You is Kind. You is Smart. You is Important.

The novel, “The Help”, was made into a movie in 2011 which was written and directed by Tate Taylor. The author, Kathryn Stockett, was part of the civil rights movement in 1960. Stockett decided to write the novel so that her readers as well as the movie audience could get an idea of what life was like during such a remarkable era. Throughout the movie there are examples of cultural differences, interpersonal communication, cultural dimension, listening, biases, prejudice, lies, and cultural sensitivity are just to name a few.

Overall, the purpose of the movie is to recreate life in the early 1960’s of black maids, white women, and their relationships with each other. The unspoken stories of black women and their experience’s in providing services to white women are a narrative of civil rights in America1.The Help is not so much about the degraded black servants as it is about their white sympathizers.

Interpersonal communication is defined as the verbal and nonverbal interaction between two, and or more than two, interdependent people. In the movie, there are several examples of communication taking place between people that are in some way “connected.” Eugenia Phelen, known as “Skeeter” in the movie comes home from college at Ole Miss and realizes her hometown girlfriends are nothing more than a bunch of bigots. Skeeter obtains a job with the local newspaper and writes the column “Miss Myrna” housecleaning tips. While she was gone to college she never noticed how the white women degrade their black maids until now and given she is an aspiring writer, she decides to write a book from a black maids perspective. The movie portrays interpersonal communication between the housewives, the maids, the children whom the maids tend to,...

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...e heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.” But I never knew the life of a black maid. By the end of the movie I had more respect for African American’s and appreciate each and every thing they did to stand up for their right to equality. My two most favorite scenes would be when the little girl is reassured by Ms. Aibileen that “You is kind. You is Smart. You is important” and when Minny takes one of her “special” pies to Mrs. Hilly. What an intelligent, clever way to get revenge! The most important thing which I have learned by watching “The Help” is that white people are not any better than black people. We should all be treated with respect and equally.

Works Cited

Baldwin, Kemery. ""The Help" Offers A Reflection on Courage." St. Charles Patch. N.p., 19 Aug. 2011. Web. 20 Apr. 2014.