Week One
In a Lesson Before Dying, an innocent man is being charged with the death penalty that he did not committ. So far this story has me on the end of my seat. I'm curious of what may happen next. In the story so far, The african man named Jefferson decided to take a ride with his friends. His friends was already drunk but they wanted to buy more alcohol but they didn't have enough money. Jefferson's friends, Brother and Bear, didn't like the fact that the store owner didn't want to let them pay for the alcohol without the money so it became a huge problem. After the altercation, the one person still alive was Jefferson who had no part in the crime, As Jefferson stood there confused and observing the bodies, he thought about what to do. Instead of him thinking clearly and just leaving, he decided to steal the money from the store. As Jefferson was walking out the store, a couple of white men walked into the store. Of course if you see a black man walking out of a store with money and three dead bodies on the ground, he's going to look suspecious. The aunt of Grant, an african american school teacher, and the godmother of Jefferson really wanted Grant to go to the prison and talk to Jefferson before he died. Miss Emma, Jefferson's godmother, didn't want Jefferson to die as a hog, what the court called him, but to die as a man and that was Grant's job to handle.
Week Two
A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J Gaines
- The protagonist is Grant. Grant tells all of the story in his prospective.
- The major characters :
Miss Emma- The loving God Mother of Jefferson
Jefferson- The convict
Tante Lou- The aunt of Grant
Vivan- Grant's girlfriend
- Point of View: 1st person point of view. Grant uses "I" and does it in his own words
- Setting: This setting is in a small Cajun community in Louisiana based during the 1940's.
- Tone: Depressing
- Irony: Dramatically Irony is used in this story because we know that Jefferson didn't commit the crime but the charracters believe that he did.
- Symbols: The hog is a symbol for unworthy and trifling people.
- Theme: Faith, Unlucky.
Four By Fours
A Lesson Before Dying
Louisiana in the 1940s
A wrongfully convicted man
Wrong place, wrong time
White over Black people
White humulating the Black
Walking through the back
Not worthy of front
Miss Emma - Tante Lou
loving, old, restless godmother
controlling, demanding, rude, aunt
forcing Grant to teach
Grant the school teacher
Teaching ungrateful little children
They play with bugs
Goofing while cutting wood
Louisiana in the 1940s
A wrongfully convicted man
Wrong place, wrong time
White over Black people
White humulating the Black
Walking through the back
Not worthy of front
Miss Emma - Tante Lou
loving, old, restless godmother
controlling, demanding, rude, aunt
forcing Grant to teach
Grant the school teacher
Teaching ungrateful little children
They play with bugs
Goofing while cutting wood