Analysis Of The Movie The Help

The Help is a movie based off of the inequalities of segregation in Mississippi in the 1960s. The film correctly illustrates the life of black maids who worked in white households. The film is fictional, but it is indeed factual. There is no inaccurate information, though many things, including the violence and brutality during this period, was minimized. There were many popular stereotypes that were both challenged and reinforced. For example, there was a stereotype that if you weren’t actively dating, then you were homosexual. There was also a stereotype that black people carried diseases and weren’t to use the same restrooms as whites.

African American’s role in this country has been long and has never been easy. During the early years of the United States, African Americans endure the hardship of slavery and had to deal with beatings, harsh working conditions and constant yelling from their racist white owners. Even after the abolishment of slavery, African Americans still endure another one hundred years of discrimination. A perfect way to examine a pivotal time in American History of African Americans and the racism they went through is seen in the movie “The Help”. The movie is set to take place “in Mississippi during the 1950s-1960s, Skeeter is a southern society girl who returns from college determined to become a writer, but turns her friends ' lives -- and a Mississippi town -- upside down when she decides to interview the black women who have spent their lives taking care of prominent southern families.” (The Help) The movie was originally based on a book written by

Mrs. Skeeter, a young white lady, decides to write a book about the Help’s life and their stories about taking care of the families but were still treated very poorly. There are many reasons they had to keep quiet about their stories such as "Did you hear about the colored boy this morning? One they beat with a tire iron for accidentally using the white bathroom? ... And my cousin Shinelle in Cauter County? They burn up her car cause she went down to the voting station." (Kathryn Stockett Page 102-103). Even with these scary stories trying to stop them, they never quit and kept writing the book, which resulted a great deal of respect from fellow African Americans.

Taking place in Jackson, Mississippi, the time period of The Help, the 1960’s, about a hundred years after slavery had been abolished, African Americans were still suffering from the torment of white people, and their discrimination against the African American community. Throughout The Help, the isolation and poor treatment towards African American citizens was documented thoroughly.

Set in the 1960’s, The Help, emphasizes the societal issues affecting African Americans in the past and shows eerily similar parallels to our society today. The 1960’s consisted of a multitude of protests and movements preaching civil disobedience and resistance. This attitude and behavior, led to the rise of the Civil Rights Movement which is also a major aspect of the film. The Help, delivers a message that stresses the dangers and paranoia that may be associated with a changing society that is focused on retaining it’s original values regardless of what may be occurring around them. Eventually change does take charge and while acceptance is not immediate, slowly but steadily toleration does begin to take root. Released in 2011, the film reflects the alterations in society but also displays the changes that have yet to occur. The Help, showed the move forward and reluctant path to acceptance and lenience. Many White individuals aided African Americans in their fight to gaining full civil rights while others did not bother to hide their disapproval and continued to believe that African Americans were inferior therefore did not deserve civil liberties. While as a society, we have come far, there continue to be many aspects that have yet to change and African Americans continue to face discrimination and inequality today. The film reveals the difficulties of bringing about change and altering the mindsets of deepset individuals.

The film ‘The Help” is originally a fictional novel based off of the actual characteristics of southern societies during the 1960’s. It is also recognized to display the end of racial injustice towards blacks to bring forth a new era of the civil rights movement. Even though it is merely a fictional book and movie, The Help is historically accurate as it portrays an economical, social , and political division between female white and African American societies. In The Help, white middle and upper class women are portrayed to be southern belle’s of Jackson, Mississippi while black women and their families live in poverty.

During the early 1960’s African Americans faced hardships so that maybe one day they could be considered equal. They were banished, shunned and even killed by the white race in the South. During non-violent protests they were treated like animals and were ridiculed by people who were against them having equal rights. In the novel “The Help”, written by Kathryn Stockett, she goes in depth of what it was like during this era for African Americans. She ties in fictional things and events to give you a feel of what it may have been like for people back then through her characters.

Civil Rights literature has been in hiding from the millions of readers in the world. Kathryn Stockett’s book, The Help, widely opens the doors to the worldwide readers to the experiences of those separated by the thin line drawn between blacks and whites in the 1960s. Kathryn makes her experiences of the character’s, making their stories as compelling as her own.

