The Help Character Analysis
One is not born knowing the difference between right and wrong, but must observe the actions of others to confirm their own beliefs. Often, while observing others’ lives, adolescents do not remember the respectable actions of those around them, but instead set people apart based on the evil they encountered. It is much easier for someone to see another’s actions and understand its immorality than to recognize the decent ones; for those who perform good deeds do not lure attention but those who act poorly always draw a crowd. Kathryn Stockett acknowledged this aspect of human nature and applied it in her bestselling novel The Help by including the character of Hilly Holbrook to depict the “villain” which lied within most of the white southerners
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during the 1960s. Through Holbrook’s actions, such as creating the Home Help Sanitation Initiative, manipulating the court system to send her own help to jail, and framing maids for crimes to get them fired, she conveyed the role of cruelty that was seen in many white homes towards the black help during this time.
The character of Miss Hilly is immediately portrayed as a racist whom possesses a superior attitude to everyone she encounters. This becomes evident when she announces at a Junior League meeting that she believes “it is just plain dangerous” for white families to allow their help to use an indoor bathroom due to the “different kinds of diseases” they carry (10). Although few agree with this proposal, Holbrook decides to create the “Home Help Sanitation Initiative” to encourage other white families to protect themselves from what she believes to be the horrors of sharing a bathroom with the help. Of the many dreadful acts committed by Hilly Holbrook, this seems to be her consistent focus throughout the novel and serves as a way to display to the readers the extent of her moral compass. Later, when one of the main characters, Skeeter Phelan, rewords the initiative in the League’s newsletter to sabotage her, Hilly Holbrook makes it her personal mission to not only abuse her power against the help, but also against her friend as well. The mindset that Holbrook must possess to fight so persistently in the attempt to separate races from sharing a bathroom, even when it costs her the loyalty of her best friend, truly displays the villain within her. Stockett included this aspect of the work to express how irrational Holbrook’s ideas seemed, but then illuminate the reality of the widespread acceptance of separate facilities in this time. The major focus of Holbrook’s character is used to symbolize the absurd laws the government made and how people blindly followed them, adding a deeper message to Stockett’s work.
Many of the African American women who worked as “the help” to the white families were not only underpaid, but also underappreciated. The lack of benefits and understanding that the help received from their employers made providing for their own families very difficult. Such was the case with Miss Hilly’s maid, Yule May Crookle, who had twin sons she was attempting to send to college. When she lacked only seventy-five dollars to provide an education for both sons, and asked for a loan, Holbrook responded, “A true Christian does not give any charity to those who are well and able” (296). After Yule May steals a invaluable ring from Miss Hilly, she is sent to the Mississippi State Penitentiary for four years in addition to a five-hundred dollar fine. The crime committed by Yule May clearly does not deserve the punishment assigned, but due to Holbrook’s power in Jackson, she arranged not only for the court trial to be done very quickly, but also for the penalty to be embellished. The manipulation of the court system commonly occurred during this time to punish African Americans for minor crimes committed. Holbrook, portraying the villain in this novel, conveyed a perfect example of the unjust influence a well-known family could have on a government process. By including this incident in The Help, Stockett not only further glamorized the evil intentions of Miss Hilly, but also acknowledged a serious issue in the 1960s regarding the misjudgment in courts due to race.
Hilly Holbrook, while often acting with immorality, was praised in the town of Jackson, Mississippi due to the leadership positions she held within the community.
Other white families saw this as admirable, but to the help, her authority was seen as a threat to ensure proper behavior. One of the novels main characters, Minny Jackson, was employed by Miss Hilly’s mother, Mrs. Walters, and was known for being the best cook in town. After Hilly Holbrook decided to send her mother to a nursing home, therefore leaving Minny unemployed, she used her influence in town to convince everyone that Minny had stolen from Mrs. Walters in the attempt to prevent her from being hired elsewhere; leaving her so desperate that she would work for Miss Hilly herself. In addition to hurting Minny’s career, Holbrook convinced many Jackson women to fire their help after she gathered which ones had contributed stories to help publish “The Help”. Aibileen Clark, another main character who was exposed for having great influence on the book, was framed for stealing and after forty years as a maid felt that, due to Miss Hilly’s actions, “in thirty minutes, [her] whole life’s…done”(522). By allowing the two main characters to personally be victimized by Hilly Holbrook, Stockett provokes a hate in each reader for the villain that is Miss Hilly. Although these manipulations may be exaggerated, the mistreatment and racism that occurred by the fictional character of Hilly Holbrook and real people during this time period still ensued. It is easier for a reader to hate the antagonist when they are hurting a character they have grown to know and sympathize with, but Stockett wishes to use these stories to display how the villains of this time should have been pictured all
along.
When one revisits past decisions, the opposing options are viewed with a new perspective of clarity. This statement also holds truth for people today who observe the actions of those in the 1960s and can quickly point out the flaws of racial tension, but may have not been so swift to do so if they were present during the time that racism was the norm. Stockett’s enlightening novel from the voice of the voiceless gives readers a new perspective to the hardships colored people faced in a time with such racial prevalence. Hilly Holbrook actions through her initiative, manipulating the courts, and sabotaging maids’ jobs, were intended to give a face to those who belittled others due to race in this time and today. Every reader would agree that Holbrook was the obvious villain of this fictional novel, but Stockett aimed to convey that although this character is fictitious, the malice she held for those of a different race and her acts of antagonism were much too common in reality. By having the adversary be a white woman who was respected in her community, Stockett illuminates that evil does not discriminate and can belong to any who sustain it. The character of Hilly Holbrook symbolizes the immorality that was concluded moral, the wrongs that were deemed right, and the brutality that was observed as just during a time of racial feuding in America.
during the 1960s. Through Holbrook’s actions, such as creating the Home Help Sanitation Initiative, manipulating the court system to send her own help to jail, and framing maids for crimes to get them fired, she conveyed the role of cruelty that was seen in many white homes towards the black help during this time.
