We Wear the Mask by Paul Laurence Dunbar explains the emotions of African Americans during times of racism and segregation. The poem uses the metaphor of using a mask to hide true feelings. African Americans pretend to be happy to the white people while in reality they are tormented. In the book The Help, I think Aibileen perfectly represents the truth to this poem. Aibileen is a maid in the 1960’s in Jackson, Mississippi. She works for Miss Leefolt, A young lady who is driven by peer pressure of her racist friend Hilly. Aibileen is constantly treated like a lower class of human and does her best to keep her cool. In the novel, Miss Hilly is convincing Miss Leefolt to purchase a separate bathroom for Aibileen. To herself, Aibileen wishes she can say how stupid that is but, holds herself back and “puts on a mask” to hide her emotions. Even though she would want to like to let out her anger, she can’t because she would be fired from her job. When Aibileen is fired for being framed of stealing silverware, she is given the opportunity of letting her emotions out, but does not. I believe she feels that Hilly and Miss Leefolt don’t deserve to see her true emotions. In the poem, the second stanza explains that the world should only see the fake feelings of African Americans. The poem is explaining that African Americans don’t want to be sympathized by the white people. The poem also capitalizes the word “we” as to show that the poem is representing all of the African American Community. The book “The Help” also tries to speak as a representative of all African Americans about the harsh life they all share. The theme of the poem and the characteristics of Aibileen are a perfect match. They both incorporate hiding emotions and the feeling of being held into a type of social order. Not only does “The Help” and “We Wear the Mask” represent African Americans but also represent all people who are treated poorly due to race.
You May Also Find These Documents Helpful
-
“Let’s stop believing that our differences make us superior or inferior to one another”- Don Miguel Ruiz. The novel “The Help” by Kathryn Stockett is a controversial and heart-wrenching story that depicts the cruel brutality and inequality that African Americans faced in Jackson, Mississippi during the early 1960’s. In the novel, Stockett shows the inequality between races, how Caucasian Americans believed they were superior, and the bigotry between social classes through the characterization of the main characters and bringing forth facts from that time setting. These issues have changed over the years but are yet still here in a more subtle way.…
- 102 Words
- 1 Page
Good Essays -
The first thought that comes to mind when talking about racism is the separation of two races based on skin tone. “In 1960, when a six-year-old girl enrolled in a white school in New Orleans, parents withdrew their white children in her class. She was the only child in her classroom for over a year.”(Baughman et. al.). In the 1960s, African Americans were mistreated in the US, mostly in the south. Kathryn Stockett, the author, assumed that society wouldn’t be as understanding in her writing The Help, because many wouldn’t clasp the fact that the nation was discriminating.(Stockett). For her, though, it was convenient to write about the other side of the situation in this era. “I don’t have to think about the dialect. It wasn’t hard for me to get that musicality on the page because I started writing the voice of Demeitre and she sounded exactly the way I wrote her.”(Stockett). Growing up, she had an African American maid,Demeitre, in which she got close with, and being accustomed to her always being around, it later got her to write Aibileen’s parts in the…
- 248 Words
- 1 Page
Good Essays -
In “I, Too Sing America” and “Still I Rise,” the speakers are the authors, but the authors act as a voice for all African Americans who are exhausted with inequality and injustice. The audience of both poems is mainly directed…
- 618 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Angelou, through this empowering poem, has insightfully discussed and surely raised awareness of the social issue of racial prejudice - which is, in fact, sadly still present in our world. In furtherance to this, Angelou has also been able to convince us that not only is racial prejudice driven by corrupt ideals and beliefs but rather it is rooted deeply in hatred and jealousy. During the era in which Angelou lived in, there were considerably few advocates and activists for people who were treated with such cruelty all due to their race. And as outlined in Angelou’s poem, the social situation during the Jim Crow Era was appalling. In today’s society, the social situation regarding issues of racial prejudice has certainly improved with the increased number of advocates and social rights movements for those treated with inferiority and inhumanity. It has improved so much that a large number of coloured people have taken positions of governance, with the current President of the United States (Barack Obama) being an African-American and Social Rights Activist himself. Similar to critically acclaimed literary authors such as, Alice Walker and Dennis Brutus (‘The Colour Purple’ and ‘Somehow We Survive’) Angelou is a Social Rights Activist who possessed a genuine intent to make a change and difference in society. Perhaps, through this poem, Angelou is trying to…
