Influence of Family in the Bean Trees
...her and she raises Turtle the best way possible after suffering an abusive background. She is nurturing, caring, loving and provides the guiding light that Turtle needs to escape her previous horrors. Taylor cares about Turtle very much and because of that love for her new daughter she develops many great qualities to be a great mother for Turtle. Taylor knows that Turtle is young and needs a parental figure in her life, even despite the horrible experiences she had with her parents previously, so “Taylor does not expect three-year old Turtle to be self-sufficient but notices and respects her for being strong through times of abuse” (Parini 200). Although motherhood began as a horrible tragedy, Taylor instantly becomes an incredible mother and Turtle becomes Taylor’s greatest companion on her journey, while providing the beginning to the family which Taylor greatly needs. When Taylor and Turtle finally reach their new home in Tucson, Arizona, they encounter Mattie. Mattie is a very special person who does many incredible things for others, while owning the Jesus is Lord Used Tires shop, which she also uses to house Central American refugees. Taylor realizes the amazing person Mattie is and the lengths she goes to just to help other people. Realizing this helps Taylor develop a very trusting and strong relationship with Mattie and she learns to depend on her whenever help is needed. Mattie is not only a great friend but “Mattie rescued Taylor and Turtle when they first arrived in Tucson by being sympathetic towards them and by giving Taylor a job” (Novels 33). Mattie proved to be even more than just a friend by being a savior for both Taylor and Turtle. As well as being a friend and savior for Taylor and Turtle, Mattie is a great sign of hope and provides a light at the end of the tunnel, which they greatly desired. Mattie has a garden in which she takes great care of, that is very impressive because it is growing in the hot and dry land of Arizona and, “Mattie’s garden plays a symbolic role because the people who arrive at her door have been ripened from their home soil; their roots dangle vulnerably and need a gentle transplanting” (Esdale 38). The garden illustrates that even in the worst of conditions, beautiful things can grow. Life seemed to be at its worst at times for Taylor and Turtle but Mattie would always make it seem much better for them. Having a difficult time finding a new home, Mattie becomes a member of Taylor and Turtle’s family by becoming a mother figure for Taylor and by adopting them, via steering Taylor and Turtle in the correct direction. When Taylor and Turtle finish their journey to Tucson, Arizona they encounter another young woman named Lou Ann. Lou Ann is a single mother, similar to Taylor but she was left by her husband, Angel, who happened to be an illegal Mexican. Taylor and Lou Ann share the same qualities by being very lonely, depressed at times and having a very difficult life, being independent. Lou Ann and Taylor have a connection, so they decide to live together and become each others family, to help each other, while being, “Alone in a city, which is far from where they grew up, Taylor and Lou Ann create a new home by making a kind of family with each other and their children” (Novels 33). Taylor and Lou Ann share great similarities and that provides the beginning for what would develop into a great relationship. Without each other Taylor and Lou Ann are lonely, abandoned and almost helpless mothers for their children, but together they are happy, fortunate and very stable parents, allowing both their children to grow up happily. Lou Ann and her son complete the family which Taylor and Turtle began. Both Taylor and Lou Ann have had many troubles before meeting each other and although troubles do not end, problems just become much more possible to overcome. Instead of giving up and feeling sorry for themselves when a problem rises, Taylor and Lou Ann learn how to face their dilemmas while depending on each other. As in many families, both Turtle and Lou Ann’s children become like siblings, while Lou Ann and Taylor appear as parents to both children. The relationship between them becomes stronger as time progresses and “Friendships and Loyalty to one another grow and help keep each others lives going” (Novels 33). A relationship that began as a mere friendship grew into becoming best friends and family, but most of all they became people they both could depend on to bring each other out of terrible circumstances. The influence family and friends can have towards a person’s life is greatly portrayed in Barbara Kingsolver’s novel, The Bean Trees. Taylor is left with a young and abused Native American child, in whom she names Turtle and turns Taylor into a single mother. Taylor’s newfound motherhood appears to be a tragedy but it is a great...