Log #2

Throughout these two weeks, I've only finished six chapters because it never occurred to me that I would be too busy to spare time for handling well both of my studies and my school club, which is the student government. Time management is definitely something that I need to put much emphasis on. To be honest, I admit that "the help" is such a novel that can still catch my attention despite of this awkward condition. It still makes me want to get involve in the plot. What I've read in these two weeks was from a white woman's perspective, and it was really different from the one I read in the previous week because it was related to black maid's. It's said that white women face some difficulties as well. Skeeter, the main character, who is only twenty three years old, is under enormous pressure to marry; all of her friends have done so, her mother is constantly badgering her about getting a boyfriend. However, Skeeter loves her career more than anything else and she knows that it will definitely put an end to her professional ambitions if she does so. But though she tries to avoid marriage, her family, friends, and society do not let her forget that she will be considered a failure until she marries. As a woman, Skeeter's position in the white world is inferior. Women seem to be not treated equally in the workplace. She is discouraged from getting a job despite her education and talents, and she discovers that she will be paid less than a man for performing the same work. Moreover, she is judged improperly by her appearance and her social activities in a job interview. In addition, she persists despite of this disrespect, and manages to get a minor position writing a column about women's work. So, it's a start. Despite of her gender, Skeeter still has a great deal of power over the maids. She essentially writes down Aibileen's experience in her column and doesn't think about it twice. Moreover, Skeeter also questions something she has been taught in her childhood, such as the idea that black people are all dirty and diseased. In these six chapters, the plot offers us a more detailed perspective on the relationship between black maids and the white children they raise. Skeeter treasures her memories with her maid named Constantine, and has a more loving relationship with her than she did with her own mother. I can feel that the struggle of black maids with having little influence over the children they care for. I saw an indication that racism can be an even more serious issue than separating bathroom facilities. Eager to have similar treatments will haunt all of the black characters throughout the rest of the novel. It's known desperately that the price for challenging racism can be violence or death.