Immigrants In Barbra Kingsolver's The Bean Trees

Racial and gender biases have been constant issues throughout history. From the persecution of women in the early America to modern day victimization of people based solely upon race, gender and racial biases have shaped and continue shaping history in a major way. While modern America is known for being an all-welcoming country of free speech and mutual respects throughout races, hidden racial and gender biases are often overlooked, leading to the manifestation of these biases in people and their community. In The Bean Trees, a novel set in 1980s America, Barbara Kingsolver illustrates the presence of racial and gender biases and their effect on the community. Through the characters victimized by these biases, Kingsolver illustrates that

Over the years, immigrants have influenced many aspects of American society and has had a vital role in shaping the United States to what it is today. According to the US Census Bureau, an agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System responsible for producing data about the American people and economy, “non-Hispanic white population in the U.S. declined from 85 percent in 1965 to 62.2 percent in 2014, and the forecast is for the percentage of non-Hispanic whites to fall to 43.6 percent in 2060” (qtd. in Walsh). Despite the rise of immigrants and the profound impact they have had on society, many immigrants face perpetual discrimination; this idea has appeared many times throughout Barbara Kingsolver’s novel The Bean Trees. Taking place during the 1970s, the main character, Taylor, moves from Kentucky to Arizona; along the way, she meets Esperanza and Estevan, illegal immigrants from Guatemala. As she gets to know them better, she notices they are forced to live a monotonous, arduous life which implies that immigrants face prejudice from Americans who claim to be accepting. Through the use of

11.5 million immigrants come into the United States every year. 13.5% of United States population are migrants that leave everything behind and their family to get there, and only 28% of foreign immigrants from Mexico make it to the United States every year. Additionally 64.5% of hondurans are living in poverty, according to The Immigration Policy Institute. Sonia Nazario demonstrates how the matter of immigration affects family values, causes discriminacion and more drug use. Many cultures around the world have different ideas about all of these subjects. But some are stricter or looser than others. In “Enrique’s Journey” she conveys the story of Enrique, the main character. The author also shows how specifically Enrique and his family are

In the novel The Bean Trees, Kingsolver’s belief that people survive through another 's generosity and empathy recur throughout the novel. This belief holds truth as many of the characters within Kingsolver’s novel find survival within the empathy and generosity they receive from others. The relationship between Taylor and Turtle reflect this theme through their mother-daughter relationship. Kingsolver’s belief also holds truth with Estevan and Esperanza’s situation and the help they receive. Kingsolver even weaves her belief within the relationships between minor characters such as Virgie and Edna as well as Sandi and Kid Central Station.

There is always a way out of a bad situation. Esperanza shows this in the novel, Esperanza Rising by Pam Múnoz Ryañ when she struggles to keep things steady during this time in her life. Throughout the novel, Esperanza learns that there are other ways of life in which she must acclimate to as she shows perseverance in the face of difficulty.

In Cormac McCarthy’s post-apocalyptic novel, “The Road”, a man and his young son find themselves on a journey fighting for survival through a dark and desolate world. With no identity or any hope in the future, the characters are faced with many compromising decisions. Two levels of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, the physiological and safety levels provide the most motivation and validation for the characters’ actions throughout the novel.

Women , now as much as ever, struggle with gender roles and expectations in society. For example, many would be surprised to learn that a woman who does the same job as a man makes 77 cents for every dollar a man makes. Barbara Kingsolver exemplifies this idea in her novel The Bean Trees, a story about a young woman who struggles to survive as she travels across the country from Pittman County to Tucson, OK, illegally adopting a baby along the way. Barbara Kingsolver's The Bean Trees argues that American societies’ gender roles influence the treatment of women as well as shapes their character and personality, pressuring women across America to conform to the propagandized stereotypes.

Indirect Characterization: This quote shows the character’s perseverance and uniqueness while also foreshadowing. It shows the relationship between Taylor and her mother and the difference of Taylor and her environment/ society

Enrique’s Journey by Sonia Nazario tells of a perseverant Honduran mother by the name of Lourdes. She comes to the United States in hopes of landing a job, so that she may send money home to her children in Honduras. Lourdes’s determination pays off and she is hired at many domestic jobs, such as babysitting and house cleaning. Although she is now able to send adequate support to her children, her absence consequently causes emotional turmoil. Enrique yearns for his mother, to the point where he is willing to risk his life to be with her. His quest to reunite with his mom is filled with a multitude of obstacles ; nevertheless through the kindness of strangers and smugglers, Enrique’s dream becomes a reality. Everyone needs someone to help them pick up their broken pieces at least one point in their life.

One of the key strategies used by the Suarez-Orozcos, was the use of exemplification. An assumption they make is that their audience is a group of Americans who haven’t heard the stories of immigrants and the risks they take, but instead just assume they know the story. Based off

In Central America, some parents leave their children, and set out a journey to the United States in hopes of making a better life for them. Throughout the years, the children who are left behind eventually go on a journey to be reunited with their family. On the journey, the children acquire many character traits and skills that ultimately make them grow as a person. In the book by Sonia Nazario titled Enrique’s Journey, author Nazario writes about Enrique, a young Honduran boy, who goes on a long and strenuous trip to find his mother. In the article “Desperate Voyagers,” by Ioan Grillo, it talks on the subject of children fleeing their country due to gang violence. The majority of the children who have crossed into the U.S are usually reunited

In The Bean Trees, Taylor exhibits independence throughout the work by planning to leave her rural hometown due to the lack of opportunities for women there. She does this by getting a job at the county hospital and uses the money she earns to buy a car. From when Taylor is a teen she plans to escape pittman. She wants to be the one to get away. First, she finishes high school. Acquiring a job at the county hospital on her own terms, she saves a few hundred dollars. Using the money she earned, she buys a ‘55 Volkswagen young age, Taylor plans to get out of Pittman County, Kentucky. She wants to be the one to “get away”. Taylor Does not want to be stuck in

In 1911, 146 people die in the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire. Months before, shirtwaist workers, mainly immigrants, marched on strike for worker’s rights, a true testament to their courage. In Mary Jane Auch’s historical fiction novel Ashes of Roses, the courage of immigrants is the heart of the story. The book follows the young protagonist Rose Nolan, an Irish immigrant coming to New York City. She meets challenges after challenge as she navigates her new life in America, while also making new friends such as Gussie Garoff. The characters Rose and Gussie define courage through their resilience, unwillingness to back down, integrity and sacrifice.

“Enrique feels he would rather be with his mother than get the money and the gifts she sends.” 26, Enrique’s journey, Sonia Nazario. This immigrant boy called Enrique says he prefers to live in poverty rather than not having his mother at his side. After reading the book Enrique’s Journey, I have learned that is not worth it for a mother to abandon her children just to follow the American dream with the illusion of provide a better future for them. Broken homes causes many problems in our society, particularly, abandoned children grow up with low self-esteem and resentful feelings, they choose bad companies and they often consume drugs or alcohol.

object and a life is affected by the sacrifice made which could be seen in The Lottery by