The Help Movie Analysis

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Movie Analysis Paper The Help Lisa Burgess Davenport University SOSC201 Jackie Andrade-Davila April 1, 2018 Movie Synopsis The Help is a 2011 film written by Tate Taylor. The setting takes place during the 1960s in Jackson, Mississippi. The Civil Rights Movement and Jim Crow laws were in full swing. Jim Crow laws were developed in the South to keep the whites and blacks separate; “Blacks couldn’t use the same public facilities as whites, live in the same towns or go to the same schools” (History.com, 2009). The film also notes that “any person printing, publishing or circulating written matter urging public acceptance of social equality between blacks and whites is subject to imprisonment” (The Help, 2011). Medgar Evers, an…show more content…
Hilly was trying to establish a “Home Help Sanitation Initiative” requiring black maids to have separate bathrooms outside. She believed that the maids carried different diseases than white people, therefore, they should not be allowed to use the same bathrooms as white people. Hilly’s mother also displays racism as she refers to the maids as “niggers”. Skeeter’s mother demonstrated sexism in the movie as she was consistently harping on Skeeter to find a husband and not worry about her career as much. Additionally, she expresses concerns that Skeeter may be having “unnatural thoughts” towards women and may need professional help in one scene. She even suggested that there was a new medication that could be taken to prevent such thoughts. The bus driver demonstrated racism in the movie as well. After the assassination of Medgar Evers, there were riots breaking out in town. Even though there was no one causing trouble on the bus, the driver still stopped the bus. Then he told the colored people that they must exit the bus but the white people may continue. When asked what happened he responded “I don’t know some nigger got shot” (The Help, 2011). Community and workplace…show more content…
If the characters of The Help expressed cultural competence, I believe, that the entire story line would have changed. Cultural competence involves showing respect and fairness towards others. Although some of the maids were treated kindly and fairly by their employers, the majority were not. The idea of writing a book about “the help” would not have sounded so appealing if there wasn’t some conflict. The work environment would not have been as stressful and the maids would not have had as many heart-breaking stories to share. Therefore, the community atmosphere would have changed as well. Both races would be able to learn from each other instead of being afraid of each other’s
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