The Help

September, cotton harvest season, rolls around. Skeeter gets a letter from

Elaine Stein, the Senior Editor of the Adult Book Division of Harper & Row. Miss Stein expresses both amusement and admiration that Skeeter applied for a top editor position without any job experience. She tells her to “write about what disturbs you, particularly if it bothers no one else” (71) and advises her to get an entry-level job at the local newspaper. Miss Stein even offers to look over Skeeter’s best writing ideas and give a professional opinion.

Right away, Skeeter mails a list of ideas, but realizes after the fact she probably wrote down things she thought Miss Stein would want to hear, rather than things she really cares about. Skeeter goes down to the Jackson Journal a few days later for a job interview, and proudly walks away with a job writing the Miss Myrna cleaning advice column. At home, Skeeter’s mother bursts her bubble of excitement over the job by asking if she finds women attractive, saying that there’s a “special root tea” that can “cure” her if that’s the case (75). Skeeter is angered by her mother’s obsession with finding her a man, and storms upstairs.

Skeeter needs help with her column since she doesn’t know the first thing about cleaning. She doesn’t want to ask her family’s maid, Pascagoula, because the thought of enduring her mother’s criticism at every turn is too much. She goes to Elizabeth to see if she can ask Aibileen some cleaning questions, and Elizabeth hesitatingly agrees.

Aibileen immediately knows the solution to each cleaning conundrum Skeeter receives from readers, and Skeeter finds herself talking to Aibileen weekly. Skeeter constantly presses Aibileen for information about Constantine, and Aibileen eventually reveals that Constantine was let go; she didn’t quit like Skeeter’s mother led her to believe. However, Aibileen won’t volunteer any other information, and is clearly worried she’s said too much. That day when she gets home, Skeeter confronts her mother about firing Constantine, but her mother still won’t tell her what happened. Skeeter is angry; Constantine raised her, and worked for the Phelan family for 29 years, yet she was fired? Something isn’t adding up.

In her conversations with Aibileen, Skeeter learns that Aibileen’s son, Treelore, liked to write. Aibileen relaxes when Elizabeth isn’t around, and although she still won’t share much about Constantine, she does reveal that whatever happened with Constantine had to do with her daughter. Skeeter is surprised to learn Constantine had a daughter, and Aibileen explains that Constantine’s daughter was white, which is probably why she didn’t talk about her.

Skeeter sees on the national news that a Black man was accepted at Ole Miss. However, at Hilly’s house where everyone is gathered to watch the Ole Miss football game, no one seems to be talking about it. Instead, Hilly brings up Skeeter’s upcoming date with Stuart. Hilly and Elizabeth are both excited for Skeeter to meet him and have hopes for her to meet a great guy she can be happy with. At home, Skeeter receives another letter from Miss Stein. Miss Stein expresses disappointment in Skeeter’s “passionless” topics (89) and says Skeeter should only write again if she has original ideas that she actually cares about. As Skeeter works on the League newsletter that afternoon and once again leaves out Hilly’s bathroom initiative, a writing idea pops into her head and lodges there.