Sense Of Belonging In Tate Taylor's Film 'The Help'
Belonging is achieved by many paths.
Belonging is a fundamental desire inherent within humans. However, there are various ways to attain a sense of belonging as it can be gained through the forging of relationships to people and places or through the understanding and sharing of similar cultural and religious identities. In Tate Taylor‘s film “The Help”, Peter Skrzynecki’s poem “Feliks Skrzynecki” and “Migrant Hostel”, regardless of whether people attempt to discover belonging under the biased American social context in 1963 or under immigration boom in Post War Australia, the paths lead toward belonging are significantly explored through the actions undertaken by the characters either to maintain one’s belonging or to establish a new sense of belonging.
Undoubtedly, a powerful sense of belonging can be attained through a person’s …show more content…
connection to places and the strong human relationships. In Feliks Skrzynecki, Feliks’s desire to maintain his belonging to his Polish heritage is achieved through his connection with his garden as he “loved his garden like an only child”, the simile compares the garden with his child which emphases his familial and intimate relationship with his garden and his home. The garden is a symbol of his Polish identity/autonomy, consequently this strong affiliation with his Polish culture empowers his preservation of belonging to Poland. Likewise, Feliks’ companionship with his Polish friends is highlighted in the subject of their conversation “about farms where paddocks flowered with corn and wheat, horses they bred..” the agricultural imagery creates a real picture of the Polish farming lifestyles, and reinforces that their friendships is established based on common interests and cultural identity , which further strengthen his sense of belonging to his homeland.
Similarly, the way to gain a sense of belonging through forging relationships is also exposed in “The Help”. Celia as a newcomer of Jackson struggles to find belonging and experiences alienation from the Hilly’s social group as revealed by a framing on the symbolic window between Celia outside Elizabeth’s house and the other ladies inside. The window effectively represents the barrier between Celia and the local residents of Jackson, which leads to her exclusion and not belonging. However, a new way to feel belong is discovered later by Celia through her relationship with Minny as illustrated by a medium shot when she hugs Minny, reflecting her acceptance toward Minny regardless of race and communal prejudice and suggests her desire to forge relationship with residents in Jackson in order to feel belong. The embrace is a symbol of connection and friendship between the two people, which also provides Celia a sense of belonging inside this foreign town.
On the other hand, the desire of belonging can be fulfilled through the shared understanding of similar experiences and cultural identities.
In “Migrant Hostel”, the poet as one of the migrants detained in the migrant hostel describes themselves as “We lived like birds of passage”, the repetitive first person collective pronoun “we” in the poem highlights that the migrants united themselves as a group based their shared understanding of each other’s migratory experiences, and the migratory bird imagery acts as a motif through out the poem conveying their common understanding toward the alienation and segregation they confronted against the mainstream society. More importantly, these understanding and connection of emotions enable their strong belonging to each other. In addition, the way for migrants to obtain a sense of belonging is when the “nationalities sought each other out instinctively”, the use of personification suggests that people with similar cultural identity automatically seeks each other for belonging in the detainment centre where is detached from the Australian community and incapable to forge
relationships.
Likewise, belonging can also be achieved through the understanding based on similar identity and position inside the society. The friendship between Aibileen and Minny’s is essential to sustain their confrontation toward the social inequality and overcoming of dangers catalysed/triggered by racial division due to prejudiced social perception toward African American citizens. Nonetheless, this intimate connection between Aibileen and Minny is linked by their identities as revealed in an aerial shot of Aibileen running in the dark creates a sense of danger and horror which contrasts with the peaceful and calm atmosphere inside Minny’s house when Aibileen walked in created by the warm coloured lighting and the unified skin colour of people sitting inside. This use of juxtaposition reveals that Aibileen cannot find a sense of belonging outside of her community, whereas she can obtain the feeling of security and relief from her relationship with Minny and the African Americans based on their cultural identities and their understanding toward Aibileen’s fear and resentment. Belonging is gained through her and Minny’s cultural identity and Minny’s understanding toward their common suffering and dangers caused by the American society.
Ultimately, through Peter Skrzynecki’s poem “Feliks Skrzynecki” and “Migrant Hostel” where characters such as Feliks Skrzynecki, the migrants, Celia, Aibileen and Minny fight their way to achieve belonging are clearly examined. Therefore, it is evident these texts that the paths to achieve belonging can be varied.
