Examples Of Prejudice In The Secret Life Of Bees

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Pages: 7

Prejudice is very common in America during the 1960s. In the novel, The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd, prejudice is examined through numerous examples within the story. Rosaleen is a black woman who experiences racial prejudice throughout her entire life. August and April Boatwright are both victims of race based prejudice in their lives. Zach Taylor is a junior in high school and he experiences racial prejudice as well. Prejudice is caused by unfair social mores and results in pain, hurt, and anger. Rosaleen Daise is a black woman who, through no fault of her own, is treated like dirt by prejudiced people all her life because of the colour of her skin. Rosaleen works as a maid and a nanny for the protagonist, Lily, and grows close to Lily as a result. After the signing of the Civil …show more content…
The story is set around a time when even the churches are segregated. When Rosaleen and Lily sit down in the church, the minister at the church, Brother Gerald, saw them. He first acknowledges Lily and says hello to her. When he sees Rosaleen however, he reacts differently. “Then [Brother Gerald] saw Rosaleen and started to rub the bald space on his head with such agitation I thought he might rub down to the skull bone” (Kidd 30). Just Rosaleen being there bothers him and causes him to start rubbing his head. A hyperbole is used to emphasize and exaggerate the agitation with which he is using to rub his head. The fact that he is so bothered just by her presence betrays his views on black people, despite the teachings of God to love everyone. It is later stated that he believes that even though they all love Negroes in the Lord, they have their own place, and it is not with the whites. The gesture and the discomfort of said gesture shows the prejudice in him and it, in turn, hurts and annoys Rosaleen. Later that day, Rosaleen and Lily proceed with their journey to Sylvan. They enter Sylvan on what