The Secret Life Of Bees Character Analysis

Words: 864
Pages: 4

American poet Samuel Ullman once said, “Maturity is the ability to think, speak and act your feelings within the bounds of dignity. The measure of your maturity is how spiritual you become during the midst of your frustrations” (Ullman). Growing up is not based on age, it is based on what experiences you have had and how you have grown as a person because of them. The character of Lily in The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd provides a wonderful example as to the process of growing up and maturing. Throughout the story she shows that growing up is being able to make decisions based on what is important to you, understand and control your emotions, and take responsibility for yourself. As people mature they develop strong decision making skills and also begin to choose things that are important to them. Lily shows this sign of maturity when she runs away from home. She made this decision on page 41 when she thought, “What if …show more content…
Many people think that part of being an adult is not making mistakes but I disagree. Everyone makes mistakes regardless of age, but being able to acknowledge that you made the mistake and work to try to fix it is a strong sign of growing up. In my opinion, Lily showed the most personal growth when she admitted what she had done. She said, “‘T. Ray… he told me my mother…’ The tears rushed up, and my words came out in high-pitched sounds that I didn’t recognize. ‘He said she left me, that she left both of us and ran away’” (Kidd 238). When she decided to face the consequences for her actions and tell the truth she grew up a lot. Author Roy Bennett once said, “Maturity is when you stop complaining and making excuses in your life; you realize everything that happens in life is a result of the previous choice you’ve made and start making new choices to change your life” (Bennett). I think that this quote perfectly describes Lily’s transition from lying to telling the