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Themes and Colors
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Bean Trees, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
The theme of belonging and homeland works on two levels within the novel. On a small scale, the novel’s plot follows Taylor’s struggles to find her true home. Unhappy with the classism and sexism of her rural Kentucky hometown, Taylor searches for a place that feels more comfortable. Through this search, Kingsolver points out that the place where a person is born is not necessarily where that person belongs. When Taylor settles in Arizona, she feels that she has found her new home both because of her own affinity for the desert landscape and the community that builds with the people of Tucson. Taylor’s openness to the new culture and her appreciation and respect for the previous communities of Arizona allow her to make Arizona her new homeland.
On a large scale, the novel asks who truly “belongs” on American land. Though Taylor has Cherokee blood, she does not feel like she belongs on the territory that was stolen from Native American tribes, and believes that her adopted daughter Turtle, a full-blooded Cherokee child, deserves to live in America more than she does. Yet this idea of Native American connection to the land is complicated by the novel’s setting in Arizona. This desert state is nothing like the ancestral Cherokee homelands in Georgia, and furthermore has a vibrant Native American culture of its own that also experienced displacement. While Turtle’s ancestry may be more “American” than Taylor’s, neither of them truly “belongs” in Arizona.
After considering the history surrounding the acquisition of American land, Kingsolver then examines American hypocrisy regarding immigration in the 20th century. Though virtually all Americans (aside from Native American populations) are here thanks to the immigration of their ancestors, Kingsolver notes how some American citizens today feel strongly that new immigration should be stopped at all costs. Even though Estevan and Esperanza are in some ways more qualified to be American than Taylor, given Estevan’s expert command of the English language as a teacher of English, their place in America is extremely tenuous. Though American settlers effectively invaded the southwest United States during the Gold Rush boom of the 1800s, the descendants of these American settlers now resent what they refer to as the “invasion” of Central Americans into the area. Kingsolver suggests that those who are against immigration to the United States should reevaluate what it means to be an American, and face up to their own family history as immigrants.
Related Themes from Other Texts
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Belonging and Homeland ThemeTracker
The ThemeTracker below shows where, and to what degree, the theme of Belonging and Homeland appears in each chapter of The Bean Trees. Click or tap on any chapter to read its Summary & Analysis.
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Belonging and Homeland Quotes in The Bean Trees
Below you will find the important quotes in The Bean Trees related to the theme of Belonging and Homeland.
Chapter 1 Quotes
There were two things about Mama. One is that she expected the best out of me. And the other is that then no matter what I did… she acted like it was the moon I had just hung up in the sky and plugged in all the stars; Like I was that good.
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The relationship built in Chapter 1 between Taylor and her mother forms a foundation for the rest of the family relationships built throughout the novel. Taylor’s mother is her main source of strength, support, and confidence, though the two characters do not interact very much during the actual events of the novel. Taylor’s mother has high standards for Taylor that force Taylor to leave their hometown in Pittman County, Kentucky, but Taylor’s mother also gives Taylor the unconditional love and praise that she needs in order to meet those goals. Kingsolver suggests that this is the best way to mother, Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commo
She put her hands where the child’s shoulders might be, under all that blanket, and pushed it gently back into the seat, trying to make it belong there. She looked at it for a long time. Then she closed the door and walked away.
As I watched her I was thinking that she wasn’t really round. Without the child and the blanket she walked away from my car a very thin woman.
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The circumstances through which Taylor becomes Turtle’s mother are surreal and unexpected, as Turtle’s biological aunt simply places Turtle in Taylor’s car while Taylor is stopped at a gas station. Taylor had been extremely against becoming a young mother, fleeing her home town in order to escape that fate but ironically falling into this family role because she went on the road. Yet though Turtle’s aunt has to “make it [Turtle] belong” in Taylor’s car, the two actually do belong together by the end of the novel. Kingsolver’s novel argues that the bonds of family can be created through experiences Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit e
Chapter 7 Quotes
This whole conversation had started with a rhyme he used to help his students remember how to pronounce English vowels…Lou Ann and I had already told him three or four times that he spoke better English than the two of us combined.