The movie “The Help” was based In the early 1960’s in Jackson, Mississippi. During this period of time it was very segregated, very much so that whites did not want African Americans to have contact with them, but were expected to fully take care of their children from birth to adulthood. Most of the African American maids later developed a strong bond with the children that they looked after. They tried teaching the kids to see no color, just to later witness them grow up to be brainwashed by the world to think of African Americans as less than. Except for one southern girl named Skeeter Phelan, who saw the equality in everyone. And one day she decided to interview the maids to get their perspectives on life and to get their story out to the world. At first the maids were hesitant because it would be serious consequences if anyone knew who exactly spoke up, but Skeeter did whatever she could to make sure all the maids were anonymous and no one knew. She risked many hardships like losing her relationship with her boyfriend and also building tension with the women of the Junior League. Successfully the maids stories got out and it opened eyes little by little.

Within the movie “The Help” there are a variety of major issues represented, most directly the discrimination that existed in the 1960s. The movie itself follows the journey of a white, budding journalist and her relationship with two black maids, Aibileen and Minny, during the Civil Rights Movement in 1963 Jackson, Mississippi. To start off her career as a journalist she decides to write a book, titled “The Help,” recounting the experiences of the black maids in her town to help expose racism. The movie itself is very critical of the racial discrimination that existed in its time frame but some say that it silently communicates racist tones throughout the entire movie. This argument is justified as the movie often found itself highlighting

The Help, a film centered around the theme of discrimination based on the color of one's skin, is set in Jackson, Mississippi during the early 1960s. The story took place before the Civil Rights Movement and Act of 1964 after which all citizens of the United States were guaranteed the same provisions and racial segregation was prohibited. We see innumerous instances of the "white ladies" viewing their "black" domestic maids as inferior PEOPLE. This shows us how the skin color of an individual in Southern society actually determined which class he or she was 3 / 3 born into and the socioeconomic conditions he had to endure during his lifetime. Each and every colored character we come across in the course of the plot fits into the system as a member of the working class while most white women we know are the employers of these colored helps as part of high society.

Based off of Kathryn Stockett’s 2009 novel, The Help is a movie told from an African American’s point of view during the early 1960’s in Jackson, Mississippi. The three main characters include, Aibileen Clark, Minny Jackson, and Eugenia (Skeeter) Phelan. Skeeter is a young writer who has recently returned from the University of Mississippi. She has been advised by the Elaine Stein, who is the head editor at Harper & Row, to write about a topic she is passionate about, that way she can continue her dream of becoming a serious writer. In addition, Skeeter accepts a writing job down at the Jackson Journal where she writes a housekeeping column. Ironically, she has no housekeeping experience as she grew up with in house help. In order to keep her job she goes to Aibileen, her friend Elizabeth Leefolt’s housekeeper. At this point in her life, Aibileen is just trying to get by. She writes out her prayers on a daily basis as a way to clear her mind since she is fairly reserved on the outside. On the contrary, Aibileen’s friend Minny is also a housekeeper, but she has a rather sharp tongue which doesn’t usually work in her favor. Consequently, she is trying to find a new employer, but is having trouble since there is a bit of discord between her and the most influential socialite in Jackson, Mississippi.

Women in this era are expected to marry, stay home, and have children, while white men are allowed the freedom to explore their passion in the workforce and life. The main character Skeeter who questions the restriction placed on her by society’s traditions. Her southern socialite best friends have conformed to expectations by marrying, having children and even questioning why she Skeeter went to university. Different readers of different genders would interpret this text differently. With females relating to the struggles of females and how we are still with the disadvantage with the workplace with the pay gap and limited opportunities. While men may view this text as shocking to see society expectations on women and colored members as they are so different from todays

    The movie “The Help” that was directed by Tate Taylor came out in theatre in 2011. The movie is inspired by the Jim Crow and Civil Rights Movement eras. It all took place in the deep South of Jackson, Mississippi. The movie is about a young woman named Skeeter Phelan. She is a new college graduate who receives a job at one of the local newspapers back home. Most people didn't take that lightly. It was a big surprise for a woman to go to college and graduate with a degree and it was also a time where women are known to be housewives and the child bearers.

Society has changed and evolved throughout time. Perhaps one of the most significant changed in contemporary American society is the treatment towards African Americans. “The Help” a feature film directed by Tate Taylor is based on the non-fictional novel “The Help” written by author Kathryn Sockett. The feature film explores the life of African American maids of Jackson Mississippi, in the early 1960’s. The 1960’s displayed all African Americans to being left out of the “American dream” through neglect and racism. African Americans faced prejudice and discrimination in almost every aspect of their life, from jobs to housing and even their education. They were denied the right to sit at the same lunch counter or use the same public rest