A Lesson Before Dying

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Recommended: Problems with racism in literature

In Ernest J. Gaines novel A Lesson Before Dying, a young African-American, Jefferson, is caught in the middle of a liquor shootout, and as the only survivor is convicted of murder and sentenced to death. During Jefferson’s trial, his attorney calls him a hog in an effort to persuade the jury that he could not have possibly planned a crime like this. Having heard this, Jefferson’s godmother, Miss Emma, calls on the local school teacher, Grant Wiggins, to visit Jefferson in prison and help prove to the community, more importantly the white people, that Jefferson is indeed a man, not a hog. Throughout the book, Grant often contemplates why he is helping Miss Emma; he debates within himself whether he should stay and help Miss Emma and Jefferson, or to escape with his girlfriend, Vivian, from the racist town he lives in. These two inner conflicts Grant faces throughout the book emphasize the central theme of facing responsibility when placed in injustice.

Near the beginning of the novel when Miss Emma asks Grant for his help, he is reluctant to do so claiming he is a college educated ...

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