Out to Create Change|跨越种族的姊妹情深：《姊妹》

by Brian Foden

The Help shows how the unlikeliest of friends come together to make a difference.

Kathryn Stockett's best-selling novel, The Help, tackles the subject of racial discrimination with a mixture of drama and comedy. The setting is Jackson, Mississippi in the early 1960s, a time when African-Americans were still looked down upon and mistreated by most white Americans in the United States.

One of the main characters is Skeeter Phelan, a young woman who has just graduated from the University of Mississippi. With dreams of becoming a famous author, Skeeter starts off writing a household advice column for the local newspaper. However, her distaste for the prejudice she sees all around inspires her to write a book that exposes the ugly truth of how black maids are treated.

To accomplish this goal, Skeeter convinces two maids to talk to her about their lives and the discrimination they face. The brave women not only risk their jobs by talking to the rookie journalist, but they put their lives in peril as well. These conversations may be done in private, but when the book is published, everyone's dirty laundry will be aired in public. Plus, Skeeter fears that crazy racists may threaten their lives after reading it.

Skeeter's book hits a snag when her editor in New York City tells her that she must include stories from more than just two maids in its pages. Luckily, Skeeter gets a break after the shooting of a well-known civil rights leader, Medgar Evers. More maids are inspired to tell their stories to Skeeter, who goes on to get the book published and create changes in the Deep South.

1.  Why were the early 1960s a bad time for African-Americans?

(A) Maids didn't make a lot of money.

(B) All housekeepers were African-American.

(C) African-Americans were treated like second-class citizens.

(D) Many African-Americans couldn't read.

2.  What is Skeeter's ambition?

(A) To help black women find better jobs.

(B) To produce newspaper columns.

(C) To adapt her book into a movie.

(D) To write a book.

3.  What is a problem that Skeeter faces?

(A) She gets a lot of death threats.

(B) She loses her job as a newspaper editor.

(C) No housewife wants to talk to her about their maids.

(D) She needs to get more than two maids to reveal their stories of mistreatment.

跨越种族的姊妹情深：《姊妹》

《姊妹》让世人看见最不可能成为朋友的人携手改变世界。

　　凯瑟琳‧史托基特的畅销作品《姊妹》探讨种族歧视的议题，充满剧情又有欢笑。故事背景是 1960 年代初期的密西西比州杰克森市，当时美国黑人仍备受歧视，并遭到多数白人虐待。

　　其中一位主角史基特‧费蓝是刚从密西西比大学毕业的年轻女子。她梦想成为名作家，但她一开始是替当地报纸撰写家庭意见专栏。然而，她厌恶周遭所看到的歧视，这也激发她写书，揭露黑人女佣悲惨遭遇的丑陋真相。

　　为了达成这个目标，史基特说服 2 名女佣说出自己的生活以及她们面对的歧视。和这名菜鸟记者谈话不仅让这 2 名勇敢的女性冒着丢掉工作的风险，也让自己的生命遭受危险。这些访问对谈或许是在私下进行，但当书本出版后，每个人不愿外扬的家丑都将公诸于世，而且史基特担心疯狂的种族主义者在读了书后，会威胁她们的性命。

　　当她的纽约编辑告诉史基特说书里的故事不能只涵盖 2 位女佣后，她的书碰到了瓶颈。幸运的是，在一位知名民权领导人 Medgar Evers 遭受枪击后，事情有了转机。更多的女佣受到启发，向史基特说出自己的故事，她也得以顺利出书，在保守的美国南方创造出改变的力量。

答案：1. (C)2. (D)3. (D)

作者凯瑟琳．史托基特生长于密西西比州首府杰克森市，在亚拉巴马州立大学获得文学与创作学位，毕业后移居纽约，从事杂志出版与营销工作 9 年，目前与丈夫和女儿居住在亚特兰大。《姊妹》是她的第 1 部小说。

文学出版社 Amy Einhorn Book（隶属美国企鹅集团 Putnam 旗下）的副社长在 2007年仅读了该书几页企划书便爱上这个故事。出版后，《姊妹》也获得各界好评，不到一年销量突破 4 百万册，成为《纽约时报》2009 年度畅销榜第 2 名，也在 2010 年改拍成电影上映。