The Importance Of Education In A Lesson Before Dying

Almost everyone knows the right things to do. When a bully is picking on a victim, people around them know the right thing to do – stand up for the victim. However, knowing the right thing to do and doing the right thing are two very different things – the difference is courage. This is shown clearly in Ernest Gaines’ novel, A Lesson Before Dying, in Henrik Ibsen’s play, A Doll’s House, and a quote from the movie Hidden Figures. Courage is shown through Grant, Nora, and that “there’s no bathroom for me here” (0:31) from Hidden Figures respectively.

Through his poem “Theme for English B”, Langston Hughes expresses his will to exterminate discrimination by proving that despite different skin colors, Americans all share similarities and learn from each other. Langston wrote the poem in 1900, when black Americans were not considered Americans. He talks about a black student being assigned to write a paper about himself. The audience is thus the student’s professor – the representation of the white Americans. Since the professor said: “let that page come out of you---Then, it will be true.”, the student began wondering “if it’s that simple”. He then describes himself to explain why it isn’t simple: he is “twenty-two”, “the only colored in class”, and lives in the poor community Harlem.

There were many themes in the novel, “A Lesson Before Dying” by Ernest Gaines, such as racism, alcoholism, dignity, etc. The theme that best fits the novel is, that one man can make a difference in the lives of many. In this novel, the man is Jefferson, who was sent to prison without a fair trial because of racial prejudice. The theme, one man can make a difference in the lives of many, fits the book best because not only did Jefferson’s trial opened the eyes of the community to the racial prejudice that occurred, it also affected individual lives of Paul, the children in Bayonne, and Grant.

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, 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 the book a lesson before dying we see many things that are way out of our control.Some are life and death situations,for example Jefferson fell victim of a unjustice death all because a crime he didn’t even commit.In those times the majority would always blame african american people for any small thing they did,a bunch got sent to prison or either killed,crimes against African Americans are still common even today.All these things are out of our reach and really nothing will change until someone stands up and changes things around,until that day nothing will be new and everything will be corrupt. In the book a Lesson Before Dying we get sight of this in a lot of ways,even Jefferson's attorney was saying rude things about him,calling him a dumb old hog in the end,someone who can’t think for themselves.That was just in the beginning of the book and it just seems like people back then were a little more retarded .

There are various teachers in the novel, A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J. Gaines. Grant and Vivian are both caring teachers. Grant is a teacher that likes to fight for his students and communicate with them. Vivian is a person of quality that teaches by example and makes sacrifices for her students. Matthew Antoine does not care about his students. He encourages them to run away while they can. Grant, Vivian, and Matthew Antoine are all teachers that left a significant impact on their students.

Respect isn't always how people would treat Grant in the novel A Lesson Before Dying. White people in the novel A Lesson Before Dying referred to Grant as a “Professor” as a way to belittle him. However, when African Americans refer to Grant as “Professor” they say it as in an idolisation. White people refer to Grant as “Professor” as a way to denigrate him.

There are three similarities amongst “A Lesson Before Dying” and “Making a Murder”. First, both Jefferson and Steven Avery we’re charged with major criminals that will affect their life for ever. Jefferson was seen at the murder scene by bystanders, with money and liquor on his persons. Steven Avery was questioned by cops for a murder that apparently happen on his property. After taking Steven Avery into custody for murder they found the key to Teresa Halbach Vehicle. Second, it was hard on their families, seeing their loved ones receive should harsh treatment for the law. In “A Lesson Before Dying” Jefferson aunt Miss Emma was very heartbroken to see him be treatment with such disrespect. “Making a Murder” Steven family was torn apart done

I read a historical fiction novel about racism called A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J. Gaines. Gaines was a was an African American man who was born in 1933 and grew up on a plantation in Louisiana. He earned 50 cents a day picking potatoes at the age of nine. By the age of 15, he moved to California with his aunt and that’s when his passion for reading grew stronger. Disappointed to find that none of the books he read had nothing to do with the world he knew, he decided to write some stories himself (Magnier). Therefore, the main themes of his works come from his childhood. His first few famous novels were published around the 1970’s: Of Love and Dust (1967) and The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman (1971); Gaines received the U.S. National Book Award for A Lesson before Dying in 1994. The purpose of this book is to show people how it felt to be put in the shoes of a black man in the southern states of America in the 1940’s.

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.

Grant Wiggins is the narrator of the novel. He was born in the plantation just outside of Bayonne, Louisiana. He lived there until he went away to college, and when he went back home, he was detached from the people in the town because of his education and different religious beliefs. He is easily angered and often very selfish. This is seen in the way that he acts towards Vivian. He consistently does not give her the attention or respect that she deserves. He refers to her children as simply, “the babies,” and only cares about the names of his and Vivian’s future children. Grant goes from shallow and selfish at the beginning of the story, to caring and loving at the end.

In the novel A Lesson Before Dying written by Ernest J. Gaines, there is an evident theme of heroism displayed throughout the story. Unlike many books, there are many levels of heroism and many different heroes. A Lesson Before Dying does not limit the idea of heroism. It is an extremely broad statement that goes beyond saving lives and coming to the rescue of someone in danger.

When someone loses a loved one they go through all of these stages. Others come to terms of acceptance faster than others. If someone has an advanced care plan they could ease the pain from their family and help them to not be as depressed worrying about the cost of the burial and how to arrange the funeral. All of these worries could be taken away if people have the talk with their loved ones about what it is that they want when it comes to their last days.

In ordinary language, Langston Hughes describes a woman’s pedagogy to her son in his poem “Mother to Son”. In the poem, the speaker—perhaps an African American in her 30s in the civil rights era in the South—encourages her son to remain hopeful to his life, no matter how harsh the reality could be.