...Racial Injustice In ancient times Romans and Greeks didn’t classify people by race. They classified people by religion, class, and language. In today’s society, race is a big part of how people classify others. During the early 1900s, racial segregation and injustice were much worse, especially in the south. In the novel, A Lesson Before Dying written by Ernest J. Gaines, a young man named Jefferson is convicted of murder. Grant Wiggins a school teacher is requested to help Jefferson understand he is a man and not a hog like he thinks. Racial injustice influences Grant, Jefferson, and Miss Emma, which keeps them from achieving success in their lives. To start, Grant is faced with racial inequality by important people in his life. Grant’s...
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...A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J. Gaines reveals many fundamental and universal ideas. The book gives a reader a lot of mental pabulum. It makes people think about life and its value, about people’s relations and behaviors, and about the past and the present. The book teaches people to recognize injustice in the society and to take responsibilities to improve it; it teaches to accept the past as it is and to face problems; it teaches that a lie can be constructive, and that it can decrease people’s sufferings. Grant Wiggins, the protagonist of the novel, often criticizes and bitterly resents racist society. He tends to run away and escape the society he feels will never change. Like Professor Antoine, he believes no one can change society without being destroyed in the process. Jefferson’s trial reinforces Grant’s pessimistic attitude. Grant sees the wickedness of a system designed to uphold the superiority of one race over another. He sees a man struck down to the level of a hog by a few words from an attorney. During the course of the novel, however, Grant comes to realize that cynicism like his is akin to lying down and dying, and that even small victories can accumulate and produce change. Rather than looking at Jefferson as a hopeless stranger, Grant accepts Jefferson’s plight as his own and begins to fight for Jefferson’s salvation. He accepts his duty to the society he inhabits, thereby taking the first step toward improving that society. Alongside with the theme of...
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..."A Lesson Before Dying" is a fantastic novel written by Ernest J. Gaines. Grant Wiggins, Jefferson, and Paul are three characters from the novel that benefited, embodied, and understood the most important lesson before dying. The most important lesson and message before dying was that each of us has been created by God with potential to be great, and to help others reach greatness. Grant Wiggins is a prime example of the most important lesson before dying. He attempted to teach Jefferson to be a man and not a "hog" as the public defender had called him during the trial. Jefferson's godmother "wants [Grant] to visit [Jefferson] and make him know-- prove to these white men-- that he's not a hog, that he's a man. (Gaines 31) Grant accepts the challenge firstly, to prove the white men that were betting against him wrong and show them that Jefferson can and will transform into a man for the sake of black people in the South. However, he also accepts the challenge in order for Jefferson to be someone he (Grant) in the future would look up to because he is the only person who has the power now to stand up to the white people in the South. Also, Grant Wiggins is trying to expose and introduce Jefferson's greatness by calling him a hero. Grant begins to explain to Jefferson the "'A hero is someone who does something for other people. He does something that other men don’t and can't do. He is different from other men. He is above other men. No matter who those other men are, the hero...
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...Grant Wiggins and Jefferson externalize the major internal conflict in every person: having the strength to acknowledge one’s own personal dignity. Jefferson’s experiences from his alleged homicide to his execution made him the “strongest man in that crowded room” (Gaines, 253) during his death; however, until before the very end, this seemed implausible because of the lack of collaboration between Wiggins and Jefferson. Ernest Gaines’s transcription of this conflict in A Lesson Before Dying enlightens his audience on the prerequisite of interpersonal support to construct a resounding revolution. He uses the conflict between Wiggins and Jefferson to assert that personal and social change exists if, and only if, cooperation occurs; however, without cooperation, all attempts at reforming issues of importance fail....
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...It is often said that a teacher learns more from their students. With his novel, A Lesson Before Dying, Ernest Gaines embodies this idea beyond the classroom. The novel begins with the sentencing of Jefferson, a cognitively delayed young black man found in the wrong place at the wrong time. To alleviate the sentence, the attorney refers to Jefferson with a list of insults including a boy, a fool, and a hog. Due to the racist atmosphere, he still receives the full punishment of death by electrocution. His aunt, worried about his soul, commissions Grant Wiggins, a black educator, to meet with Jefferson before his execution. Grant faces the task of “making him a man”, which he deems as a hopeless attempt. Nevertheless, he uses his views as an intelligent black man in society to change Jefferson’s perspective and give him the strength to accept himself in his final days. Though the novel begins with Grant Wiggins’ attempt to build a man from a prisoner, A Lesson Before Dying becomes a story of his own self actualization and a transformation of his relationship with society. As soon as Grant is introduced to the situation by Ms. Emma, Jefferson’s aunt, he rejects the proposal and explodes with opposition. Grant views himself as an intellectual, with a higher perception of the community than most people. Because of this intuition and his personal experiences, Grant finds his role as...