Belonging is a fundamental desire inherent within humans. However, there are various ways to attain a sense of belonging as it can be gained through the forging of relationships to people and places or through the understanding and sharing of similar cultural and religious identities. In Tate Taylor‘s film “The Help”, Peter Skrzynecki’s poem “Feliks Skrzynecki” and “Migrant Hostel”, regardless of whether people attempt to discover belonging under the biased American social context in 1963 or under immigration boom in Post War Australia, the paths lead toward belonging are significantly explored through the actions undertaken by the characters either to maintain one’s belonging or to establish a new sense of belonging.
Undoubtedly, a powerful sense of belonging can be attained through a person’s …show more content…
connection to places and the strong human relationships. In Feliks Skrzynecki, Feliks’s desire to maintain his belonging to his Polish heritage is achieved through his connection with his garden as he “loved his garden like an only child”, the simile compares the garden with his child which emphases his familial and intimate relationship with his garden and his home. The garden is a symbol of his Polish identity/autonomy, consequently this strong affiliation with his Polish culture empowers his preservation of belonging to Poland. Likewise, Feliks’ companionship with his Polish friends is highlighted in the subject of their conversation “about farms where paddocks flowered with corn and wheat, horses they bred..” the agricultural imagery creates a real picture of the Polish farming lifestyles, and reinforces that their friendships is established based on common interests and cultural identity , which further strengthen his sense of belonging to his homeland.
Similarly, the way to gain a sense of belonging through forging relationships is also exposed in “The Help”. Celia as a newcomer of Jackson struggles to find belonging and experiences alienation from the Hilly’s social group as revealed by a framing on the symbolic window between Celia outside Elizabeth’s house and the other ladies inside. The window effectively represents the barrier between Celia and the local residents of Jackson, which leads to her exclusion and not belonging. However, a new way to feel belong is discovered later by Celia through her relationship with Minny as illustrated by a medium shot when she hugs Minny, reflecting her acceptance toward Minny regardless of race and communal prejudice and suggests her desire to forge relationship with residents in Jackson in order to feel belong. The embrace is a symbol of connection and friendship between the two people, which also provides Celia a sense of belonging inside this foreign town.
On the other hand, the desire of belonging can be fulfilled through the shared understanding of similar experiences and cultural identities.
In “Migrant Hostel”, the poet as one of the migrants detained in the migrant hostel describes themselves as “We lived like birds of passage”, the repetitive first person collective pronoun “we” in the poem highlights that the migrants united themselves as a group based their shared understanding of each other’s migratory experiences, and the migratory bird imagery acts as a motif through out the poem conveying their common understanding toward the alienation and segregation they confronted against the mainstream society. More importantly, these understanding and connection of emotions enable their strong belonging to each other. In addition, the way for migrants to obtain a sense of belonging is when the “nationalities sought each other out instinctively”, the use of personification suggests that people with similar cultural identity automatically seeks each other for belonging in the detainment centre where is detached from the Australian community and incapable to forge
relationships.
Likewise, belonging can also be achieved through the understanding based on similar identity and position inside the society. The friendship between Aibileen and Minny’s is essential to sustain their confrontation toward the social inequality and overcoming of dangers catalysed/triggered by racial division due to prejudiced social perception toward African American citizens. Nonetheless, this intimate connection between Aibileen and Minny is linked by their identities as revealed in an aerial shot of Aibileen running in the dark creates a sense of danger and horror which contrasts with the peaceful and calm atmosphere inside Minny’s house when Aibileen walked in created by the warm coloured lighting and the unified skin colour of people sitting inside. This use of juxtaposition reveals that Aibileen cannot find a sense of belonging outside of her community, whereas she can obtain the feeling of security and relief from her relationship with Minny and the African Americans based on their cultural identities and their understanding toward Aibileen’s fear and resentment. Belonging is gained through her and Minny’s cultural identity and Minny’s understanding toward their common suffering and dangers caused by the American society.
Ultimately, through Peter Skrzynecki’s poem “Feliks Skrzynecki” and “Migrant Hostel” where characters such as Feliks Skrzynecki, the migrants, Celia, Aibileen and Minny fight their way to achieve belonging are clearly examined. Therefore, it is evident these texts that the paths to achieve belonging can be varied.