A bit of Minny and a lot of Miss Skeeter

                Everyday Minny comes back to work Miss Celia appears to be excited that she actually returned, but Minny makes sure to remind Miss Celia every payday how many days are left before Miss Celia must tell her husband that she’s hired help. But everyday closer to the deadline Miss Celia becomes more and more nervous.

                Nevertheless, Minny makes note that Miss Celia is about the laziest person she has ever seen. All she does is sit around in the house and lay in bed, occasionally rising to go upstairs in the empty bedrooms or for cooking lessons with Minny. But she tries to stay out of her business and just look forward to that day Miss Celia does have to lie about her. Things get very stressful for Minny when she believes Mister Johnny has come home and she runs to hide in a bathroom.

“My eyes grow sharper in the dark. After a minute, I see myself in the mirror over the sink. Crouched like a fool on top of a white lady’s toilet.

                Look at me. Look what it’s come to for Minny Jackson to make a damn living.” (Stockett 62)

                Next we get to learn about Miss Skeeter, or Eugenia Phelan. Being a tall, lanky and awkward girl, she’s no beauty queen, but the only of her friends to actually finish college and not drop out to get married. This is to her mother’s dismay; however, because she would rather Skeeter get married than have a diploma.

“’Four years my daughter goes off to college and what does she come home with?’

‘A diploma?’

‘A pretty piece of paper,’ Mother says” (Stockett 64)

 Miss Skeeter was raised by a colored woman named Constantine, whom she loved and bonded more with than her own mother. Now older, Miss Skeeter desperately wants to figure out what happened to Constantine, who randomly disappeared without explanation. And whenever she asks the help about her, no one seems to be willing to give her an answer.

                Now graduated, Miss Skeeter seeks a job in the newspaper so she can eventually pursue her dream of becoming a writer. She manages to find a job writing Miss Myrna columns in the newspaper, which covers different cleaning techniques. She just encounters one problem about this job. She does actually know how to be a housewife.