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Sue Monk Kidd's Allusion To 'Oh ! Susanna'

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In Sue Monk Kidd’s, The Secret Life of Bee’s, Kidd includes an allusion to “Oh! Susanna” by Stephen Foster, with the intent of demonstrating May’s journey to reunite with her sister. Stephen Foster’s Oh! Susanna was originally written for a blackface minstrel show, in which blacks were portrayed as clueless. Modern, adapted lyrics, depict the story of a young man leaving his home in search of his love, Susanna (Sabatella). In Kidd’s novel, May hums the melody to bypass sobbing. Upon the arrival of Lily and Rosaleen to the pink house, Rosaleen asks May about their names, and triggers May’s paranoia about April, her dead sister. “May’s grin dissolved, and out of nowhere she started humming ‘Oh! Susanna’ like her life depended on it” (Kidd 73).

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