- 1397 Words
- 6 Pages
Powerful Essays -
During the time of the Harlem Renaissance, literature written by “colored folks” tended to have similar tones, messages, and visuals. These connections can be seen between the poems “We Wear The Mask” by Paul Laurence Dunbar, “If We Must Die” by Claude McKay, and an excerpt from Invisible man by Ralph Ellison, “Battle Royal.” A common tone between the three pieces would be pride. In “Battle Royal” the speaker is incredibly proud of his speech, to the point of delivering it despite coughing up blood and being ridiculed after the traumatic event that he had been put through. Paul Laurence Dunbar wrote his piece with a tone of pride in a sense of colored people not showing when their hurt but holding their heads up high and masking their pain.…
- 471 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
The metaphor of the veil is a strong representation of the separation that was very present in years after the Civil War, and of the separation that remains today. Du Bois describes double consciousness with the word twoness. Du Bois then says “An American, a Negro” (Du Bois 536) not just Americans. The separation that takes place is felt by everyone, white or black, young or old, male or female. Du Bois helps bring attention to how wrong the separation of black and white is by using metaphors and ideas created from his own experiences to write a powerful collection of…
- 577 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Aibileen worked for Elizabeth Leefolt and her daughter Mae Mobley Leefolt, the two main lessons that she tried to teach Mae Mobley was that she was important “You is kind, you is smart, you is important.” (521) the other lesson was to teach her that all people are the same but some had a different skin color, “I want to yell so loud that baby girl can hear me that dirty ain't a color, disease ain't the dirty side a town. I want to stop that moment from coming when they start to think that colored folks aren't as good as whites.” (75) the text evidence shows that Aibileen wants to raise a good child to not believe in racism.…
- 451 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
The poem’s language and order mimic human thought. It starts with someone revealing their age and a number of social dilemmas they are worried about. From the information, readers should assume that it is teenage black girl’s thoughts that have been written. Based on other factors readers can safely assume that the narrator is likely living in a Pre-Civil Rights Movement era.…
- 368 Words
- 1 Page
Satisfactory Essays -
It is impossible to deny that Aibileen is extremely strong and brave. Aibileen had the nerve to step up and be a role model for all the other maids by spilling out everything on how it feels to be a coloured person working for a white person. Notwithstanding what would happen to her if she were to get caught. After all the years of being…
- 961 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
The setting of the novel is tremendously spiteful because these events occurred a short time ago. The white community had tremendous power they had obtained in the later 1800 and 1900s. They saw themselves as the superior race; they controlled everything. They abused power to the point where blacks lost their lives. The Help portrays a dark history of America which is extremely unpleasant due to the placing and the era it occurred. Leaders of the past centuries have paced a path for use; whish allows us to learn from their mistakes and also be weary of the abusing power. Standing up for your beliefs and freedom can be a hard thing to do; it can lead to harsh consequences. Dr Marti Luther King Jnr is seen as a hero in the black community because he stood up for what he believed in even though he was murdered for his beliefs; he also earned respect and dignity. Kathryn Stockett gives us a glimpse of the 1960’s Mississippian world and how inhumane whites were towards not only blacks but also women. This allows viewers to reflect and try and avoid the same mistakes occurring in their community. Viewers also learn a valuable lesson because it allows them to have a different perspective towards their community; also allow the viewers to try and limit the extent of discrimination and prejudice arising in their community. The Help can be viewed as a message that we should never forget mistakes of our…
- 1770 Words
- 8 Pages
Better Essays -
