Character Analysis: The Help By Kathryn Stockett
She Makes a Difference
Friends that shouldn’t be friends. The Help, authored by Kathryn Stockett, is a book about black maids or the “help”. Young white Skeeter made it to the not so long journey home, to Jackson, Mississippi, after graduating from college. She wants to become a marvelous and famous journalist and author. After getting a job for the local newspaper, writing about Mrs. Myrna which is about cleaning, she needed help. Her aspect changes on the help and blacks in general.
Skeeter, one of the few white people that start to treat the Negros with dignity and have a different view of them. At the beginning of the book she doesn’t think anything about the help being treated badly or having unfair work quality. But when Elaine Stein …show more content…
told Skeeter, “Write about what disturbs you, particularly if it bothers no one else” (pg. 83), she knew exactly what to write about. When getting with the maids and interviewing them, she feels differently about the maids being persecuted. She feels like it’s, somewhat, her fault for being white.
What made her feelings change?
Well, when her loud and obnoxious mother fired the help that took care of Skeeter since she was born, she knew it was time to make a change. When Skeeter found out that the help, Constantine, was freed she was devastated. She thought of Constantine as an ally or a mother. Skeeter even uses ‘ally’ in the book, “I had to accept thatConstantine, my one true ally, had left me to fend for myself with these people” (pg. 81). She will always miss Constantine.
Furthermore, one other reason Skeeters feelings change is because Hilly, one of Skeeters friends, wanted to write a news article stating that every white house should have a separate bathroom so they don’t get diseases from the help. Skeeter thought this was ridiculous to so such a thing. So she asked Hillys’ maid about it. This gave her the idea to interview the help about racial discrimination and their thoughts.
Therefore Skeeter starts to think less of her friends, mother, and people who discriminate blacks in general. You can see clearly that she wants this, especially when she speaks to one of the maids in the interview and says, “I’m tired of the rules” (pg. 180). Skeeter says she can’t take the rules anymore, like how blacks cannot go to the same school or even use the bathroom. She feels the need to change the rules and tell people about how ignorant they
are.
Skeeters attitude to change racial discrimination motivates the book, The Help, itself by creating suspense. If Skeeter did not feel so strongly and over all just done with the help getting mistreated there wouldn’t be any motivation for the book or a book in general. She creates drama, by interviewing the maids. The maids or her could get killed. Also, the maids can lose their jobs, family, or friends.
In conclusion Skeeter treats black with more dignity and respect, unlike all the other stuck up people of her time. She looks at the help differently, in the best way possible. Skeeter sees things for what they truly are, even if the blacks “have different diseases”. She acts on this topic and now willing to make a difference.
Friends that shouldn’t be friends. The Help, authored by Kathryn Stockett, is a book about black maids or the “help”. Young white Skeeter made it to the not so long journey home, to Jackson, Mississippi, after graduating from college. She wants to become a marvelous and famous journalist and author. After getting a job for the local newspaper, writing about Mrs. Myrna which is about cleaning, she needed help. Her aspect changes on the help and blacks in general.
Skeeter, one of the few white people that start to treat the Negros with dignity and have a different view of them. At the beginning of the book she doesn’t think anything about the help being treated badly or having unfair work quality. But when Elaine Stein …show more content…
told Skeeter, “Write about what disturbs you, particularly if it bothers no one else” (pg. 83), she knew exactly what to write about. When getting with the maids and interviewing them, she feels differently about the maids being persecuted. She feels like it’s, somewhat, her fault for being white.
What made her feelings change?
Well, when her loud and obnoxious mother fired the help that took care of Skeeter since she was born, she knew it was time to make a change. When Skeeter found out that the help, Constantine, was freed she was devastated. She thought of Constantine as an ally or a mother. Skeeter even uses ‘ally’ in the book, “I had to accept thatConstantine, my one true ally, had left me to fend for myself with these people” (pg. 81). She will always miss Constantine.
Furthermore, one other reason Skeeters feelings change is because Hilly, one of Skeeters friends, wanted to write a news article stating that every white house should have a separate bathroom so they don’t get diseases from the help. Skeeter thought this was ridiculous to so such a thing. So she asked Hillys’ maid about it. This gave her the idea to interview the help about racial discrimination and their thoughts.
Therefore Skeeter starts to think less of her friends, mother, and people who discriminate blacks in general. You can see clearly that she wants this, especially when she speaks to one of the maids in the interview and says, “I’m tired of the rules” (pg. 180). Skeeter says she can’t take the rules anymore, like how blacks cannot go to the same school or even use the bathroom. She feels the need to change the rules and tell people about how ignorant they
are.
Skeeters attitude to change racial discrimination motivates the book, The Help, itself by creating suspense. If Skeeter did not feel so strongly and over all just done with the help getting mistreated there wouldn’t be any motivation for the book or a book in general. She creates drama, by interviewing the maids. The maids or her could get killed. Also, the maids can lose their jobs, family, or friends.
In conclusion Skeeter treats black with more dignity and respect, unlike all the other stuck up people of her time. She looks at the help differently, in the best way possible. Skeeter sees things for what they truly are, even if the blacks “have different diseases”. She acts on this topic and now willing to make a difference.