Bees symbolize the qualities James loves most about life as an American farmer, especially contemplation of nature, hard work, and cooperation. Out of his wide-ranging reflections on nature, James expresses a special respect and admiration for bees. On one level, bees reflect the special relationship that a farmer can enjoy with his land. That is, because James is able to spend so much time observing and contemplating his natural surroundings, he has the opportunity to notice and appreciate small, easily overlooked creatures like bees. In his second letter, James describes in detail the process by which he patiently tracks bees into the woods in order to collect their honey, suggesting that farming instills this patience and discipline in James, and that bees’ noble traits make them worth the painstaking effort—a more delicate yet more rewarding effort than hunting for deer or bear.
His fondness for bees is such that, in other letters, James occasionally uses bees as a literary device to convey his admiration for human traits like loyalty and industry. He describes Quakers as being “like bees” because their community-mindedness leads them to emigrate as groups, “in regular and connected swarms.” He elsewhere describes Quakers as a “fruitful hive” whose hard work enables them to thrive no matter where they live.
Bees Quotes in Letters from an American Farmer
It is my bees, however, which afford me the most pleasing and extensive themes; let me look at them when I will, their government, their industry, their quarrels, their passions, always present me with something new[.]