What are the themes in A Lesson Before Dying?

Ernest J. Gaines drives home the themes of race relations, injustice, and salvation in ”A Lesson Before Dying” set in Pre-Civil Rights Louisiana where a black man is unjustly executed for murder.

What does Jefferson learn in A Lesson Before Dying?

He learns to escape his solitude through music, and he shows strength and courage in the days leading up to his execution. Jefferson challenges his attorney’s characterization of him as a hog or animal.

What time period is A Lesson Before Dying set in?

1940s

What is the main reason why Grant doesn’t want to leave his visits to Jefferson early?

What is the main reason why Grant doesn’t want to leave his visits to Jefferson early? a. He doesn’t want the prison workers to think that he’s failing & that Jefferson can’t change.

What does Miss Emma want from Grant?

Miss Emma is the first character to show compassion and caring for Jefferson after he is sentenced to death. She urges Grant to visit Jefferson, so he could teach Jefferson how to become a man. She wants Jefferson to die with dignity.

Why did Matthew Antoine hate Grant?

The Creole man who taught Grant when Grant was a child, Matthew Antoine is a bitter, remorseful man who secretly despises Grant for daring to believe that he could use education to better himself.

What did Vivian do that upset her family in free LaCove?

Vivian says that she hopes Grant’s family will like her. She comes from a light-skinned mulatto community called Free LaCove, but she married a very dark-skinned man whom she met while attending Xavier University. When she finally told them, they shunned her and her new family.

Who does Vivian think is in love with Grant?

Irene

What is the quarter in A Lesson Before Dying?

The ‘quarter’, as Grant commonly refers to his neighborhood, is a community of blacks that work on a sugar cane plantation owned by Mr. Henri Pichot. These black workers have a school and a church completely separate from the white community.

What point of view is A Lesson Before Dying?

A Lesson Before Dying is written from the first person narrative point of view. This means that the story is told from a character’s point of view, and readers can expect the narrator to refer to himself as “I.” We see this in the opening sentences of the story.

Is Vivian White in A Lesson Before Dying?

Vivian Baptiste is Grant’s beautiful girlfriend in A Lesson Before Dying. Vivian is also a teacher, and a faithful Catholic. She encourages and supports Grant in his visits with Jefferson, even when those visits affect their relationship.

Why does Grant want to move away?

Grant wants very badly to marry Vivian and take her, her children and himself away from the lives they are currently living. He wants to move them to a larger city; a city with more freedom.

What is determination Sunday?

Determination Sunday is the third Sunday of every month, when the churchgoers sing their favorite hymns. Grant is in his home, correcting student papers, and hears a local woman, Miss Eloise Bouie calling for his aunt.

Why does Miss Emma hit Jefferson?

Several days later, Grant overhears Tante Lou and Miss Eloise discussing Miss Emma’s last visit with Jefferson and learns that Miss Emma slapped Jefferson for repeating his degrading act of imitating a hog.

Why does grant not attend church like he used to?

A He does not see the value in it and devotes his life to his studies and studying instead.

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