The help is set in Jackson, Mississippi and begins in August 1962. The novel features three main narrators – Aibileen, Minny and Skeeter. This is based on three women who had the courage to stand up to the Mississippian society, putting their lives at risk for the sake of the African American race. Aibileen is a black woman who works for white family, the Leefolts. Mae Mobley Leefolt is two years old, and Aibileen considers the girl “special baby”. Mae Mobley is physically abused and neglected by her mother, Elizabeth. Throughout the novel Aibileen does all she can to boost Mae Mobley’s self-esteem and tries …show more content…
She calls upon the of a number of maids who works for her friends; Aibileen, Minny and Pascagoula in order to make her book a real like interpretation of the struggles they face on a daily bases. Jackson has a community that seems to be very racist and oblivious and close minded towards change and fait treatment towards citizens that reside there. The community seemingly split in two divided over an adequate racial line that has been passed down from generations to generations. Stern guidelines and regulations are put in place in order to separate the blacks and white. The writer gives us a glimpse of the Mississippian world back in the day and how maids were treated and the amount of racism and hatred that occurred in Jackson Mississippi. White Mississippians had been brought up and through social conditioning they had a mentality that prevented them to change their views and allow blacks to live the same luxury they had. Whites had more freedom blacks had, they allowed their communities to grow and flourish whereas blacks’ community became congested and overcrowded due to the restrictions preventing their community to grow “Jackson is just one white neighbourhood after the next” and “the coloured part of town be one big …show more content…
The setting of the novel is tremendously spiteful because these events occurred a short time ago. The white community had tremendous power they had obtained in the later 1800 and 1900s. They saw themselves as the superior race; they controlled everything. They abused power to the point where blacks lost their lives. The Help portrays a dark history of America which is extremely unpleasant due to the placing and the era it occurred. Leaders of the past centuries have paced a path for use; whish allows us to learn from their mistakes and also be weary of the abusing power. Standing up for your beliefs and freedom can be a hard thing to do; it can lead to harsh consequences. Dr Marti Luther King Jnr is seen as a hero in the black community because he stood up for what he believed in even though he was murdered for his beliefs; he also earned respect and dignity. Kathryn Stockett gives us a glimpse of the 1960’s Mississippian world and how inhumane whites were towards not only blacks but also women. This allows viewers to reflect and try and avoid the same mistakes occurring in their community. Viewers also learn a valuable lesson because it allows them to have a different perspective towards their community; also allow the viewers to try and limit the extent of discrimination and prejudice arising in their community. The Help can be viewed as a message that we should never forget mistakes of our