"The Help" Pgs 251 to End: Final Thoughts

I feel that I was a little too hard on The Help in my previous blogs. For all of it's shortcomings, I decided for this last section to take the story at face value; ignoring the historical accuracy and character depth to an extent. It was only then that I truly invested myself into the story and got through the remainder.

I found that, in browsing several interviews with Kathryn Stockett from https://acriticalreviewofthehelp.wordpress.com/a-list-of-interviews-with-kathryn-stockett/ , I found interesting information on the circumstances of Stockett publishing the book. She never intended on sharing the story with the world, but ended up going through the process of publishing after family told her it was good and she expanded on her original. She was also conflicted in that on one hand, she saw that a story from the viewpoint of primarily black maids in the 1960's was not her story to tell, yet she wanted the story to be told. Ultimately, we know what her decision was as otherwise I wouldn't be writing this.

As for the story, to begin with, I was mistaken in claiming that Hilly was written to have no redeemable qualities. She proved to have some amount of depth beyond being an absolute antagonist, even if she ended up the primary antagonist to the end. It's mostly her interactions with miss Skeeter that give her depth. And I suppose it's hard to write a character to be more than a racist when that is one of their defining characteristics in a book based around racial tension. In all seriousness, however, Hilly is still a poorly written character, and that I will stand by.

I liked the interactions between Miss Celia and Minny. Minny developed well from her initially rigid view of how people of different skin color could work together through both her and Skeeter. Really, it was the development that the story really needed, as without her, we'd be left without that transition, as no other character showed such a drastic level of change and everyone generally remained the same by the end as when introduced. She was a well-rounded character that made the story entertaining both with her brand of humor and good development, while at the same time providing some of the more disturbing parts of it that she experienced.

Finally,  Skeeter and her book ended up causing a whole mess of trouble with Hilly and a radio station that condemned the work. I am left to wonder just how much of an impact the book really had on the rights of African Americans, specifically maids, even if the book is historical fiction. In wondering, I then question the point of the story, and no, I am not referring to the theme of segregation in the 1960's. I questioned the point of using the book as the primary plot device, given that, as I have just said, it can't really have an effect on the law.

My final thoughts of the book are as follows: despite its lack of historical accuracy (see the first blog), use of nigh-impossible to respect antagonists, and almost subverted messages through the text in the form of self-degrading values for many characters (for example, Aibileen being able to, for the most part, get over her son's death by more or less replacing him with Mae Mobley), the book has some merits that I respect. It is by no means worthy of being a best seller in my eyes, as pretentious as that sounds, but even the author acknowledges that, as she states in many interviews.

"The Help" Pgs 166-250: Criticism, criticism...

Criticism. It's healthy. It keeps one's standards high. It prods at flaws that can be improved upon. It can be used to analyze a story. In pointing out what's wrong or "off" with an author's writing, one can probe for a meaning beyond their confusion. I'm about to do just that, so be ready.

It never really occurred to me just how thick Miss Skeeter is in the head until now. I knew she wasn't the one with the most common sense, certainly, but she takes the time to explain just what should have been pretty obvious dozens of pages ago. For example, on page 202, she reads sections of the Jim Crow laws, only to conclude:

"… There's no difference between these government laws and Hilly building Aibileen a bathroom in the garage…" -Pg 203

Obviously they're both being done to segregate African Americans and white people, yet she had to sound that out for herself? I forgave her interactions with Aibileen, considering that she was played as an awkward, book smart but not street-smart person. She understood that black and white people still were immensely segregated despite the supreme court's recent ruling given the time of the story. This was not necessary to get into.

On another note, I think I gagged at the thought of Elizabeth being pregnant. After what she's done with her first kid, she thinks having a second is a good idea? Perhaps one of the more revolting characters of the cast, Elizabeth doesn't deserve the right to be called a mother. I'm not aware of how parents in this time and place treated their kids, and I don't trust the author to know herself, but somehow I don't think that Elizabeth's "parenting" would be acceptable treatment of a child even then.

I can't tell you if these characters are believable. They are obviously written to fit roles, with characters like Miss Hilly being antagonizing general racists and Miss Skeeter being elevated as a heroine. There is not a single redeeming factor about Miss Hilly or Elizabeth in my eyes. Every story needs its hero and conflict, and although I understand the point of not antagonizing the oppressed African American maids, well-written characters could be made to fit said roles without making either of them out to be an ultimate good or ultimate bad. I know I said that I'd focus more on the story this post, but I can't just ignore these points.

(Source re-used from previous post)
Source: https://acriticalreviewofthehelp.wordpress.com/2011/05/09/facts-surrounding-the-help/