The+Help

**__The Help__** **By Kathryn Stockett**



**Bibliographical Information** ISBN-13: 9780425232200 Publisher: Penguin Group Incorporated Publication Year: 2009 Pages: 451 Genre: Fiction

**Summary**  //The Help// chronicles the lives of three women living in Jackson, Mississippi in the 1960s as they decide to compile a book that will depict the experiences of thirteen African-American household maids. Skeeter, the author and editor the book, is a white woman in her early twenties who has grown tired of how the petty people in her life treat their maids and other Blacks whom they encounter. With all of the Civil Rights movements occurring in the North, she decides to write a book that will first handedly show how poorly Southerners are treating their “help”. In the midst of trying to begin a career in writing, Skeeter sees this as the perfect way for her to raise awareness of the conditions in Jackson. She elicits the help of two such maids, Aibileen and Minny. Skeeter must gain their trust so that the two women will be willing to persuade their fellow maids to partake in this perilous adventure as well. The three women are well aware of the dangers they may face as they embark on this journey, but the dehumanizing treatment of Blacks that is plaguing the South compels them to take the risk.

**Book Review**  //The Help// is an extraordinary novel that is both eye-opening and captivating. In classical literature, as well as studies of history, the hardships underwent by African-American household maids are oftentimes overshadowed by the stories of slavery and major Civil Rights movements. The story portrays an admirable young, white woman who is willing to risk her promising future in order to help bring these household maids the respect and treatment that they deserve. It not only preaches acceptance, but standing up for what you believe in despite how unfavorable the odds may be. It will instill courage, determination, and perseverance in all who read it. Don’t let the length of the novel make you weary; the language and writing style used by Stockett make it a thoroughly enjoyable read. It’s quick pace and clear, descriptive language make it a great choice for a high school classroom studying this portion of our country’s history.

**Author Bio**  Kathryn Stockett has just begun her writing career; in fact //The Help// is the very book that started it. After being born and raised in Jackson, Mississippi herself, she attended the University of Alabama. She attained degrees in both English and Creative Writing before moving to New York City. For nine years she worked in magazine publishing and marketing in NYC. Currently, Stockett lives with her family in Atlanta.

**Analysis of Literary Element**  In //The Help// Kathryn Stockett focuses on a serious problem that once engulfed our country. Even after gaining their freedom African-Americans continued to face discrimination and repression, especially in the southern states. One theme that //The Help// centers around is the importance of standing up for what you believe in.

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">The great lengths that Skeeter goes to in order to complete her book exemplifies this theme. Her friends place an admirable social status and having a well-to-do husband at the highest of their priorities. None of this satisfies Skeeter. She is fed up with Jackson, and the constant belittling of the housemaids that she witnesses on a daily basis further propels her discontent. During this time, whites who were sympathetic to the African-Americans were looked at with equal disgust. Skeeter pays no mind to that as she develops her book, hoping to shed light upon the hateful ways of Mississippi. She is shunned from social events and pushed out of positions in leagues and clubs that she once held, yet she does not let these cold attitudes thwart what she has set out to accomplish.

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Another example of this theme is Aibileen’s and Minny’s compliance help Skeeter write this book. Skeeter’s idea gives Aibileen and Minny the courage to finally do something about how they are treated as housemaids. Knowing what is at stake for the two women if they are caught makes them all the more admirable. Aibileen is growing old and, never having married, must support herself. If she is fired from her current job she will lose the only means of financial support she has. Minny is the mother of five children and the wife of an abusive man. Not only does Minny have to worry about how she would provide for her children if she is caught, she has to worry about what her husband would do to her if he finds out.

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">While the outcome is not quite what the three women had hoped for, they all benefit from their valor and perseverance in some way. Stockett uses these gains to reinforce her theme of standing up for what you believe in. Skeeter is offered a job in New York City at a publishing company, giving her a step forward in her career as well as the chance to start over far away from the people of Jackson. Aibileen is fired from her position as a maid but given Skeeter’s job of writing an advice column for household cleaning at a local paper. The experience has also given Aibileen the confidence to continue writing about other events in her lifetime. After Minny’s husband is fired because of her contributions to the book, Minny finds the strength to take her children and leave him, refusing to suffer through one more unwarranted beating. Perhaps the greatest reward of all was the bond that the three women came away with. The benefits reaped by these three women further the author’s message of standing up for what you believe in. We live in a society where the opinions of others play a large role in determining our decisions and actions, often leading us to make the wrong ones. By following the examples set by these three women readers will get to see the benefits of standing up for and acting upon what you believe in, rather than what others tell you to.

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">**Related Links**
 * http://kathrynstockett.com/
 * http://us.penguingroup.com/static/packages/us/thehelp/synopsis.php