The Secret Life of Bees

How do Lily’s racist beliefs come to the surface in the pink house? Why is she suddenly able to see some of her own implicit biases more clearly?

Grief is a subject that takes many shapes in this novel. How does witnessing others’ grief help Lily move through her own?

After her last encounter with T. Ray, Lily comments that some small part of him may actually love her. Why, after her utter conviction of T. Ray’s hatred of her, does she now recognize that his feelings toward her may be more complicated than she thought? What event causes her to reconsider how he might feel about her?

How are the events of the summer of 1964 functioning as a backdrop to this story? What kind of pressure is the historical and social context of this moment putting on these characters?

Lily’s understanding of her place in the pink house and amongst the Daughters of Mary is fraught throughout the story. Lily is shocked that June might not like her because she is white. How are Lily’s privilege and understanding of the spaces she can occupy challenged in this novel?

How is the running metaphor of the beehive intertwined with the motif of the divine feminine/the Daughters of Mary/Our Lady of Chains? How are these two stories complementary of each other?

The importance of remembering and the passing down of stories is a recurring theme in this novel. August tells Lily that stories don’t need to be “real” to be true. What is an example of the power of this kind of real but perhaps not entirely true story in this book? How might August want Lily to practice this kind of belief system in storytelling in her own life?

Why is it important that Rosaleen finally register to vote at the end of the novel? What does Lily make of this moment?