African American Maids In The Help

My dissertation started off with the idea of how the characters in The Help expressed their voice and the complications they faced in doing that. The novel is about giving voice to African Americans maids in the 1960s in a society formed by its legacy of slavery and racism. However, The Help got a lot of criticism from both critics and readers as they questioned the success and motives of Kathryn Stockett's attempt to give voice to African Americans, especially in its authenticity. One of the problems found in the novel is that the black maids can only express their voice and stories through Skeeter, a white woman, who is using the stories (at least at the beginning of the novel) to boost her own career.1 The issue becomes more complicated

Medgar was the target of many threats. He was murdered June 12 1963 by Byron De La Beckwith, who was a member of the Ku Klux Klan, a couple hours after president Kennedy's speech on the support of the civil rights movement (NAACP). In the movie the maids and everyone in Jackson were in fear. In actuality the black community including maids participated in marches and protests towards the justice of MedgaEvers (Truthout). The movie is also accurate because it includes the relationship between Minny and Celia which demonstrates that not every white person was against blacks in reality there was also whites who joined blacks in strikes to fight for civil rights. The bond between them is what sends the message of not all whites disliking blacks because Celia, aside from Skeeter, is the only female the treats the her maid as her close friend. An assumption of the film is that the character Skeeter is suppose to resemble the author, Kathryn Stockett, by adding parts of her life into Skeeter’s character. Another common thing is that in the film Skeeter has trouble trying to collect a story that is worth publishing while Stockett had trouble publishing the book and received sixty rejections before publishing the book. According to abc news, the inspiration of story behind “The Help” Stockett said in an interview was by a maid that her grandmother had that used to make her special and important. Contrasting both to their lives Skeeter also had a special bond to the maid, Constantine, her family had and had much love for

“‘Don’t you ever wish you could change things?”’ (10). In Jackson, Mississippi during the 1960’s, woman ahead of her time, Miss Skeeter, proposes an idea to write a book about the lives of colored maids in Jackson. Aibileen and Minny, two maids, are among the first ones to agree to help Skeeter, despite the potential danger to themselves. In The Help, Kathryn Stockett creates an engaging and immersive world that explores racism and social injustice by using well-developed writing, the ideal amount of imagery, and strong characters.

The book “The Help”, written by Kathryn Stockett, is a book that takes place in Jackson, Mississippi, around the 1960's, when the blacks were segregated from the whites. The story is mainly about a black woman Aibileen whose main job is to take care of children as well as to handle household duties. Along the way they meet a woman Skeeter's whose lifelong dream is to become a writer however the only job she can find, is with the Jackson Journal writing a housekeeping advice column which she knows very little about. To succeed in the job, Skeeter turns to her friend's maid, Aibileen, for answers and help to write the column.

Towards the end of Stockett’s novel, Aibileen has grown older and is now caring for two kids in the Leefolt house. Skeeter now tells Aibileen she has gotten a letter to go to New York and work for Miss Stein. When she goes, someone will need to take over the Miss Murna columns at the Jackson Journal. Here, Skeeter gives Aibileen the chance to take over for her. She also includes that she will receive the same amount of pay as she did. To this, Aibileen responds, “Me? Working for the white newspaper? I go to the sofa and open thee notebook, see them letters and articles from past times. Miss Skeeter set beside me (512)”. This is Aibileen basically conquering the issue of racism. The fact that Miss Skeeter put in such a good word about her that she got the job without an interview says wonders.

Mrs.Skeeter’s story could be a strong supporting plot to the journey of the two black maids, Aibileen and Minny, but instead her story is the main focus of the movie. This simple fact makes the film seem to almost downplay the racist attitudes towards black people in the 1960s. The movie could've gone down a much more horrific and revealing plotline if they had made Aibileen or Minny the main character. If the director had gone down this path the movie could have communicated a much deeper message and would have allowed the watchers to be revealed to some first hand accounts of racism. Although the movie does tell some stories of the two black maids quite well with some of their perspective shown, throughout the entire movie there seemed to be a “sugar coating” over everything. It was as if the producers wanted to “protect” their audience from how far the racist attitudes went and the horrific fallout from those attitudes. Also, parts of the movie seemed almost irrelevant to the main message and goals of the protagonists. Take for example the sub-plot of Skeeter finding a man. Despite it doing a good job of incorporating a secondary plot, this entire section could have been removed for something that better related to the theme of the movie. They could've put in more about the pasts of either Aibileen or Minny to further communicate how society viewed down upon black people and saw them as little better than rodents. Within the movie, the fact that Skeeter is the main character at all almost seems to take away from the other two protagonists, Aibileen and Minny. A lot of the time in the movie the heavier parts are broken up by the lighter more bright plot line of Skeeter. An example of this within the movie is when a black person is shot by a member of the KKK, and Aibileen has to run back to Minny's house and compose herself with Minny. This entire scene is extremely tense and is wonderful at

“The help” film is a perfect representation of how the south was and gives an idea on how bad African Americans were treated even if they were being paid and not only that but it also shows how different everything was back then. For example, as shown in the movie the women back then were quite different from today. Skeeter the main character is described as a very independent woman compared to the rest of the white female characters. She doesn’t seem to have an interest in men now but considers finding a dependable job unlike the other white females. Skeeter was also an educated woman and even had a bachelor’s degree. Back in that specific time frame this was rather odd for a lady to be educated. Skeeter tries to advocate for the events that are occurring within southern homes by writing the experiences of the Jackson, Mississippi’s black maids. Meanwhile, the film shows southern culture in great detail.

