prejudice if she was still stuck in her old home, back in the white community. For example, Lily would not be able to view black people as handsome, something she begins to see when she falls in love with Zach. In her community, “they made fun of colored people’s lips and noses,” which Lily “laugh[ed] . . . hoping to fit in” (116). A community tremendously impacts the development of a person. In order to fit in, Lily believed the false notion that all black people are “ugly.” But, as she carefully examines Zach, she is “shocked over him being handsome” (116). By interacting with many other black people in the new community, she discovers that black people can be just as handsome as white people.

Lily’s and Rosaleen’s names symbolize the change they go through from living with a white household to a black household. Their names are also those of flowers, and flowers have a symbiotic relationship with bees, in which flowers depend on bees for pollination and bees depend on flowers for nectar. The action of the bees swarming into Lily’s “bedroom create[s] a metaphor for her restless desire for change and to locate her dead mother” (Eckard 123). However, it not only represents her desire to find her mother, but also her need to escape her current life with T-Ray. The bees are symbolic “of the soul, of death and rebirth” (Sue Monk Kidd). By moving to Tiburon, Lily and Rosaleen are able to start a new life. They develop a close relationship with June, August, and May, which influences Lily to discover a new perspective of the black community. The name of the Boatwright sisters are also the names of the spring months. Lily’s and Rosaleen’s new life blooms with the help of the sisters, similar to the blooming of flowers in spring. The bees help them “restore order and harmony” (Simhon). Lily’s and Rosaleen’s life goes from a chaotic mess to a new start; they are able to escape the life of pressure from T-Ray and Posey. Lily no longer has to worry about her abusive father and Rosaleen is officially free from the dangerous white men.

Kidd uses the death of Deborah to represent the dangers that Lily goes through to highlight the discrimination of women and men, similar to what black people experienced with whites. Mothers play an important role throughout a child’s life, especially for daughters. Daughters need mothers for female advice in order to assimilate a feminine role. A mother’s actions “programs her daughter with attitudes that affect her for the rest of her life” (Sussman). Lily is unable to connect to T-Ray, and even has some difficulty connecting to Rosaleen. Although Rosaleen has a special relationship with Lily, she lacks intelligence and care for her feminine appearance. With no one to look up to, Deborah’s death “jeopardizes Lily’s chances of developing a female identity” (Eckard 125). Without her mother’s advice, she “needed all the help that fashion could give” and desperately required help with her hair that is in “a nest of cowlicks” (8-9). Lily is unable to succeed in these tasks, which resulted in the development of insecurities. She describes herself as an unattractive female, who has been raised as an animal. Having low esteem in regards to her appearance and actions would be major disadvantage, especially in this time period. The world was a mess, and men could easily take advantage of their superiority to abuse women, similarly to how white people oppressively misuse their power to disadvantage African Americans. Lily could develop anxiety issues, which can eventually lead to depression. Due to an unsuccessful marriage, Lily’s mother struggled with depression and “had gotten so thin and had these dark circles under her eyes” (251). As Lily falls in love with Zach, she is unable to attain advice from her mother. Without her mother’s guidance, Lily can possibly repeat the same mistakes as her relationship grows with Zach.

Out of all the literary books I have read this year, this book was by far my favorite. What made me choose this book was Lily’s interesting background: her dead mother and abusive father. I feel like I have developed a close relationship with the characters. August Boatwright is my favorite character. She is very loving, patient, and generous to Lily, despite her color. Throughout the story, the majority of the disputes all have one similarity: racial segregation. I have gained a better understanding of why black people might also be harsh on whites. For example, I understood June being so difficult on Lily. Racial divides are truly horrendous and the amount of trouble that black people went through infuriates me. Everyone should be respected and treated equally regardless of race, color, or any type of characteristic. The one thing I did not like about this book was its ending. T-Ray coming back was an exciting moment, but he left without taking Lily; I felt that this needed a better explanation. Although T-Ray became obsessive towards finding her after his peach business failed due to the commotion in the town about Lily’s departure, he still allows August to take care of her.

Kidd’s use of the segregationist setting and African American characters emphasizes the tensions that black people suffered. Discrimination upon a large community is something that no one should go through. Not only did African Americans experience segregation, but so did women, gays, disabled, and many other different colored people. Kidd is able to send a message to her audience: society should accept everyone despite their differences.

Works Cited

Brown, Rosellen. Rev. of The Secret Life of Bees, by Sue Monk Kidd. Honey Child 19.7 (Apr. 2002): 11. JSTOR. Web. 19 May 2017.

Eckard, Paula. “Crossing Racial Boundaries in The Secret Life of Bees.” The South Carolina Review. 45.3 (2013): 123-125. EBSCOhost. Web. 19 May 2017.

