Lesson Before Dying

In A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J. Gaines the story is mainly focused on Grant Wiggins; one of the main characters. In the very beginning of the story we learn that Grant is in a very depressed and unhappy state of mind. He doesn’t appreciate where his education led him; teaching at the quarter on the plantation he grew up on. Grant faces a reality where nothing changes, he feels helpless in his community where white people hold the power. When Jefferson, a family friend of Grant’s gets compared to a “hog” on trial and sentenced to death by electrocution, Grant believes that this proverse cycle will never end. When Miss Emma and Tante Lou insist that Grant visits Jefferson so he believes he is a man and not a hog, Grant is angered and has

the characters. The story reminds his audience that a man is more than a father. He is

The love between the protagonists in the times of hardship is the most profound relationship in the book and the strength of it raises the standard of the novel. The relation of the father and the son is very strong and symbolizes protection to the child. They take the initiative to struggle and live in an apocalyptic place which has been completely destroyed. The father is like the soul of his son and the very last hope for the son to survive .The son finds support in his son when he goes through the stages of loneliness and despair. It is a natural way for people to rely on others for support and by survival instincts; it is deeper when there is such a close relationship between a father and a son. McCarthy in terms of characterization makes the buy very innocent as he does not know how to differentiate between the “good guys” and “bad guys”. He wants to help everyone and on the other hand the father is very strong and is wise. He lives each and every day as a normal day so that he can keep his son strong as well. The father is very intelligent as he responds to his son questions thoughtfully to keep his son’s hope up. The father is very optimistic even when they are facing a hard time moving forward. To quote, “The lay listening, Can you do it? When the time comes? When the time comes there will be no time. Now is the time. Curse God and die. What if it doesn’t fire? It has to fire. What if it doesn’t fire? Could you crush that beloved

“Twelve white men say a black man must die, and another white man sets the date and time without consulting one black person. Justice?” (Gains 157).

In the book I can connect to some of the things in it. In life people have happy things happen and negative things happen. “Life throws too much crap at us as it is, so why hold onto something

“A Lesson Before Dying” and “Into The Wild” are both books that defy the expected, tackle tough obstacles, and face the physical and mental extremes of life. Beginning with “Into The Wild”, Jon Krakauer leads us on a rich and insightful tour through the brash and lucid life of Chris McCandless. Followed by a well thought out, fiction novel featuring a sticky situation in a small Cajun community, “A Lesson Before Dying”, by Ernest J. Gaines. This split, self chosen, mini series takes us through a roller coaster of comparisons and contrasts, leading with the first noticeable major difference.

As a reader my reaction to the author was really inspiring because even thought he had a hard childhood, he kept his head up and kept doing what he had to do to successes and make his mother happy. Also the way

It exemplifies the behavior of the boy and his father throughout the rest of the novel and shows how much they are willing to do to stay alive. It shows the fire within them.

Walter’s appeals were denied and despite many desperate arguments by Bryan in his defense, the court was not changing their mind. He soon hired Michael, an assisting attorney and former heroin addict. With their investigations, they discovered that Bill Hooks was paid by the sheriff to provide false testimony and plenty more incriminating evidence that only proved that Walter was innocent. Out of nowhere, Ralph Meyers contacted Bryan and wanted to talk to him. When Bryan got to the prison, Ralph admitted his whole testimony was a lie, and that he was threatened the death penalty by the police if he did not testify against Walter. He also admitted that he did not actually know anything about the murder of the woman, and only decided to come

God can only guide, but it us who decide what we are known by in society. “You do not need super powers to be a Superhero… Heroes are made not born” (Pacquio) Individuals who stand up for what is correct and help other’s discover pride in their lives can be considered Hero’s. As to that person it can completely change their life. This idea is illustrated in “A Lesson Before Dying" by Ernest J. Gaines. Grant Wiggins, Jefferson, and Paul, three of Gaines characters that profited, exemplified, and comprehended the most essential lesson before dying. Each of us has been made by God with potential to be incredible, and to help other people achieve enormity.

In 1925, Langston Hughes wrote in his poem “I, Too, Sing America” “Nobody’ll dare say to me “Eat in the kitchen,” then.” He responds to Walt Whitman’s poem “I Hear America Singing”, a poem about America’s greatness. When Hughes wrote his poem, blacks were extremely oppressed. They had no rights, such as not being allowed to eat in the actual restaurant. Throughout the book A Lesson Before Dying, set around the time of 1930, Ernest J. Gaines presents the same issues and the narrator, Mr. Grant Wiggins, wrestles with them throughout the book. An imbalance of power overtakes the the areas of education, the justice system and colorism in the town of Bayonne, Louisiana, and though some imbalances present hope, some are still wrestled with today. Even after desegregation, the education system still presents discrimination that keeps some inferior to others. A lack of supplies for black schools, causing a lesser education for the students, aids in the educational imbalance. Grant stressed to the white superintendent “Many of the books I have to use are hand me-downs from the white schools, Dr. Joseph, and they have missing pages” (Gaines 57). Grant’s school system fails its students. The supplies given to these schools do not help the students at all, and hinder the children’s learning. They give inadequate education to keep the whites more powerful, and the Superintendent encourages it. The superintendent places his worries on looks and hygiene during his visit to Grant’s school,

To start off, a part I did not like about the book was the part about Ove’s dad. I felt as though this complicated the plot a lot and was not necessary to the base of the book. It did not need to be added into the book because it had no effect to my understanding of what was happening in the book. If anything it made me more confused because it went back in time, then it came back to the present and it was confusing what time period we were in at the moment. A good part of the book was when Parvaneh was becoming friends with Ove because he needed to get out of his daily routine. Ove needed someone to shake up the life he had been living for many years. I would not recommend this book to adolescents because the book was confusing at some points and the humor was guided towards the adults. Personally, I would read another book by Fredrik Backman because the book was still very well written. I also could understand the book, for the most part. To continue, this book would be better read by adults because the humor was more guided to that age group. Also, this book is still relevant today because people do not live forever. We have to learn to move on from the bad times just like Ove did. When a loved one dies we feel grief, but like Ove we use the people around us to begin to feel better about what happened to us. In conclusion, this was a good book and I would rate it three out of five

     First of all, the most visible element of importance is the irony. A kid dying in a church where his mom told him to go to be safe is very ironic and it completely portrays the current situation of racial violence in the southern states. No one would want to be stuck in the mother’s situation and your heart pains for her struggle.

These Shallow Graves is a lot of mystery and a lot of historical fiction so I wouldn’t really recommend it to the younger side of young adult unless they are familiar with terms used but overall I really enjoyed the read.

This is really good book. This book contains about facing adversity, love and the mistakes that happen in life while raising children or grandchildren. This book inspiring the grandchildren by a man. This story also involves the GOD . Truly a heartwarming book. McQueen has dedicated advice-packed letter after letter to Ethan in this compilation of life lessons, personal experiences, instructions and guidance. We can all gain from Ethan's letters and McQueen's contribution to parenting and grand parenting because we've all said it before If only life came with a manual"..."If only kids came with instructions. This book will inspire the reader young and old in their ongoing personal growth and development. One of the things I loved the most