The Bean Trees – Chapters 2 and 3 Points to Ponder

  • First, add to your notes:
  • a few more characteristics of Taylor (How is she similar to/ different from Lou Ann? Sandi? )
  • a few examples of stereotypes or discrimination in these chapters
  • Now answer the following questions. You may type them here. Save this document for your notes, and email a copy to me.

Chapter 2

  • There is a shift in narrative voice. This chapter is now in the third-person, not the first-person. The characters are all different. These stories are being contrasted for a reason. How are the two women, Taylor and Lou Ann, different? How are they similar? What can you predict for the future of the book? Will these two women meet? How? When?
  • Angel Ruiz is one of the rather complex male figures we meet in the novel. There are clues he has a history of substance abuse problems--(1) his nickname "Dusty" from the PCP or "Angel Dust" drugs he was involved with in his rodeo days and (2) his obvious drinking problem that led to his DUI accident and amputated leg. On the other hand, his mother-in-law is racist, which makes us feel sympathetic towards him. Also Ruiz's false leg jingles--and although the narrator and Lou Ann do not mention it, adjusting such false limbs can cost a great deal of money per visit and involve lots of paperwork. Angel's pride as the male breadwinner has been undermined. Still Ruiz abandons his pregnant wife and future child with no effort to provide child support. Compare his behavior to that of the other fathers and husbands who have abandoned or abused their children in the novel so far--consider Newt Hardbine's father, Foster Greer, the man with Turtle, and Joline's dad for example.
  • The title of the chapter is a clue to a main theme of this chapter--the way some cultures are hostile to women. How is the Chinese culture hostile to women? How do some women themselves perpetuate cultural oppression of themselves? Consider Lee Sing, the women who work at Fanny Heaven, and Mrs.Logan. Discuss the sexual harassment that Lou Ann deals with on the bus when not pregnant. What does this say about her as a person? Why can't Lou Ann defend herself from these people?

Chapter 3

  • Contrast the strange man’s attitude about bugs to Mattie’s. What does this contrast reveal about Mattie's character?
  • Note all the images associated with Mattie and her shop. What connotations do many of these images have—all the flowers, the bunny mug, etc.? What does Mattie's shop suggest about her character?
  • Consider the types of people Taylor describes living downtown. How does society judge these groups? Do the artistic people and the homeless people get along? What does Taylor's experience in the art gallery tell us about the relationship of the various groups?
  • Note other signs of how social and economic status is unequal and troubled in America presented in this chapter. Describe the contrast between the unwed, minimum-wage employed mothers and the shopping mothers at Kid Central Station. Describe also the contrast between poor Kentucky and the wealthy racing community of Kentucky.