The character of Miss Hilly is immediately portrayed as a racist whom possesses a superior attitude to everyone she encounters. This becomes evident when she announces at a Junior League meeting that she believes “it is just plain dangerous” for white families to allow their help to use an indoor bathroom due to the “different kinds of diseases” they carry (10). Although few agree with this proposal, Holbrook decides to create the “Home Help Sanitation Initiative” to encourage other white families to protect themselves from what she believes to be the horrors of sharing a bathroom with the help. Of the many dreadful acts committed by Hilly Holbrook, this seems to be her consistent focus throughout the novel and serves as a way to display to the readers the extent of her moral compass. Later, when one of the main characters, Skeeter Phelan, rewords the initiative in the League’s newsletter to sabotage her, Hilly Holbrook makes it her personal mission to not only abuse her power against the help, but also against her friend as well. The mindset that Holbrook must possess to fight so persistently in the attempt to separate races from sharing a bathroom, even when it costs her the loyalty of her best friend, truly displays the villain within her. Stockett included this aspect of the work to express how irrational Holbrook’s ideas seemed, but then illuminate the reality of the widespread acceptance of separate facilities in this time. The major focus of Holbrook’s character is used to symbolize the absurd laws the government made and how people blindly followed them, adding a deeper message to Stockett’s work.
Many of the African American women who worked as “the help” to the white families were not only underpaid, but also underappreciated. The lack of benefits and understanding that the help received from their employers made providing for their own families very difficult. Such was the case with Miss Hilly’s maid, Yule May Crookle, who had twin sons she was attempting to send to college. When she lacked only seventy-five dollars to provide an education for both sons, and asked for a loan, Holbrook responded, “A true Christian does not give any charity to those who are well and able” (296). After Yule May steals a invaluable ring from Miss Hilly, she is sent to the Mississippi State Penitentiary for four years in addition to a five-hundred dollar fine. The crime committed by Yule May clearly does not deserve the punishment assigned, but due to Holbrook’s power in Jackson, she arranged not only for the court trial to be done very quickly, but also for the penalty to be embellished. The manipulation of the court system commonly occurred during this time to punish African Americans for minor crimes committed. Holbrook, portraying the villain in this novel, conveyed a perfect example of the unjust influence a well-known family could have on a government process. By including this incident in The Help, Stockett not only further glamorized the evil intentions of Miss Hilly, but also acknowledged a serious issue in the 1960s regarding the misjudgment in courts due to race.
Hilly Holbrook, while often acting with immorality, was praised in the town of Jackson, Mississippi due to the leadership positions she held within the community.
Other white families saw this as admirable, but to the help, her authority was seen as a threat to ensure proper behavior. One of the novels main characters, Minny Jackson, was employed by Miss Hilly’s mother, Mrs. Walters, and was known for being the best cook in town. After Hilly Holbrook decided to send her mother to a nursing home, therefore leaving Minny unemployed, she used her influence in town to convince everyone that Minny had stolen from Mrs. Walters in the attempt to prevent her from being hired elsewhere; leaving her so desperate that she would work for Miss Hilly herself. In addition to hurting Minny’s career, Holbrook convinced many Jackson women to fire their help after she gathered which ones had contributed stories to help publish “The Help”. Aibileen Clark, another main character who was exposed for having great influence on the book, was framed for stealing and after forty years as a maid felt that, due to Miss Hilly’s actions, “in thirty minutes, [her] whole life’s…done”(522). By allowing the two main characters to personally be victimized by Hilly Holbrook, Stockett provokes a hate in each reader for the villain that is Miss Hilly. Although these manipulations may be exaggerated, the mistreatment and racism that occurred by the fictional character of Hilly Holbrook and real people during this time period still ensued. It is easier for a reader to hate the antagonist when they are hurting a character they have grown to know and sympathize with, but Stockett wishes to use these stories to display how the villains of this time should have been pictured all
along.
When one revisits past decisions, the opposing options are viewed with a new perspective of clarity. This statement also holds truth for people today who observe the actions of those in the 1960s and can quickly point out the flaws of racial tension, but may have not been so swift to do so if they were present during the time that racism was the norm. Stockett’s enlightening novel from the voice of the voiceless gives readers a new perspective to the hardships colored people faced in a time with such racial prevalence. Hilly Holbrook actions through her initiative, manipulating the courts, and sabotaging maids’ jobs, were intended to give a face to those who belittled others due to race in this time and today. Every reader would agree that Holbrook was the obvious villain of this fictional novel, but Stockett aimed to convey that although this character is fictitious, the malice she held for those of a different race and her acts of antagonism were much too common in reality. By having the adversary be a white woman who was respected in her community, Stockett illuminates that evil does not discriminate and can belong to any who sustain it. The character of Hilly Holbrook symbolizes the immorality that was concluded moral, the wrongs that were deemed right, and the brutality that was observed as just during a time of racial feuding in America.