A Lesson Before Dying Literary Analysis

In A Lesson Before Dying by author Ernest J Gaines, Grant is the protagonist who is trying to do the right thing for his people. Grant is in a very turbulent situation, having to make Jefferson into a “man” by the time he is executed. This is the central plot of the story, but not the main themes and ideas of it. Grant is struggling to help Jefferson because he sees generations of injustice through him. “’We got our first load of wood last week,’ [Grant] told him. ‘Nothing changes,’ he said.” (Gaines, 53). The response Grant’s teacher gives him has a deeper meaning: he as Grants’ teacher failed to change the injustice and racism and Grant is in the same situation. “Nothing changes”, but Grant does not give up for the sake of Jefferson, his people, and most importantly, himself. At one point, Grant actually reveals that “it is too heavy a burden because of all the others who have run away and left their burdens behind. So, he,

In the novel, A lesson before dying, by Ernest J. Gaines, Grant Wiggins is a person who can at times be ill to all people around him. Grant Wiggins, a teacher at the school, in the end of the book shows that he has changed over the course of the book. At the beginning, he thought that it was pointless to go visit jefferson to try to make him a “man”. He said “Now his godmother wants me to visit him and make him know-- prove to these white men--that he’s not a hog, that he’s a man”(Gaines 44). This is showing that not only does Grant not want to go to the Jail and talk to jefferson but he also doesn't want to go to deal with the sheriff either. And this was just the beginning of it. Near the end you can see his diversity changing when he finally

Wiggins true character is revealed. In saying, " ‘Are you trying to hurt me, Jefferson? Are you trying to make me feel guilty for your being here? You want me to come back here anymore?’ " (84). He is trying to figure out if there is anyway possible to get out of the situation brought to him. Grant believes if he can get Jefferson’s consent he will no longer have to do something he doesn’t what to do. The only problem is that Grant need Jefferson more than he knows. This is brought out when he starts to talk about leaving the farm in which he grew up. On page 94, the author has a series of quotes of Mr. Wiggins and Vivian that say, " ‘I wish I could just run away from this place.’ Vivian shook her head.

The Jim Crow Era was peak time for segregation causing Jefferson’s journey in the novel, A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest Gaines to open up the eyes of many, no matter what one’s skin color is, by showing what it means to die as a hero even when seen as the villain. Grant is to make Jefferson a man before he dies by showing him the truths about religion, race, and the United States justice system. Jefferson also teaches Grant a few things about life, creating a unique bond between the two.

This quote shows Grant’s determination to buy a brand new radio for Jefferson. Grant remembers when he and Jefferson would spend hours listening to music, and the love Jefferson had for it. This persistence and determination to buy the perfect radio shows that Grant cares for Jefferson and shows their friendship continuing to develop. Furthermore, Jefferson expresses his feelings and thoughts in a notebook that Grant gave to him. His thoughts are both good and bad, and it 's a way that Jefferson can explain his feelings. “im sory i cry mr wigin im sory i cry when you say you aint comin back tomoro im strong an reven ambros gon be yer wit me an mr harry comin to an reson i cry cause you been so good to me and make me think im somebody” (232). This quote shows how thankful Jefferson is that Grant came to his cell almost every day and treated him with respect and dignity. Jefferson learns to be braver by expressing himself in his journal and through his conversations with Grant. Through Grant’s persistence and

Throughout his trial, his defense attorney constantly disparaged him. Jefferson’s defense was based on the premise that he did not have the intelligence to commit such a serious crime. In an effort to portray him as an barbarian, Jefferson’s lawyer refused to refer him as a human being. He referred to him as “boy, fool and hog” and contented that these qualities were “inherited from his ancestors in the deepest jungles of Africa” (Gaines 7). This is what the majority of Whites thought of Jefferson and black people in general. Instead of giving him a genuine defense, Jefferson’s lawyer continued to dehumanize him throughout the trial. He even compared his execution to the killing of a hog. Fighting for his freedom by accepting that he is an ignoramus or expressing his humanity were the two difficult options Jefferson had.

Grant felt helpless and frustrated. Jefferson was accused of a crime that he did not commit it. In their society, it would not matter if he did it or not, just because he was black and he was in the place of the crime where white people were killed he will be found guilty. It would be impossible for any lawyer to convince the judge that this black man was innocent of what he was accused. As Grant said “No, I did not go to the trial, I did not hear the verdict, because I knew all the time what it would be.” (Page 1) Everyone knew what will happen to Jefferson just for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. They did not look for any evidence and they did not need it because their society was about white power and any black person involved in a white person’s death will be guilty.

In the novel A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J. Gaines, the readers meet Jefferson, a black man living in the South directly after the Antebellum period. He is in jail, charged with a murder he did not commit. When his case is tried in court, his lawyer calls him a hog and tries to prove that he is not capable of such an intelligent crime. Through Jefferson’s alienation the author reveals that the values of society can cause a person to feel worthless, but breaking those stereotypes can give a person self-respect despite personal tribulation.