She gets this extravagant idea to write a book about the life as a black maid. Skeeter says, “ You said to write about things that disturb me, particularly if it bothers no one else.” When she says this quote to her boss. This quote shows that Skeeter wants to go out and explore which in this case means go and make known of the blacks and what they are

Life in the 1960’s was not sweet like pie for the women who found themselves stuck in an endless loop of clearing someone else’s tables, raising someone else’s children, and living by someone else’s rules. These black maids lived in fear, knowing the white ladies they worked for could ruin everything for them by saying the wrong thing, or having the wrong attitude. The book, The Help, and the movie of the same name have quite a few differences that I noticed. It may only have a Lexile of 730, but that does not reflect the extreme measures this story goes to tell an amazing tale of bravery and strength that nothing else can rival. However, the author of The Help, Kathryn Stockett, and the director of the movie, Tate Taylor, knew what they were

The film “The Help” (2011), is a story based on the daily lives of prominent white women and the relationships with their African-American housemaids in Jackson, Mississippi, during the 1960s Civil Rights movement in America. A well-to-do white woman and central character in this film, Eugenia “Skeeter” Phelan, aspires to be a journalist and decides to write and publish an exposé of the stories of the housemaids in Jackson to achieve this goal, however, only two maids, Aibileen Clark and Minny Jackson are willing to discuss their experiences with her. The other maid’s in Jackson resist telling Skeeter their stories, fearing the punishments they would endure if the authorities were to find out. In spite of this, after the malicious arrest of one of their befriended maids, all of the maids begin to share their experiences, which consist of racial hostility and being treated as intrinsically subservient to white people. The story Skeeter publishes entitled The Help, creates a disturbance among the white families in Jackson, by exposing the racism the maids are faced with, forcing the white families to reflect upon how they have treated their maids. The storyline represented in The Help exhibits examples of the primordial approach to race and ethnicity, as well as numerous sociological concepts including segregation, internalized oppression, and white privilege, which will be exemplified in this paper in order to uncover the race relations evident within this film.

She wants to change this truth because she recognizes the injustice that is being committed against the African American population. However, as much as Skeeter wants to be fearless in her steady demolition of the racist structures of society, she too fears for herself as well as for the people she wants to help. This fear stems from the knowledge that Skeeter has of white people being completely ruthless and apathetic towards the lives of the African Americans of Jackson. She wonders; “what if Elizabeth or Hilly catches us at what we’re doing? What if Aibileen gets fired, sent to jail?

To have a relationship with a person of an opposing race was atypical of the societal norms of the 1960s in Jackson, Mississippi. However, Aibileen and Miss Skeeter challenge this view by developing a relationship characterized by equality and kindness to create a social change.  Miss Skeeter, a recent college graduate, returns from college with a new perspective about race. With the help of the education Miss Skeeter received, she begins to dismiss society’s views. She realized quickly that her actions towards the help are much different from her peers who

Over the course of the novel, The Help, Stockett uses women of different backgrounds to depict the various effects that society has on an individual. Oftentimes, Skeeter does not conform to society, as she has differing values and beliefs than the other women her age. Growing up, Skeeter was often in conflict with her mother who firmly believes that a woman’s main purpose is to care for their family. As a result, she does not tell her that she aspires to become a writer in New York one day in fear that “she’ll only turn it into yet another thing that separates (her) from the married girls” (Stockett 65). Skeeter’s mother holds high standards for her daughter and is constantly trying to shape her into becoming the perfect image of society.

Although the maids were struggling and going through a difficult time in 1960’s, The Help portrays that their family members were too. Segregated society against the backdrop of the growing US civil rights movement in the 1960’s has an impacted. “Race also determines who has access to educational, occupational, and economic opportunity. Racial tensions are high as white community members employ violence and coercion to try to keep the Civil Rights Movement from sweeping into their Mississippi town” (Shmoop Editorial Team). The white community in the movie continue to keep the black women as their servants throughout their lives. As Skeeter the white lady, who writes a book about The Help and portrays through the book that the African American women go through. As the white women of Jackson, Mississippi read the book they began to act more violent to the black women. The book is away as the black women to make a statement about the civil rights they have.

Part 1 - In American author's 2009 book, The Help, the primary thesis is the relationship between Black maids and white households in Jackson, Mississippi during the early 1960s. The story is really told from three perspectives, Aibileen and Minny are Black women, both maids, and Skeeter is the nickname of Eugenia Phelan, daughter of a prominent White family. Skeeter has just finished school and hopes to become a writer. In general, the relationship between the Black maids and the White employers is six sided: On one side we have the White employers who have three views: 1) Their personal and private beliefs that can range from extreme scorn and bias to kindness regarding race; 2) Their public persona that must have the "proper" attitude about Blacks and "the help," and 3) Their employer attitude, which is condescending and parental. The Black view also has three segments: 1) Their personal and private beliefs that usually range from understanding not all Whites are the same and an extreme love and empathy for the White children for whom they care; 2) The public persona that is deferential, polite, and stoic to their White bosses; and 3) Their attitude and view among the Black community, which usually separates the "poor and ignorant but rich" White souls from the Black view of family and common sense. All in all, the relationship is contentious, phony, and based on economic advantage.