The author utilizes diction and personification to communicate the message across that it is difficult of a person of color to live comfortably in America. Diction such as “bitterness” and “sinks into my throat” (454) gives the audience a sense of despair and disgust and makes them feel a sense of sadness for these individuals. Those words is what the author feels everyday he walks out of his house. Either he is faced with such foul words where he then has to digest them into his body, or he is physically neglected in society “of terror” (454) where he is not allowed to do the same activities as others who are a different color to him. The word such as terror makes America be depicts as a frightening place to live, however the author personifies it as women, making the country be then seen as a motherly figure. Diction such as “she” and “her” helps to emphasize that America is a loving and nurturing country and not an evil one as citizens who live there see it. “She feeds me bread” indicates that the author and many other people of color, are dependent on America even when it continuously puts them down. These individuals understand that leaving to another county, they will not have the same opportunities they can have here, somewhere else. America gives “me strength erect against her hate” (454), pointing out that even though there are factors…
- 1188 Words
- 5 Pages
Good Essays -
Writers use alienated characters to show the moral values of a society. In The Help by Kathryn Stockett, Aibileen Clark is a character who is alienated from society because of her race. Aibileen is an African American woman living in Jackson, Mississippi during the early 1960’s. During this time period, colored people were discriminated against and dehumanized just for being a darker color. These absurd beliefs were the main reason no colored maid ever spoke up to the whites on how they were being treated less than human. They always kept to themselves or would have to face severe consequences. On the other hand, Aibileen is determined to share her story with the world. Even though she will be risking her life, she hopes to inform people of the truth behind how the colored maids feel. The author uses Aibileen’s character to show the moral values of the society while she worked for a white family in Jackson Mississippi during the 1960’s, in The Help.…
- 992 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
The poem is primarily about the racism Africans face in the world. Africans should not be treated as though they are inferior; they deserve respect and honor. No matter what others say, Africans are ready to fight for their rights. In this poem, ‘If We Must Die’, his use of imagery and word choice contributes to the overall theme of justice for minorities.At first glance, this poem may seem as though it will preach about seizing the day and achieving what you want in life. However, once the poem is read, it is realized that Claude McKay is truly advocating for African life. As his other poems also illustrated the pain and struggles African suffered, this specific poem asked for the honor they were entitled to. If they are constantly being abused by the white supremacy, McKay believed that Africans were in…
- 560 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
The Help has used major issues such as The Civil Rights Movement, the assassination of Medgar Evers and Marin Luther King as these are well known events in the History of America which allow all people to relate which therefore encourages new opinions based around the ideas presented. In one scene where Medger Evers, a popular cicil rights activist is shot, the camera shows a police officer boarding a bus to tell Abileen and another African American who are both seated in the ‘coloured’ section to get off of the bus as it is too unsafe for the whites to sit with the dark skinned people. Abilene and the other man get off the bus and they both run with the fear of being harmed, the camera zooms into Aibileens fear stricken facial expression and her struggle to run with all of her equipment from her work at the Mobelys house encourages empathy from the viewer, as in this scene we are sown the ignorance and obliviousness as well as the sadistic hatred of the white people towards the black people. We are able to see the horrors that the African Americans suffered, how they must have felt and how horrible the white people were. In todays society this is relevant as we are very much focused on gender and race equality as well as anti discrimination which would further the viewer’s disgust to how white people used to behave and how selfish they…
- 858 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
Throughout African American history, African Americans have used poems as a way of describing the African American condition in America. One poet who was widely known for using poetry to describe the condition of African Americans in America was Paul Laurence Dunbar. Paul Laurence Dunbar was one of the most prolific poets of his time. Paul Laurence Dunbar used vivid, descriptive and symbolic language to portray images in his poetry of the senseless prejudices and racism that African Americans faced in America. Throughout this essay I will discuss, describe and interpret Sympathy and We Wear the Mask. Both Sympathy and We Wear the Mask were written by Paul Laurence Dunbar.…
- 1219 Words
- 5 Pages
Good Essays