In Ernest Gaines’ A Lesson Before Dying, we are introduced to an uneducated, simple black man named Jefferson who has spent most his life working on a plantation. In Jefferson’s society, black Americans have little to no chance of progression due to racism. Jefferson happened to witness a shootout between three men in a store. All three men died, and Jefferson was left alone at the crime scene confused and frightened. As Jefferson was leaving the store, two white men stopped him and accused him of the murder. During his trial, his attorney’s only defense was that he was a mindless hog incapable of coming up with such a plot. Most blacks are uneducated and are treated like animals because they believe their illiteracy makes them less civilized than whites. Jefferson is put in jail and is sentenced to the death penalty. While in jail, Jefferson believes his attorney’s words that he is a hog and a mindless creature. Reverend Ambrose and Grant Wiggins are asked to teach Jefferson that he is a man before he dies even though the reverend and Grant have different beliefs which lead to conflicting views.

While Jefferson had a trial with a jury of his peers, the general consensus of Bayonne is that Young Black men had a predisposition for violent crimes. During his supposedly fair trial, Jefferson is treated as less of a human. The prosecution states, “Gentlemen of the jury, look at him-look at him-look at this. Do you see a man sitting here? Do you see a man sitting here?...Do you see a modicum of intelligence” (Gaines 7). The prosecution goes on to call Jefferson “a hog”, and Jefferson takes this to heart. These men saying these terrible things about Jefferson are in positions of high power, and it’s only natural to believe what these powerful men are saying. Jefferson later refuses food, complaining that, “I’m a old hog…just a old hog they fattening up to kill for Christmas” (Gaines 83). Auger’s A Lesson about Manhood: Appropriating 'the Word' in Ernest Gaines's A Lesson Before Dying is a great analysis of how power is derived in the novel, and why the society in Bayonne is arranged the way it is. Auger suggests that Gaines tries to show that there are social institutions such as education, religion, and law that are overdue for a change. Grant is a teacher, and is considered to be an intelligent man with some degree of power. This is contrary to the social norms in 1940s Louisiana,

Imagine a courtroom filled with racist white men except for a solitary black man: a spot of black in an ocean of white. In A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J. Gaines, such was the trial of Jefferson, a black man falsely accused of murder and sentenced to death. Throughout his life, Jefferson had believed that he was not destined for greatness, that he would live out his life in the sugarcane fields and die in a pauper’s grave. This was the direction his life was going before Grant started to educate him. As shown by his diary entries, Jefferson becomes a truly dignified man throughout his interaction with Grant, which is important because knowing one’s potential impact on the world fosters dignity.

What if you were sentenced to death for a crime you did not commit? What if you were then proclaimed to be a hog by a jury of your peers? What if you had 5 months to learn to grow from the hog you are said to be, to a man so that you are able to stand tall and walk to your death on your own two legs with your head held high? What would you learn? These questions are the central conflict of the novel A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J. Gaines. This book takes place on a plantation in the deeply racist state of Louisiana in the 1940s, where a black man named Jefferson is sentenced to death by means of the electric chair by an all-white jury for a murder that he did not commit. Jefferson’s white lawyer’s only defense is that Jefferson, being a

Becoming a highly analyzed novel, many critics speak about their feelings. Carl Senna, one a literary critic, discusses the reasons for lack of communication in A Lesson before Dying. A large part of their communication problem comes directly from their class differences. Although Grant is not considered rich, he is well educated and lives rather comfortably, whereas Jefferson is nearly illiterate and has been a struggling farmhand most of his life. This gap that separates them makes it very difficult for them to speak. Neither one of them is at fault for this, but it frustrates Jefferson to the point where he often wants to leave the jail cell and not return. Also Grant speaks with Jefferson "reluctantly, prompted by his aunt, a moralizing scold and a nag"(Senna 5). Another good point Senna makes is that because of the time period, blacks were struggling to become equals and were more engrossed with their own wants and needs than worrying about Jefferson. Yes, they all realized that he is innocent but they are not at a time where they can fight for the innocence of this young boy. Therefore Grant "becomes their instrument in trying to save him[Jefferson] from disgrace"(Senna 5). Jefferson was not seen as much to these

December 18, 1865, marked the end of African-American slavery in America, where-by black people gained more freedom in the land. However, a power imbalance between the black and white is still present. A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J. Gaines gives readers insight to the immense abuse and hatred towards black people in the 1940s of America and furthers the reader's knowledge of black segregation and how the black people never gave up for their freedom and rights. The novel’s main plot follows Grant Wiggins, a young black man who was given the responsibility to make Jefferson, a black man who was unjustifiably accused of murder and sentenced to death by electrocution become truly a man and not a “hog” which is what the lawyer labeled Jefferson as. Throughout the novel, readers can recognize the great bond created as Grant encourages and aids Jefferson in becoming a man before his “judgment day”. Nevertheless, the novel was not only about Jefferson’s lesson before his death, but it was a lesson for many other characters in the novel. The most important lesson to learn before dying is the lesson of never give up, which can be seen through the actions of Jefferson, Miss Emma, and Grant.

In William Faulkner’s “As I Lay Dying” and Arthur Miller’s “Death of a Salesmen” there is Notable themes of gender role and gender identity. Faulkner’s Character Anse is Comparatively Similar but also Contrastingly different in the roles they both convey as head of their households, In their families and in society. Both Families can also be analyzed by their time period in which each piece of fictional literature took place. Faulkner’s novel “As I Lay Dying” was written in 1930 while Miller’s play was written in 1949.