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One of the defining traits of Estevan’s character is his command of the English language, even though it is not his first or even his second language. When he first comes to America, Estevan’s English skills are a necessary part of his survival, but they are also an important sign that he truly belongs in this country. Lou Ann and Taylor stand out because of their Kentucky accents, meaning that Estevan actually fits in better in Tucson than they do. Estevan has put years of effort into perfecting his English, while Lou Ann and Taylor have never put much thought Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delec
Mrs. Parsons said, “And is this naked creature one of theirs? She looks like a little wild Indian.” She was talking about Turtle, who was not naked, although she didn’t exactly have a shirt on… “She’s mine,” I said. “And she is a wild Indian, as a matter of fact.”
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When Taylor invites Estevan and Esperanza, a Guatemalan refugee couple, and her neighbors Edna Poppy and Virgie Parsons over for dinner, Virgie’s stiff and formal version of good etiquette rubs Taylor the wrong way. The final straw comes when Virgie passes judgment on Turtle as a “wild Indian,” invoking the harmful stereotype of Native Americans as “savages” who need to be civilized. She furthermore mistakes Turtle for Estevan and Esperanza’s daughter, letting the color of Estevan and Esperanza’s skin convince her that the couple is somehow savage as well. Kingsolver uses Virgie to explain the viewpoint of many white Americans Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem a
Chapter 8 Quotes
“You are poetic, mi’ija.”
“What’s miha?”
“Mi hija,” he pronounced it slowly.
“My something?”
“My daughter. But it doesn’t work the same in English. We say it to friends. You would call me mi’ijo.”
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Estevan and Taylor grow close as they talk before work at Mattie’s tire shop. Estevan finds Taylor’s rural colloquialisms to be poetic, a sign of how easily he accepts the good points of other cultures. Just like Taylor earns the right to belong in Tucson because she accepts the desert on its own terms, Estevan belongs in America because he comes to this country with an open heart and mind. He also shares an aspect of his culture, calling Taylor “mi hija”, Spanish for “my daughter.” Unlike American English, Estevan’s Guatemalan Spanish has a way to casually consider friends like Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor a
Chapter 9 Quotes
“You think you're the foreigner here, and I’m the American, and I just look the other way while the President or somebody sends down this and that . . . to torture people with. But nobody asked my permission, okay? Sometimes I feel like I'm a foreigner, too.”
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When Estevan comes to Taylor’s house with the bad news that his wife Esperanza is in the hospital for attempted suicide, he and Taylor stay up late into the night drinking and talking about their backgrounds. Estevan, a Guatemalan refugee who had to flee Guatemala due to persecution of the teachers’ union, educates Taylor on the atrocities the Guatemalan government enacted and the support that this administration had from the American government. Taylor balks at the guilt that she feels for these events, as an American who has little to no say in what the American government chooses to do. Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus vol
Chapter 14 Quotes
“A human being can be good or bad or right or wrong, maybe. But how can you say a person is illegal? You just can't. That's all there is to it.”
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Estevan and Esperanza are refugees from Guatemala who have entered the Untied States without the proper documentation, making them “illegal” in the eyes of many Americans. Taylor, growing up in rural Kentucky, had no strong feelings on the subject of immigration, or whether immigrants truly belonged in America. Yet as Taylor continues to get to know Estevan, she becomes increasingly uncomfortable with the thought that anyone of Estevan’s warmth, intelligence, and kindness should be barred from living in the United States. Taylor argues that people should be judged as people, not as dehumanized “illegals.” The question of who is legally Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia.
“That looks beautiful,” I said. “That's the Cherokee Nation?”
“Part of it,” she said. “It's real big. The Cherokee Nation isn’t any one place exactly. It’s people. We have our own government and all.”
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When Taylor returns to Oklahoma, she finds that the bar where she first received Turtle is under completely new management. While talking to the girl behind the counter of the bar-turned-café, Taylor also finds out that the wasteland she thought was Cherokee Nation is actually just the tip of this land. True Cherokee Nation is a natural paradise with beautiful lakes, somewhere that the Cherokee people can now be proud of even though they were forced here against their will. The girl also points out that part of what makes Cherokee Nation Cherokee is that it belongs to the people. Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaque. Deleniti nisi earum. Ad te
