Essay on the Book "The Help"

361 Words2 Pages
In the novel The Help, Aibileen is a gentle, motherly woman who loves the white children she works to raise. Throughout the book, she works for a white family, the Leefolt’s. During her time there, she attempts to teach their child, Mae Mobley, to battle the societal racism at the time. I think that Aibileen’s efforts would have made a huge impact on the Leefolt’s child in the future. If she would have stayed and worked, Mae Mobley would have had that strong voice throughout her childhood. I think that her attempt at convincing Mae Mobley’s mind had influenced her well. I strongly believe that Mae Mobley wouldn’t have supported her parents’ opinion towards racism and sexism, due to the outlook Aibileen helped her try and see towards black people. At the time, racism was the main point of view during the novel. Racism can be defined as prejudice or discrimination directed against someone of a different race based on such a belief. I feel that today racism has changed drastically. Yes, it does still exist in many Countries, but it is nowhere near as much of a problem then it was in recent years. Sexism on the other hand, can be defined as prejudice, stereotyping, or discrimination. During the novel, sexism takes place in several different situations, such as “the help” only being woman. “The help” is affected by both sexism and racism. In today’s society, I think that sexism is still the same as how it is portrayed in the book. I think that society still looks down upon women and the jobs they are capable of. In the novel it is rare for woman to be responsible for making the main income. Even though today women support their children and home on their own, I think that most of society has only just begun to change their mind about women taking on higher roles. In my opinion, Aibileen was the start of a revolution during her time period in the book. Aibileen’s way of
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