A+Lesson+Before+Dying7

Unconfident. Questions his ability to change the vicious cycle frequently. Believes in God, but not heaven. Provides Jefferson with a radio. Cares for Jefferson, he fights in a bar on Jefferson’s behalf when people talked down on him.
 * Characters**
 *  Grant Wiggins **- Plantation teacher. Well educated. Has affair with Vivan. Takes anger out on students.


 * Jefferson**- He forms a strong relationship from Grant. Cries at the end of the book. Told by Paul that Jefferson died like a man. Does not consider himself as a hero. Sees a hero as someone who does things for others. Jefferson is sentenced to die on Easter due to being set up for Bear and Brother’s crime. He is clearly upset, and naïve; for a significant portion of the book, he believes he’s a hog. Gives up on life Went to the chair like a man. Forms a friendship with Grant. He is uneducated.

 **Miss. Emma** - Cares for Jefferson. Jefferson’s godmother

Friends with Miss. Emma. Bets against Grant. Sees Jefferson as hog Allows Grant to visit Jefferson. Is willing to remove Grant if there is any sign of aggravation from Jefferson. In the end, secretly, wishes that the day never came. First time in charge of an execution.
 * Aunt Tante Lou**- Cares for Jefferson. Manipulative- she makes others feel guilty Gives Grant the mission of making Jefferson a man.

 **Sheriff** - Bets against Grant. Sees Jefferson as hog. Allows Grant to visit Jefferson. Is willing to remove Grant if there is any sign of aggravation from Jefferson. In the end, secretly, wishes that the day never came. First time in charge of an execution


 * Paul Bonin**- Deputy. Talks to Jefferson and Grant. Was present at Jefferson’s execution. Tells Grant that Jefferson went to the chair as a man

 **Reverend Ambrose** - A religious man. Tries to prepare Jefferson for the next world. Frequently disagrees with Grant’s methods of reaching to Jefferson for example; the radio. As Reverend, he believes that if it makes people happy on the long run, it’s okay to lie. Tries to convince Grant to lie to Jefferson on whether or not he believes in Heaven.

//A Lesson Before Dying// is set in the fictional city of Bayonne, Louisiana in the late 1940s. It tells the story of two African American men struggling to attain their manhood in a deeply prejudiced society. Jefferson, a young man with little formal education, is an innocent bystander at a deadly shootout between a white store owner and two black robbers. He is later convicted of murder and sentenced to death. During the trial, Jefferson’s defense lawyer calls him a “hog,” claiming he is less than human and therefore should not be killed. Grant faces many different types of opposition during the novel. Though Miss Emma, Jefferson’s Godmother, has worked for Henry Pichot, the plantation owner, for years, he is reluctant to help Grant make Jefferson a man. At one point, Miss Emma gets down on her knees and begs for help from Mr. Pichot. Grant is often asked to visit Mr. Pichot’s house to meet with him, and then is forced to wait in the kitchen for hours until Mr. Pichot is ready to see him. During his many trips to the jail to visit Jefferson, Grant is scrutinized and ridiculed by the white sheriff. Grant's former teacher, Matthew Antoine, had told him that teaching was useless. He constantly grapples with his internal motivation for staying at the quarter and not leaving for an easier life. Though Grant is educated, he is, unlike the majority of the other characters in the book, not Christian. As such Grant constantly wrestles with the local black minister, Reverend Ambrose, who wants to save Jefferson’s soul before he dies. Both men are looked up to in their community, but both have sharply contrasting views about what is best for people.
 * Plot Summary**

The book is set in Bayonne, Louisiana in the late 1940's. The town is separated into a black section and a white section. Some major scenes of the book occur at the jail, at the Wiggins' house and a restaurant/bar. Themes Lying- Reverend Ambrose delivers a speech saying that all blacks have to lie in order to to stay alive in the south. This shows that black people were omitted to staying in the south no matter what.
 * Setting**

Justice and Injustice From the beginning until the very end of //A Lesson Before Dying// a sense of injustice prevails. While this theme derives from the larger theme of racism, Gaines uses specific incidents to demonstrate how underlying racist beliefs can result in miscarriage of justice. Jefferson innocently accepts a ride with two conniving young men who are planning to take advantage of a white businessman. When the three other men die in the resulting struggle, Jefferson, who is slightly retarded, does not really understand what has happened or even remember how he got there. Unfairly accused by two white men who come into the store and find Jefferson leaving with money and whiskey in his pockets, Jefferson is later tried and convicted for the crime and sentenced to die in the electric chair. The injustice continues after Jefferson is jailed, and it extends to the people he loves. Tante Lou, the Reverend, and Grant Wiggins suffer ill treatment when they try to arrange visitation and each time that they visit Jefferson thereafter. The intolerance shown by the white accusers, jurors, judge, and jailers results from their racist belief that they are superior to black people.

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