Kidd, Sue Monk. The Secret Life of Bees. London: Tinder, 2015. Print.

Sussman, Jaqueline Lapa. "How Mothers Impact Their Daughters’ Self-Image." Total Health Magazine. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 May 2017.

Simhon, Rachel. "Honey Is the Balm." The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group, 24 Feb. 2002. Web. 17 May 2017.

Sue Monk Kidd. Personal Interview. Web. 20 May 2017.

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[Verse 1]

I gave all my oxygen to people that could breathe

I gave away my money and now we don't even speak

I drove miles and miles, but would you do the same for me?

Oh, honestly?

Offered off my shoulder just for you to cry upon

Gave you constant shelter and a bed to keep you warm

They gave me the heartache and in return I gave a song

It goes on and on

[Chorus]

Life can get you down so I just numb the way it feels

I drown it with a drink and out-of-date prescription pills

And all the ones that love me they just left me on the shelf

No farewell

So before I save someone else, I've got to save myself

[Verse 2]

I gave you all my energy and I took away your pain

'Cause human beings are destined to radiate or drain

What line do we stand upon, 'cause from here it looks the same

And only scars remain

[Chorus]

Life can get you down so I just numb the way it feels

I drown it with a drink and out-of-date prescription pills

And all the ones that love me they just left me on the shelf

No farewell

So before I save someone else, I've got to save myself

[Verse 3]

But if I don't

Then I'll go back

To where I'm rescuing a stranger

Just because they needed saving just like that

Oh, I'm here again

Between the devil and the danger

But I guess it's just my nature

My dad was wrong

'Cause I'm not like my mum

'Cause she'd just smile and I'm complaining in a song

But it helps

So before I save someone else

I've got to save myself

[Chorus]

Life can get you down so I just numb the way it feels

I drown it with a drink and out-of-date prescription pills

And all the ones that love me they just left me on the shelf

No farewell

So before I save someone else, I've got to save myself

And before I blame someone else, I've got to save myself

And before I love someone else, I've got to love myself

This song reflects me the most because I feel like I have surrounded myself by a lot of negative people all my life up until senior year. I am actually still trying to prevent more negative people to my life, but it is really hard to say goodbye to him just because I have been friends with them for so long. However, I have grown a lot since freshman year, I have learned that a lot of people who want to be friends with you just want to take advantage of you. A lot of this happens at lynbrook primarily because we are such a competitive school. People want to be friends with you so they can get an A in the class. After four years of this, I am completely sick of this type of environment. One of my goals before senior year is to cut out all the negative people in my life. I want to focus on making myself happy. I no longer want to tire myself on helping other people when they refuse to do the same to me. A lot of people will not return the amount of care and time you put for them. They will not be there for you when you need them. This song relates to me so much. Like the lyrics, I cannot blame myself for relying on people to help me. It was my fault for thinking that at some point they would help me in return. And after so much reflection out of my four years of high school, I have finally realized who are my real friends. Real friends are there for you when you are feeling down as well. They will put in either an equal or even greater amount of time to making sure you are okay. I hope that once I am in college that I find more people who actually care. It is tough to find these kind of people at Lynbrook simply because the environment is built like that. Everyone is trying to find a way to get that high grade to impress to colleges. I cannot blame Lynbrook for this because honestly that is just how life is. I have learned to accept the way people act and I am grateful to begin a new life with new friends at the college I will be going to.

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Start and end my first year of JV Basketball (1).png

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Dear Best Friend,

I am incredibly lucky to have a friend like you. I know for a fact that we will continue to  have a strong friendship even though you are going to Illinois whereas I’ll be in California. If we can handle being best friends without seeing each other everyday because we go to two different schools, we can do the same in college. It’s gonna be harder with college and the fact that you are also also moving to Los Angeles. Writing this is making me really upset knowing that one year from now, life is going to be extremely different. You have been my friend for so long, and it really sucks to know that things might change. I hope that we will actually be able to host each other over winter or summer breaks. And I also hope that I will be able to explore Chicago with you! Thank you for always being there by my side during my toughest times. Thank you for helping me get through basketball, SATs, classes, and my unnecessary stress. I rely on you so much and I do not know what I would have done if you were never there for me. Thank you for never refusing to help me, even when you were incredibly busy with whatever test(s) you had the next day. Thank you for being my studying partner. You made studying so much more fun by just being by my side and helping me with whatever questions I had. I did not know I was capable of studying for eight hours straight at a coffee shop until I studied with you. I would not be able to be as successful as I am today if you were not there to motivate me. I know I may be extremely annoying at times because I complain so much. But even at times like these you are still there to listen to me. You know when I am incredibly stressed. You know when I am having a hard time. You understand me the most. And sometimes, I think you know me more than I know myself. I wish you the best of luck with your career path and I know for a fact that you are going to be killing it at Northwestern University.

