Student Question
In The Help, how does Minny demonstrate care for Miss Celia?
Quick answer:
Minny demonstrates care for Miss Celia by teaching her to cook, keeping her employment secret from Celia's husband, and supporting her through personal challenges. She helps Celia after a miscarriage, advises her on social issues, and motivates her to overcome depressive episodes. Despite initial reluctance, Minny becomes a friend to Celia, providing genuine support and encouragement, recognizing that both women face societal challenges and rely on one another for emotional and practical support.
Even though Minny is often baffled by Miss Celia’s behavior—since the woman is new to society life in Jackson—she does care about her and even feels sorry for her at times, too. As Celia has asked, Minny has tried to teach her how to cook. The lessons are far from successful. Minny has also gone along reluctantly with Celia’s plan to keep the maid’s employment a secret from her husband, Johnny. Even after Johnny and Minny accidentally meet (in Chapter 10), both keep the encounter a secret from Celia, letting her believe that her plan is working. When Minny finds out that Celia has an alcohol problem, she tries to talk her out of drinking (in Chapter 17). As a result, she’s fired—but not really. When Celia has her fourth miscarriage and is deathly ill, Minny takes care of her as best as she can and calls the doctor to...
Unlock This Answer Now
Start your 48-hour free trial and get ahead in class. Boost your grades with access to expert answers and top-tier study guides. Thousands of students are already mastering their assignments—don't miss out. Cancel anytime.
Already a member? Log in here.
come (in Chapter 18). Minny feels badly that Celia keeps calling the ladies of the Jackson Junior League, and that they never return her calls. It’s obvious that Celia needs a friend. Minny serves as one, even though she knows the lines between maid and employer. She tells her plainly that Hilly and Elizabeth do not accept her, and she does as much as she can to warn Celia about attending the Benefit banquet, to no avail (in Chapter 25). This event ends badly for Celia, who wears an outrageous dress and gets drunk, to boot. When she stays in bed to sulk for days afterward (in Chapter 26), it is Minny who pokes her and prods her and gets her out of her funk. And at last, when it’s obvious that Celia will never bear children, Minny is saddened but sympathetic (in Chapter 30). The Footes ask her to stay on with them, and she will. Certainly Celia needssomeone to take care of her and to care about her, in addition to Johnny. When she first encountered the woman, Minny was no doubt ready to dislike her immediately, because she was different from the other Jackson ladies Minny had worked for. But this job didn’t turn out the way Minny had expected at all.
How does Minny show she cares about Miss Celia in The Help?
It is evident that Miss Celia needs Minnie. She realizes this. It becomes clear that Minnie is Miss Celia's only steady stream of human contact that is not shrouded by facade and deception. Miss Celia was born in poverty and feels out of her element. She can identify with Minnie, who knows what it is like to be on the outside of a social world. Minnie recognizes all of this. She may complain about Miss Celia, but she does show her how to cook and bake with more than mere professional responsibility. When Miss Celia suffers the miscarriage, she helps her through the ordeal. At the same time, when Miss Celia recognizes that she is an outcast and wants to go back home, Minnie encourages her. She tells her that to leave results in acquiescing to Hilly and she wins.
In these examples, it becomes evident that Minnie does care for Miss Celia. While she might complain about her, Minnie realizes that Miss Celia took a chance on her when no one else would. At the same time, it becomes clear that both of them rely on one another as they struggle through their differently challenged predicaments.