book / 2009
The Help
Black domestic workers and a young white writer collaborate on a risky book about labor, racism, and daily humiliation in Mississippi.
Verified facts
- Author
- Kathryn Stockett
- Published
- 2009
- Language
- English
PlotGeeks explainer signals
Why read this explainer
Skeeter's chance to publish rests on testimony from women who face retaliation at work. The risks of the writing project are unequal.
PlotGeeks note
Aibileen's move toward authorship grows from work and grief that her employers have kept private. Publication brings recognition alongside continuing danger.
Connected knowledge
Connected in PlotGeeks
Related explainers and browse pages for The Help.
- Compare with The Help (2011 film)
Compare what changes between the 2009 book and the 2011 film.
Timeline
Major events
- Skeeter seeks testimony
Her writing ambitions bring her to Aibileen, whose household knowledge first helps with a newspaper column.
- Workers join the project
Aibileen, Minny and other domestic workers weigh the risks of describing their employers.
- Help is published
Readers in Jackson begin recognizing themselves and their neighbors despite the project's concealments.
- Retaliation reaches Aibileen
Hilly's accusation ends Aibileen's job, while Skeeter prepares to leave Jackson for publishing work.
Story in 60 Seconds
The short version
In early-1960s Jackson, aspiring writer Skeeter seeks stories from Black domestic workers about their treatment by white employers. Aibileen, grieving her son's death while raising another woman's child, begins helping her. Minny joins despite her distrust, bringing experiences of humiliation and retaliation. Their project depends on trust that Skeeter's ambitions alone cannot secure, and other workers must decide whether telling the truth is worth risking their livelihoods. Publication exposes conduct that polite households keep private. Its success changes the contributors' opportunities, but it also gives angry employers new reasons to punish them.
Spoiler sectionEnding ExplainedShow ending detailsHide ending details
Publication does not protect every contributor from retaliation. Hilly accuses Aibileen of stealing silver and brings her employment with the Leefolts to an end, while Skeeter prepares to leave for a publishing job in New York. Aibileen's departure opens the possibility of a writing life, but losing access to Mae Mobley makes that freedom painful as well as hopeful.
Original context
Why it matters
What the conflict reveals
Skeeter can pursue publication, but Aibileen and Minny risk retaliation from employers. The writing project depends on testimony whose dangers fall unequally on its contributors.
Key turning points
Publication reaches Jackson
The anonymous accounts become recognizable to readers in the town they describe. The workers' fear of retaliation changes from a prospective risk into consequences they must manage.
Character links
Who connects to whom
Character motivations
Aibileen chooses to contribute
Aibileen's grief and experience of domestic work give her reasons to speak despite the danger. Sharing her knowledge allows a writing role beyond supplying invisible expertise to employers.
Adaptation