Her Changes

 Author's Note: This is an character development essay about my book "The Help" by. Kathryn Stockett.

 

This book "The Help" by. Kathryn Stockett takes place in Mississippi in 1962, when all anyone ever knew was segregation.The story starts with Aibileen she is one of the main characters of the story. She is a "Black Nanny" and a maid for Mae Mobley and Ms. Leefolt. Mae Mobley is Ms. Leefolts two year old daughter. There are several other main characters in this story you have Miss. Skeeter who graduated from Ole' Miss and is the only who pretty much respected all the African American maids. Another main character of this story is Minny, Minny is a hard worker but has a bad attitude to the white women. She is best friends with Aibileen, and an exceptional cook. Minny worked for Ms. Hilly which takes us to the last important main character. Ms. Hilly treats everyone horriblsdxcy especially everyone who's colored. She felt like she owned them all. Ms. Hilly comes from a very wealthy family. In the 1960's African Americans they never seemed to be equal with whites. There was a law that separated blacks from the whites. For example there were black only schools, water fountains, bathrooms, and buses where separated whites in the front and black people in the back. 

In the beginning of the story Aibleen starts out as a quiet, hardworking, not trusting of the whites she  worked for as their maid. In her life she raised close to 20 white children they all loved her like another mother, and she loved them all like they were her own. Aibleen also went through a loss of her 24 year old son Treelore from falling off of a loading dock at work and being run over by a tractor trailer crushing his lungs, and no one came to his rescue because the didn't consider him worthy enough. 

Through the book Aibleen changes by learning how to trust other maids, and Ms. Skeete . Aibleen also opens up about her past employers from the kids she raised. She also learned a little acceptance with Treelore's death. She gained a truer friendship with Minny and Ms. Skeeter. Within this book Aibleen influenced many people with her stories she told and her kind sole. Her raising several white children and loving them all the same makes her a very gracious woman. With Mae Mobley being the last child she will raise she tries to influence her to accept everyone for  who they are. Aibleen always told Mae Mobley "You is smart, You is beautiful, and you is good." 

Someone in this book who really influences me is Miss. Skeeter because she was the only one who treated everyone with respect. She stuck up for the black against the white. She wrote the story for them. My mother always told me don't judge a book by it's cover because you never know what the story is inside. One thing that Miss. Skeeter did that really stuck out in the book was her relationship with her old maid Constantine, she loved her like a mom. She could tell her anything without regret or being judged.