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A review by louiza_read2live
A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J. Gaines
5.0
In A Lesson Before Dying, Jefferson is a young, uneducated black man living in Louisiana in the 1940s. He has been arrested for the murder of a liquor store owner during a robbery where the other two robbers are shot to death also. (Nothing here is a spoiler). Jefferson knew the robbers, but he said he was not part of the killings. However, this is 1940's South. Without an appropriate and just trial, or witnessess, or solid evidence, Jefferson immediately is accused for the murder of the store owner since he is the only one left alive at the store where he also took some money from the register. At a mockery of a trial Jefferson is convicted and gets the death penalty.
Is the death penalty the worse that could happen to Jefferson? Is there anything worse than been accused and convicted for a crime he didn't commit? With this poignant and heartbreaking story, Ernest J. Gaines tells us that there is--Losing one's dignity and humanity is worse than losing one's life or been accused of a crime one didn't commit. Jefferson's godmother understands this very well and is determined that her godson will go to the electric chair with his head high. Therefore, she sends Grant Wiggins, the teacher of the black school, to talk with Jefferson in prison and teach him to be a Man. In the end, one life will be gone, but more than one life will have changed--Two people will learn how to be Men: strong and dignified, and how to keep their heads high when the circumstances forces them to keep them down and strips them of their humanity. I will also argue that both Men change not only their own lives, however short Jefferson's life might be, but also the lives of those in their community who watched their struggle.
There is a lot to think when reading this story, not only whether Jefferson is guilty or not, but also and most important about the value of human dignity, (which is at the center of this story, in my opinion), the discrimination and apalling racism and patronized, humiliating attitute of the South of 1940s, the unjust justice system (sounds like a paradox, doesn't?), the issue of death penalty, faith, and more...
A great book, but keep tissues nearby. I cried.
After three heartbreaking rereads in a row, I think I will need a break with a happier book. I have been rereading some books I read years ago, and A Lesson Before Dying is one of those rereads, and just another one that broke my heart, but it was worth it.
Is the death penalty the worse that could happen to Jefferson? Is there anything worse than been accused and convicted for a crime he didn't commit? With this poignant and heartbreaking story, Ernest J. Gaines tells us that there is--Losing one's dignity and humanity is worse than losing one's life or been accused of a crime one didn't commit. Jefferson's godmother understands this very well and is determined that her godson will go to the electric chair with his head high. Therefore, she sends Grant Wiggins, the teacher of the black school, to talk with Jefferson in prison and teach him to be a Man. In the end, one life will be gone, but more than one life will have changed--Two people will learn how to be Men: strong and dignified, and how to keep their heads high when the circumstances forces them to keep them down and strips them of their humanity. I will also argue that both Men change not only their own lives, however short Jefferson's life might be, but also the lives of those in their community who watched their struggle.
There is a lot to think when reading this story, not only whether Jefferson is guilty or not, but also and most important about the value of human dignity, (which is at the center of this story, in my opinion), the discrimination and apalling racism and patronized, humiliating attitute of the South of 1940s, the unjust justice system (sounds like a paradox, doesn't?), the issue of death penalty, faith, and more...
A great book, but keep tissues nearby. I cried.
After three heartbreaking rereads in a row, I think I will need a break with a happier book. I have been rereading some books I read years ago, and A Lesson Before Dying is one of those rereads, and just another one that broke my heart, but it was worth it.