Literary Criticism In The Help

The Help by Kathryn Stockett gave everyone insight to the life of an African American woman in the early 1960s. The Help criticized racial inequality, and gives society an insider's view of segregation and fear of the status quo in their own race. Throughout the 1960s many African American woman worked in housekeeping. The novel follows the lives of three maids who are have a book wrote from their point of view. The story follows them as they go through the struggles of life and how stressful writing the book is on them because of time period and how dangerous it was to be seen with a person of the different race if you weren't working for them. Being seen with a person of the different race could get you labeled or worse thrown in jail for an integration violation.

“‘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.

The Help, by Kathryn Stockett, is story about the journey of a young woman, Skeeter, standing up for what she believes in and following her dreams. This story is set in Jackson, Mississippi during the 1960’s, which is the height of the Civil Rights movement period. The story is through the viewpoint of three narrators: Skeeter Phalen, Aibileen Clark, and Minny Jackson. Skeeter is the main narrator out of the three. She is a young white woman returning home after receiving her journalism degree from Ole Miss. She is reuinited by her friends, Hilly Holbrook and Elizabeth Leefolt.. After receiving a job at the Jackson Journal writing for the home cleaning section, she goes to Aibileen, Elizabeth’s colored maid, for help. She and

“‘Don’t you ever wish you could change things?”’ (Stockett 10). In Jackson, Mississippi during the 1960s. A 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.

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 Help” by Kathryn Stockett is a personal memoir written in the perspective of 20 year old graduate Eugenia “Skeeter” Phelan. This story begins with Skeeter finishing school and coming home to a house with her maid, Constantine Jefferson, no where to be found. She begins questioning her mother about her whereabouts, with no luck. She begins to understand the prejudice that comes with being black in the day and age of 1962, with hopes of getting these women to tell their sides of the story she sets out on recruiting Aibileen.

For my trimester one book project I chose “The Help”. The bright yellow jacket on the book caught my attention as I was glancing through the library shelves. Once I saw the book I recalled that a friend had recommended this book and I had not read the book. The Help is a Realistic Fiction set in the early 1960s in Jackson, Mississippi. This novel gives us a glimpse into the lives of several African American women coming together and creating a book about their experiences working as domestic help. In this story, we see how a group of domestic help get together with Skeeter Phelan, to put together their personal life chronicles. and publish it at a great personal cost. I chose the book to gain an insight into the lives of the people who help

As Zora Neale Hurston once said, “If you are silent about your pain, they’ll kill you and say you enjoyed it.” In The Help by Katherine Stockett, three brave women of different races join together to stand up for what they believe in and publish an anonymously written book based on the treatment of black maids working for white families in Jackson, Mississippi during the 1960s. In the novel, Aibileen, Minny, and Skeeter tell their stories from different perspectives in order to give voice to those who cannot be heard.

The Help has a very important and relevant plot. Skeeter Phelan, a strong-headed young woman who sees the reality of racism the black maids face in her town of Jackson, Mississippi, decides to write a novel exposing what it is like to be working as a coloured woman tending to white families. After much effort, she convinces a friend’s ‘help,’ Aibileen Clark, to share her stories and recruit other Jackson maids to tell theirs. Through struggle and abuse, Minny Jackson continues to work as a maid to Celia Foote who is a slightly off-her-rocker, but well-meaning woman. Skeeter is involved in an on-again-off-again relationship with a Senator’s son, Stuart Whitworth, until he finally gives up trying for her when she admits to him her secret. Finally Miss Hilly, the town’s self-appointed queen, rules the racism with an iron fist and tries her hardest to sabotage Skeeter’s project. This book fits the theme

The Help by Kathryn Stockett, is a book set in the early 1960s in Jackson, Mississippi, told by three different women: Abilene, Minny and Skeeter, in each of their perspectives. Eugenia “Skeeter” Phelan is a graduate student whose dream is to become a writer, but when she tries for a position at the local newspaper, she is given the job of writing housekeeping tips.

The novel The Help is a very interesting and monumental book. The book takes place in Mississippi during the 1960’s. A southern girl named Skeeter returns home from college. Skeeter dreams of becoming a famous writer that writes about important things facing our society. Skeeter astonishes her small town by choosing to write about her interviews with the black women in her community who have spent their lives taking care of white families. At the beginning only one maid Aibileen will speak. As the two women continue more women come forward and speak about the terrible troubles they face. The two main themes of this novel are how Skeeter defies the sexist standards of women in the south and how black maids are treated while taking care white

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.

“The Help” is a movie about African-American maids working in white households in Jackson, Mississippi. The two black maids, Aibileen Clark and Minny Jackson, tells their side of the story to a young white woman, Eugenia “Skeeter” Phelan, who is a journalist who decides to write a book from the maids point of views. Skeeters intention for writing this book is exposing the racism they receive while working for white families in Jackson. Aibileen Clark takes care of white children and helps raise them and cleans around the house, while her best friend, Minny Jackson, is an outspoken black maid but has a quick short temper which gets her into trouble later on. Eugenia “Skeeter” Phelan is a white single independent woman, she earned a double-major

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.