6. The Hero

 The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

I believe a hero is someone who stays calm when situations
get out of control, but is still willing to lend a hand.

                                                       



 What qualities do you see in your protagonist that you consider to be (or will become) heroic in nature?

As I am just getting into this novel, there hasn't been a hero clearly described. Based on what I have read so far, I would predict that Rosaleen would come to be the hero. She has the ambition and drive to do whatever she sets her mind to. Rosaleen  portrays a hero in many aspects. She is not scared to speak her mind to T.Ray, standing up for what she and/or Lily believe. Rosaleen takes an inspiring role towards Lily and is willing to sacrifice her job to keep Lily safe. Rosaleen doesn't do these things to make herself feel good, but she is doing it for the greater good of all people.

"Her name, Rosaleen Daise, was written twenty-five times at least down the page in large, careful cursive, like the first paper you turn in when school starts. 'This is my practice sheet,' she said.. 'they're gonna make 'em write their name in perfect cursive and refuse them a card if they forget so much as to dot an i or make a loop in their y.''"  (Sue Monk Kidd, The Secret Life of Bees, page 27)

Rosaleen wanted to register herself for the Fourth of July voters' rally at the colored church. She practiced and practiced writing her name over and over again until she found it to be perfect. Rosaleen has the desire, which many heroes acquire.



5. Character Archetypes

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

T.Ray from The Secret Life of Bees.

The character that clearly represents the threshold guardian in this novel is T.Ray. T.Ray is the father of Lily Owens; a very bitter man who is distinctly cruel to his daughter.T.Ray is the antagonist in the novel, who generally goes against the protagonist. There are various roles that T.Ray shares with  the threshold guardian, which includes the following:

First obstacle to the hero: T.Ray doesn't allow Lily to go see Rosaleen, while she is in the hospital. Instead, Lily has to sneak out of the house without T.Ray knowing.
Gateway to new world: With T.Ray out of the way, Lily has the opportunity  to experience the world in a different way. 
Neutral character: T.Ray is mentioned a lot throughout the first part of the novel, but as the story progresses he isn't mentioned as much.
Tests heroes worthiness: When T.Ray is angry with Lily, he punishes her by making her kneel on an anthill size pile of grits. Lily never budges when kneeling on the grits, but instead deals with the pain.  
Makes journey not easy: Although T.Ray is out of the picture for now, Lily and Rosaleen have to make sure that they keep an eye out for him. He will be doing all he can  in search of the two of them, making their lives miserable.
Hero will encounter threshold guardian early in the story: Lily has lived with T.Ray her entire life, not being able to get away from him. Early on in the story, when Lily has the chance she escapes from T.Ray's whereabouts.

"In a matter of seconds I knew exactly what I had to do- leave. I had to get away from T.Ray, who was probably on his way back this minute to do Lord-knows-what to me. Not to mention I had to get Rosaleen out of jail." (Sue Monk Kidd, The Secret Life of Bees, page 41)

T.Ray was trying to get in the way of Lily; holding her back from rescuing Rosaleen. Although, Lily doesn't let T.Ray get the best of her. Instead she continues working towards her goal, which is to save Rosaleen and get T.Ray out of her life.

4. Who is telling the story? What do you know about the main character?

Dooley Takes the Fall by Norah McClintock

'Dooley felt sick inside. Not throw-up sick this time, but the other kind of sick you get when the cops show up at your door and you're pretty sure they have you good this time. But worse than that because, contrary to what his uncle probably thought, no, he did not want to go back.' (Norah McClintock, Dooley Takes the Fall, page 132)

Dooley, is a seventeen year old boy who has had a rough past; drinking, drugs and crimes. Being in the doghouse for two years, makes Dooley realize he has the chance to forget his past and straighten up his life. The quote above allows you to see that this piece of writing, is written in third person limited. This would mean the story is in Dooley's perspective, but not personal enough that he is stating what he is doing or feeling using words, I or me.

While reading the novel, I began to believe Dooley was the one to blame for the deaths of various victims, based on his past record. Although the author is stating Dooley's thoughts and feelings on the situation, I predicted the story was going to have a twist and then be written in first person, meaning Dooley is the one stating what is occurring using words, I or me. After finishing the novel, I could see how my prediction didn't quite match the outcome of the story and the main character. When seeing the story progress, I began to change the way I looked at upcoming situations in the novel.

'Beside you,' by Marianas Trench represents Dooley Takes the Fall because it describes the relationship with Dooley and Beth. Dooley wishes Beth could be beside him, believing that he didn't murder her brother, while Beth wants nothing to do with him.