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...3/5/2015 Ernest J. Gaines's 'Lesson' prompts teens to grapple with stark realities Ernest J. Gaines's 'Lesson' prompts teens to grapple with stark realities By DeNeen Brown Washington Post Staff Writer Tuesday, May 11, 2010; C01 What lessons could a city learn from reading the same book at the same time? What lessons could be learned in a city trying to heal from senseless violence from a driveby shooting in Southeast Washington that killed three teenagers last month? Could a city heal from a book that tells a complicated story about injustice, racism and the need for second chances? What would happen if throughout the city, everyone were engaged in the same lesson? Like back in English class, when a professor asked you to think deeper, to look for symbolism in the story, for irony, character development, layers of complication? Officials at the D.C. Humanities Council and the D.C. Public Library system are participating in the "Big Read," a program sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts to "revitalize the role of literary reading in American popular culture," are hoping that everyone in the city can learn from reading the same book. This year, the Humanities Council selected "A Lesson Before Dying," by Ernest J. Gaines, a novel about a black teenager living in segregated Louisiana, who is sentenced to death in the 1940s for murders he did not commit. The council and the library system distributed more than 2,500 copies of the book to programs for the homeless...
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...person who, in the opinion of others, has heroic qualities or has performed a heroic act and is regarded as a model or ideal.“ Now that we know what a hero is considered etymologically, how does this apply to ourselves or the people we meet every day? Mark Twain provides an option for heroes in his 1901 essay The United States of Lyncherdom. “Why does it lift no hand or voice in protest? Only because it would be unpopular to do it, I think; each man is afraid of his neighbor's disapproval – a thing which, to the general run of the race, is more dreaded than wounds and death.” This would seem to suggest that one might be considered heroic by showing he has no fear of the opinions of others. The simple act of standing to face evil or injustice seems to be a heroic quality. A noble act that would show the more pusillanimous of the herd...
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...A Lesson Before Dying Academic Conversation Directions- Prepare responses to the questions below. When we complete the novel, you will participate in the Academic Conversation by deploying these responses in a discussion about A Lesson Before Dying. 1. How are the following themes developed in the text: (cite textual evidence!) Racial Injustice(Monday, 4 Examples)pg 57, pg 49, 25, 79 1 - ¨There was a white movie theater uptown; a colored movie theater back of town for colored.¨(Gaines 25), This passage kicks off the mood the town has toward colored people and how they are treated throughout the story. 2 - ¨You're smart¨, Guidry said. ¨Maybe you're just a little too smart for your own good.¨(Gaines 49), This passage shows the developing message that colored men can't really be much and even though...
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...Student’s Name Professor Course Date A Lesson before Dying The church is a significant symbol of hope and contradiction in A Lesson before Dying. The contradiction of the church, situated in Henri Pichot’s plantation, commences with its owner’s reluctance to enhance the lives of the African Americans who reside in his plantation. Henri believes that that the African Americans ought to remain in their status as slaves regardless of the abolishment of the slavery institution (Piacentino 73-85). Henri, through the church, possesses considerable powers over the African Americans who utilize his property, and this illustrates the contradiction that is present in the lives of the African Americans. The church is the one place that they should find peace, solace and support, but in this case it is the one place that is utilized to realize the exact opposite. Albeit the African Americans have liberty from slavery, they still have to rely on the resource provided by the White Americans for their survival (Gaines 12). Grant is the only educated African American in the section, and the only member of the African American society who might be considered able of becoming free from oppression. However, his career and life choices are critically restricted, and he has to address to white male authority figures as “Sir.” It is interesting that they are free but still some individuals do not want them to be autonomous. Henri has seen a loophole which he is utilizing to still treat them as...
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...experiences. But in Grant’s case, the slight change he maid had an impact on his life. This spoke to me because it shows that the events of our lives can truly change who we are. Another reason I like this book is that it realistically reflects how African-Americans are treated, especially in the 1940s. The reason Jefferson received the death penalty was because he was African-American. We still see injustices like this today, such as the Ferguson Case, Trayvon Martin, or Michael Brown. A Lesson Before Dying took place before the civil rights movement, but still after the civil rights movement, not much has changed. The book was written after the civil rights movement, so the author wrote a story about how characters change, but our society hasn’t much. After reading A Lesson Before Dying, I asked myself if there any hope for the black community in America. We do have a black president after all, yet it seems like there hasn’t been enough change in our society since the story took place. Even though we have come along way since 1940s, it does not seem like far enough. A Lesson Before Dying is one of my...
