Kathryn Stockett’s novel The Help is set in the year of 1962 in Jackson, Mississippi. During this time period the Deep South is alive and thriving with segregation and racism. This novel follows several women both black and white as they struggle to accept or reject what is their daily lives. While some characters are decent enough to have compassion on others, some do not possess this trait. Stockett shows compassion through the nefarious Hilly Holbrook, the unsympathetic Miss Leefolt along with Charlotte Phelan as well. Stockett’s character Aibileen Clark is Miss Leefolt’s wise and weathered African American maid. Although she is rarely treated with respect, Aibileen is a nurturing and caring character. She shows immense affection towards Miss Leefolt’s two year old daughter Mae Mobley. Aibileen has raised a total of seventeen other white children in her life time of fifty…show more content… Despite her many miscarriages and not so happy backstory Celia was not bitter. She was mostly respectful to everyone in the novel and took others feelings into consideration before her actions. Towards Minny, Celia’s attitude was always positive. Celia treated Minny and everyone else with equality. In my opinion equality is the greatest form of compassion. Hilly Holbrook was the complete opposite of Celia Foote. Hilly Holbrook showed absolutely no compassion through the entire novel. Hilly set up her maid, Yule May, up and denied her when she was in need of money. Instead of loaning her the $75 she was in need of, she sends her to jail for theft. This backfired on her in the end, this event cause eleven more maids to contribute to Skeeter’s writing about the help. Hilly also gossiped about everyone she knew. She put Minny out of a job and made it almost impossible for her to get another by telling all the ladies of Jackson that she cannot cook and stole silver. In the end Hilly got what she deserved from one of Minny Jackson’s famous