Your Best Friend,
Katherine Li

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Dear Freshman Self,

I know that you enjoy having friends that you can rely on, but just know that not everyone is trustworthy. Some people will choose to not help you, and will only care for themselves. If you know or suspect anyone being a bad friend to you, cut them out before it is too late. I know you like helping people, but some people will make you feel incredibly guilty if you ask for some help back. Do not help those people. They are a waste of your time. Basketball freshman year is going to be the best season you will ever have. But every year is going to grow worse, especially when you start varsity. Know that coach is incredibly blind, and accept the fact that you cannot handle her. She will forever be unfair. Quit your senior year. Senior night would be something nice to experience, but know that even then coach will never be fair. Do not expect to her change. The only good thing you will get out of this is exercise. Even friendships with your teammates will break. Some people that you thought will be there for you won’t be. And don’t be upset that they won’t be there for you, because that’s life. There’s only a single digit number of friends that you can rely on. But, you can definitely rely on family. Family will always be there for you no matter what. One last thing. Do not take too many APs or honors because you want to be better or just as good as your brother. Also, take APLAC! You will get a really good teacher, and you will be extremely surprised by how much your writing will improve. Lynbrook and SATs will be extremely stressful and painful, but know that your end result is going to be great as long as you know you tried your best! I know, SATs are really annoying, but all of this will end fast. You will stress a lot, but know that whichever college you end up at does not matter that much. You will be happy and you will get through all of this. Try to not to stress :)

Sincerely,

You

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The most meaningful novel I have read in the past four years of high school is definitely Of Mice and Men  by John Steinbeck. I connected a lot to this novel and I had so much fun reading this book. I think the one person that impacted me most to liking this novel so much is Mr. Seike. Everytime I read this book with my freshman literature class, I had so much fun. I grew on the characters, and I loved the relationship of George and Lennie. George knows that his life would be so much better without Lennie by his side. Despite this, he continues to take care of Lennie, and they both share the same dream of having a wonderful farm that they both would own together. I love books that talk about close relationships, because I think it is important to have a good relationship with family and friends. They are the people who impact you the most in life. Without all the support that comes out of your loved ones, there are a lot of things that we would not be able to do. And reading novels like these, are very touching and I connect a lot to the the characters. George treats Lennie like family, and I am extremely touched by how he refuses to leave Lennie even though he is someone that is incredibly hard to take care of. I hope to find a friend or be a friend like George. He is incredible for his loyalty to Lennie. What is most inspirational about their relationship is that they are not even related. They do so much together: work, travel, and dream. It is very touching knowing that even in their dreams, they stick together. Lennie is dangerous and they keep getting fired from their jobs because of Lennie’s accidents. Despite this, George make sures that they escape together and move onto their next location. Their friendship inspires me, and I hope that I can not only be a friend like George, but also be one like him. I remember a lot about this book, and remember being terribly upset at the author when he decided to end Lennie’s life.

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Shoes: White Slip on Vans
Website: Youtube
Makeup Palette: Anastasia Soft Glam
Clothing Store: Brandy Melville
Grocery Store: Trader Joes
Food: Burritos!
App: Snapchat
Color: Periwinkle
Coffee Shop: Philz Coffee
Snack: Sour Cream and Onion Corn puffs

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Next year I will be attending Santa Clara University, or another college if they accept me off the waitlist, to study computer science. If possible, I will attempt to minor or double major in computer science and mathematics, so I can graduate undergraduate college with a dual major. This may be difficult to achieve, but if it is possible with my abilities, I will try my hardest to attain this goal. I want to get my money’s worth in my education that my parents have been saving to make sure I can be able to afford attending college. By the middle of college, I hope that I will have completely removed myself from all the negative people in my life. I want to be content, and surround myself with people who will be of positive influence. If I do get a boyfriend and begin a serious relationship with someone, I hope to not be distracted and let it get in the way of my future. My relationship will not determine how I search for my internships and my job. I cannot rely on someone else for my future, except myself. After graduating college and getting my bachelor’s, I will move to Irvine, San Diego, or Seattle to work under a tech company. I will not be going to graduate school unless my boss promises a much higher wage if I went. I hope to be married by the age of twenty eight and have two kids before the age of thirty four. My husband will probably be an engineer as well, and maybe more successful than me. By the time our oldest child is seven, we will have bought a house, that is definitely not near the areas of Lynbrook or Monta Vista. And by this time, I hope that I can no longer rely on my parents for financial help. Instead of asking for help, I want to be the one who can help them back. I hope my children do not have to go through the same amount of torture that Lynbrook has put me through. I want to be able to provide them with as much resources as possible, to ensure that they will be successful in the future. I want to be a close family, and I want to make sure my kids and husband can rely on me to help them.