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...that always fails to stay. Life experiences, as well as presence during times of injustice, will ultimately lead to the shattering of a child's innocence. In Harper Lee's novel To Kill a Mockingbird, loss of innocence is displayed through Jem's experiences and coming of age. Jem's visitation to Calpurnia's church had introduced him to the many negative qualities of Maycomb and its people. He also takes in the flaws of prejudice and judgment through his time with Boo Radley. Particularly, it was the trial that shattered his innocence entirely. Jem's witnessing of the harsh racism and brutal injustice during Tom Robinson's trial brought it two steps further, and he broke down. Innocence is something many strive to maintain, but life experiences and viewings of racism and injustice as portrayed by Harper Lee prevent just that. Calpurnia’s church had greeted Jem with prejudice, poverty, racism, as well as the birth of Jem’s realization of how Maycomb truly was. Upon arrival to Cal’s...
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...between 2012 and 2014. In Ernest J. Gaines’ book, A Lesson Before Dying, racial injustice plays an important role in the conflicts of the book. Being treated as inferior impacts the lives of Jefferson, Grant, and Miss Emma, which challenges how they perceive themselves. To begin with, Jefferson does not get the same treatment in his trial as a white man would because he is black. He is presumed to be guilty from the start. The narrator, Grant, said, “. . . we all knew, what the outcome would be. A white man had been killed during a robbery, and though two of the robbers had been killed on spot, and one had been captured, and he, too, would have to die” (4). Everyone, even his family, knew that he would be convicted solely because of the color of his skin. Jefferson’s attorney argues that Jefferson is a hog and is not intelligent enough to plan a murder. When...
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...Dying With Dignity Gavin Proeh English 1 Ordinary people can change someone’s life. People who stand up for what is right and help others find dignity in their lives can be considered heroes. One does not need to win the Nobel Prize or be Superman to be considered heroic. In some cases, helping individuals accomplish tasks others find too difficult to tackle can be considered heroic. In the novel, A Lesson Before Dying, Earnest Gaines demonstrates that Paul Bonin, Grant Wiggins, and Jefferson define heroism by giving dignity to all individuals and giving respect to a disrespected community. Heroes disregard the racist codes of society by treating all people as equals. In the novel, Paul, a white man who works at the jail, recognizes the injustices in society, and insists on treating all people equally with kindness. Grant comes to the jail frequently to visit Jefferson and help him die with dignity. Paul forms a friendship with this young black teacher and their bond and desire to help Jefferson grows stronger and stronger. This friendship goes against segregation, and a partnership is formed that is based on trust and loyalty. Paul understands people and recognizes Grant’s pain when Grant visits a defeated Jefferson. A few days after the execution, Paul greats Grant with Jefferson’s notebook, “ If I could ever be of any help, I would like you to call on me. I mean that with all my heart”(255). Paul shows bravery by reaching across the racial...
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...The Vietnam War Before the war, almost all of Americans really trusted their Congressmen, their universities, and other official institutions. At the beginning of the 1960s that trust begin to change as the world around them changed as well. Two basic viewpoints began to evolve during this time. One group felt that though intentions had been good for getting into the conflict, it was a losing battle that carried too great of burden both socially and economically and at the United States needed to get out of Vietnam. The other group felt that we had gone to Vietnam for a purpose and we shouldn't leave until the job was done. Most of the large demonstrations to protest the war took place on college campuses. During the Vietnam War, the draft was instituted for the first time since 1942. This meant that men and women of the Baby Boom era were eligible to be sent off to fight in a conflict that was being questioned for the American involvement. Draft deferments and exemptions were available for college students and this meant that young men in the working class who did not go to college because they could not afford it far outnumbered those of the middle or upper class. Students who avoided the war by going to college were aware of the injustice of the situation and used protests as a way of communicating this to the powers-that-be. In addition, once the students graduated, they would then be eligible to be sent off to Vietnam. This gave them added incentive to protest and try...
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...Figures of Speech Metaphor: A figure of speech that constructs an analogy between two things or ideas; the analogy is conveyed by the use of a metaphorical word in place of some other word. For example: "Her eyes were glistening jewels". Colonel Kurtz: "Are you an assassin?" Captain Willard: "I'm a soldier." Colonel Kurtz: "You're neither. You're an errand boy...sent by grocery clerks...to collect a bill." (From Apolcalypse Now) Trying to get banks to lend in this economic climate is impossible. It’s pushing a string Clichés are usually dead metaphors: ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ Love is blind. It takes two to tango. Misery loves company. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. Too little, too late. Tip of the iceberg But clichés can be used as the basis for a witty jujitsu by taking the form and substituting other words: • • • • • Work is the curse of the drinking classes. You can bring a whore to culture (original: horticulture), but you can’t make her think. Bankruptcy is a fate worse than debt. One must have a heart of stone to read the death of little Nell without laughing. The leisure of the theory class. Or as Heinrich suggests, by taking them literally when they are used by others: Opponent: The early bird catches the worm You: It can have it. Opponent: Let’s not pour the baby out with the bath water. You: No, let just pull the plug. Chiasmus: [kahy-az-muh s] A reversal in the order of words in two otherwise parallel phrases, as in “He went to the country, to the town went she.” •...
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