Segregation In A Lesson Before Dying

In Ernest Gaines' novel A Lesson Before Dying he uses third person to, in detail, address the issue of racial injustice in the south during the 1940's. The character, Sheriff Guidry, understands that justice is relatively simplistic and runs in tangent with with the current society's beliefs. Because of this, he successfully learns multiple important morals regarding the white and black cultures of the 1940's which contribute to the character's learning about justice showing the audience the significance of the novel as a whole. Throughout the course of the novel, the protagonist, and to a lesser degree the secondary characters, question the values of their own lives compared to that of a mindless animal. Especially for the second protagonist,

Grant also wants to bring Jefferson a notebook so that he can write down what he thinks, and Jefferson agrees to do so. In the next visit, Grant goes with Miss Emma, Tante Lou, and Reverend Ambrose. Jefferson refuses to eat, so Grant asks Jefferson to walk with him. As they walk, Grant tells Jefferson that a hero does something for other people. Grant says that he is not a hero, and white people they know are not better than Jefferson. The white people believe that Jefferson has no dignity and love for his people, but Jefferson can prove them wrong.

When he had arrived in Buffalo, Lewis’s first reaction to when they had finally reached his Uncle Otis’s home. “When we reached my Uncle O.C’s home and Dink’s house, I couldn’t believe it, They had white people living next door to them...on BOTH sides.” (Lewis and Aydin March Book 1: 43) Segregation in the north wasn’t a big deal to people in the north than it was in the south and from that he experienced a lot during that visit in the north. Once he had returned back home, he knew what was different now, he understood what the problem and differences were while he was up in Buffalo and at home. It came to him when school time was coming back around in the fall. “ In the fall, I started right the bus to school ,which should’ve been fun. But it was just another sad reminder of how different our lives were from those of white children.” (Lewis and Aydin March Book 1: 47) Between the black and white community, Lewis saw how “degrading” it was when it had came to school. They didn’t have the nice playground, the nicest bus, roads, and the ugly, sad sight of the prison full of black men and only black men, but he had managed to get pass all of the gloominess with a positive outlook of reading. “ I realized how old it was when we finally climbed onto the paved highway, the main road running east from Troy, and passed the white children’s buses..We drove past prison work gangs almost every day the prisoner were always

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.

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.

The thesis of the book is that segregation of black and whites was developed later in life than it did when slavery was just introduce. In the earlier years blacks and white would live within the same residence and or property, sharing the same premises if not equal facilities. The black and white would attend the same church and sit in the pews. As life progress and economics and Political conflicts took place that’s when the segregation began.

I agree with the statement, “At the end of A Lesson Before Dying, desolation prevails over consolation,” because the last chapters of A Lesson Before Dying had a negative and depressing tone. According to Sidney deRogers, “He didn’t pay any close attention to the black truck with the gray tarpaulin cover, but he would tell the people at the Rainbow Club that he did feel a cold chill when the truck went by.” Basically, Sidney is saying that he felt that something was awry, or that something wrong or evil was in that truck. The whole town knew what was happening that day and everyone had an opinion, whether that opinion was indifferent, uneasy, or disgusted/sickened by what was going to happen on that day. Grant says that “It was a nice day. Blue sky. Not a cloud,” but there was an overlying notion of sorrow and fear that laid over everyone in the quarter. One could argue that the end of A Lesson Before Dying prevailed with consolation rather than desolation since according to Paul, “He was the strongest man in that crowded room, Grant Wiggins.” Paul’s point is that Jefferson died a man as a result of Grant. Despite what someone might say, I still consider this argument to be wrong considering that Grant is still upset because Jefferson did not have a “Jury of his peers;” everyone on that jury was white and had no concern for Jefferson’s life. At the end, it seems to me that Grant feels alone since he has spent much of the past six months with Jefferson. He developed a strong

In the novel A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J. Gaines, racism and prejudice are clearly evident and talked about throughout the novel. The novel expresses the oppression of the blacks under a white-ruled society through the narrator, Grant. Grant is a well-educated black man who struggles to free himself from the oppression he has felt from the white community. Despite the fact that he is educated and a teacher, he initially lacks the vigor needed to take the first step against black discrimination. He has all this intellect, but does not realize until later on that it is not only intelligence he needs to overcome the oppression, but self-assertion, too. Education does not prove your intellectual worth in society; rather, it is what you do during difficult times that define your intelligence and strong character not just to yourself, but to the world.

The life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination… the Negro is still languished in the corners of American society and finds himself in exile in his own land (qtd. in W.T.L. 235).

Grant, a plantation school teacher, is the only black man in the community with a college education. Compared to Reverend Ambrose, the black community’s spiritual leader, who has knowledge in religion. These very different educational backgrounds make Grant and Reverend Ambrose a foil in the book. Many whites are jealous of Grants college education because many of them failed to receive such an education. During this time period, it was difficult to find a black man that could both read and write. Ambrose and Grant get into a verbal argument in which Ambrose says “I’m the one that’s educated. Gaines (215).” Ambrose’s ignorant comment leads you to believe that he thinks his education is superior to grants. Ambrose feels that his knowledge of religion is more important than a formal education. Grant later exclaims to Ambrose “I don’t owe anybody anything. (Gaines 216)” This leads us to believe that Grant wants nothing to do with his community and would rather just leave. This is conflicting compared to Reverend Ambrose religious feeling of needing to

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

After the Civil War ended, many blacks and whites, especially in the South, continued living as if nothing had changed with regards to the oppression and poor treatment of African Americans. Narrator Grant Wiggins, of Ernest J. Gaines' A Lesson Before Dying, possesses a similar attitude toward race relations. Through his experiences with a young man wrongly accused of murder, Grant transforms from a pessimistic, hopeless, and insensitive man into a more selfless and compassionate human being who can see the possibility of change in relations between whites and blacks.

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

The fictional town of Bayonne in A Lesson Before Dying is based on a plantation where the author Ernest J. Gaines was born. This novel took place in the late 1940s a time when radical discrimination was a major problem, and the Jim Crow laws validated segregation and discrimination. Although the major personalities are males, there are three female characters that influence the males to solve the difficulties in their life they would usually ignore. Each female character persuades and motivates Jefferson and Grant from running away from their responsibilities. Tante Lou and Miss Emma convince Grant to make Jefferson die like a man and not a hog, and Vivian makes Grant stay in the quarter and not run away from his purpose in his life.

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.