Prejudice And Racism's Death-Personal Narrative

A Lesson Before Dying is set in rural Louisiana in the 1940’s. The setting is ripe for the racism displayed in the novel. Ernest J. Gaines weaves an intricate web of human connections, using the character growth of Grant Wiggins and Jefferson to subtly expose the effect people have on one another (Poston A1). Each and every character along the way shows some inkling of being a racist. However, Paul is an exception. He treats everyone as if he or she is equal to him whether the person is black or white. In A Lesson Before Dying, author Ernest J. Gaines displays the different levels of racism during the 1940’s through his use of characterization.

Throughout history and in literature, Black has always been portrayed as evil, whereas White has represented purity and light. These oversimplified stereotypes of something so abstract as skin color has plagued our culture with prejudice and hatred. Ernest E. Gaines, author of A Lesson Before Dying, tells the story of a young black boy named Jefferson who is set to die for essentially being in the wrong place at the wrong time, and a schoolteacher who is faced with the task of making him a “man”. The novel takes place in Bayonne, Louisiana in the 1940’s, a time when racism prospered. At this time in history people faced extreme prejudice based on the color of their skin. Though slavery had been abolished almost eighty years

It happened when I was a first-semester senior in high school. I do not remember the exact day, time, or what the weather was like, but I remember the moment.

It was a baseball game day in the heat of July. I can remember warming up on the field for about five minutes and I was already sweating like a dog, I was drenched from head to toe full of sweat. During warm ups all I could think about was drink cold water and just jumping into the lake to cool off after the game. Little did I know that this scorching summer day was going to spark my baseball career for the rest of the season and for the rest of my life. Before every baseball game my dad would either text my mom or call me and would always ask me to hit a homerun for him, and everytime I would tell him I will try my best.

In 1776, the Declaration of Independence of the United States declared that, ” We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness” (Rosenstand, 338). Nevertheless, today, there some states in the nation that do not honor this important part of the Constitution. That is, discrimination, prejudice and racism are officially prohibited by law, but unofficially, the nation follows a very different standard, “Whatever rules may apply to a given culture, the leaders of those cultures, who should embody the cultural standards, are often the ones who break those rules” (Rosenstand, 144). Nowadays,

Thank You all for coming… You could have been anywhere tonight but you are here because you are socially concious indiviuals who see this country for what it is… In trouble. As a Black boy I cannot without lying say there have not been times in which I didn’t feel like I was looked at as more than another football player, a basketball player or just another face that did not belong. On more than one ocassion in the town of ansonia I have experienced racism, and have been subjected to racial threats and violence. I wish I could say that I was happy about my future prospects in this country but I can’t. I also will not sit idley by and fear for my life anymore and listen to voices of people screaming for justice with more of us dying

Racism plays a substantial part in our nations history; from slavery in the seventeenth century through the nineteenth century, to segregation in the early 1900s. The extreme racism of those days are long gone, and continue to just be a memory of the past. Although, prejudice still exists and it always will, because our brains are hardwired to prefer one race to another. That being said; a white person that grows up in an all white neighborhood who also attends an all-white school will very well prefer white people. Same goes for other races as well. But why do we think this way? How does our brain distinguish race and why do we prefer one group of people over another? I have gathered some evidence as to why we think this way and why our brains process racial differences the way they do.

I walked down a hallway that seemed to stretch endlessly before me. The frosted glass window on the door that spelled doom seemed to stretch further away with every step I took toward it. My heart began to beat at a more brisk pace, my palms began to sweat, and my eyes narrowed on the shiny clean brass doorknob. I had completely forgotten my mother was alongside me until she had to pull me back into reality. She grabbed my arm and tugged me forward. With slight resistance to her strong grasp we dredged on toward the door. I watched in slow motion as the doorknob turned and a giant mad scientist smiled down at me. The angle of his head allowed sadistic shadows to stretch down upon his glowing evil eyes, and his curled, sinister smile.

During lunch at the campus cafeteria, Mildred noticed the dirty tables, the overworked cashiers and the exorbitant price for a watery soda.

As a white person that was born and raised in Hawaii I cannot recall many racist acts toward me that have affected me. Any events I can remember are very minor and in no way do I mean to say that I have it bad because I do have it really good in a world where lots of people have it much worse. At first I could not think of any incidents and had to ask my mother if she remembered me telling her any. She only remembered two I had been upset about at the time but couldn’t even remember now. I can only think of one establishment incident that has happened in most restaurants we go to and only a few incidents in school.

Racism, by book definition, is a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race. Especially with social media, we are exposed to all kinds of racism and how it has affected people of color. Everything from police brutality, to discrimination, immigration and others can be fully displayed to thousands of people online when researched therefore making us more sensitive to this topic. Racism is just as alive today as it was in the 1950s in America. Racism is still alive due to refusal to move from traditional mindsets, America’s constant persistence on the “superiority” of white Americans only and America wanting to forget those lives

Based in the late 1940s in Louisiana, Ernest Gaines’ A Lesson Before Dying is an intriguingly complex novel that explores numerous themes of immense historical value. However, it is undeniable that the novel’s back-bone is structured by one, all-pervasive theme: racism is a detriment to society. It is also successful at conveying that in an ignorant society where racism thrives, the demoralization against coloured people runs rampant. Gaines’ effective use of setting highly develops the theme for the reader and ultimately makes this novel an extremely powerful thought-provoking piece of social justice literature.

I am white. I have been white ever since I found out that there is a distinguished difference between the way I look and the way the girl sitting next to me does.. Prior to being taught that racism is a strong issue and that there is a dissimilarity between people that is so controversial, I would have never thought anything more (or less) of the opposite skin color. All around the world, for as long as any history textbook can date back to, race is one of the most debated issues that has never come to a consensus to make everyone happy. Maybe there is a reason for that. Maybe race will always be an occurring issue that everyone needs to handle. There are people different from you, as well as the same, and that will never change but rather than fighting it… Everyone should take the time to learn about and embrace it.

Note: This essay intends to explain the differences in first and third person narratives, highlighting examples within the two stories “Let them call it Jazz” and “A sense of shame”, both of which deal with racism and its subcultures in a first and third person perspective, respectively. The arguments presented are limited to that of first and third person perspectives only.

In any society, how we see ourselves and how others treat us depends on many factors. Race, ethnicity, and cultural background are identifiers of individuals. Most people have confronted prejudice based on these identifiers, either personally experiencing discrimination or knowing someone who has. Beyond ensuring organizational compliance with a country’s anti-discrimination laws, it is incumbent upon managers to support diversity in the workplace and to be culturally competent.