A Lesson Before Dying By Ernest J. Gaines

“Words—so innocent and powerless as they are, as standing in a dictionary, how potent for good and evil they become in the hands of one who knows how to combine them” (Pr daily). In the novel A Lesson Before Dying the author Ernest J. Gaines portrays the damage that words can do to a person, as well as the redemption they can bring upon someone. In the novel, a young man named Jefferson is convicted of murder and sentenced to death. His defense lawyer claims that he is nothing more than a hog, which negatively impacts his self-esteem. His aunt, Miss Emma, sends a teacher, Grant Wiggins, to encourage him before his death. Similarly, in the book Go Set a Watchman, author Harper Lee depicts the lasting effects that words have on people. In

In Go Set a Watchman, Jean Louise shares the power that her Aunt Alexandra has over her simply by her words. “She was completely unaware that that with one twist of the tongue she could plunge Jean Louise into a moral turmoil by making her niece doubt her own motives and best intentions” (Lee 28). With a handful of words, Alexandra can make Jean Louise question everything; a single sentence can leave Jean Louise confused and concerned. Sometimes, people are completely unaware of the fact that their words have such power, just like what Lee portrays with Alexandra. People are often oblivious of the ability they have with their speech, and the damage they are doing with it. Similarly, the single phrase from a defense lawyer in A Lesson Before Dying changed and altered a man’s view of himself. The defense claimed that Jefferson was a hog, not a man, and therefore not intelligent enough to kill a man. When Grant visited Jefferson in jail for the first time, Jefferson told Grant that he would show him how a real hog eats, then went on to eat on his hands and knees (Gaines). Jefferson’s entire view of himself changed because of the label his lawyer placed on him. Being called a hog affected his actions and emotions. He lost the will to live and the will to care because people told him he didn’t deserve to be a man. Both novels depicted the idea that words possess the ability to make a person completely rethink

In Go Set a Watchman, Jean Louise says some awful things to her father after finding out that he is not who she thought him to be. Instead of responding with harsh and hateful comments, Atticus shows his love for his daughter. “You may be sorry, but I'm proud of you” (Lee 277). These words caught Jean Louise by surprise. She’d been terrified of facing her father after calling him a snob, tyrant, and coward. Atticus used the phrase “I'm proud of you” to rid Jean Louise of any fear or uneasiness. His words restored their father-daughter relationship. In A Lesson Before Dying, Gaines also shows the restoration that positive words can have on a person. After Grant spends several afternoons encouraging Jefferson and building up his confidence, Jefferson journals a response in his diary. He writes, “I cry cause you been so good to me an nobody ain't never been that good to me an make me think im somebody” (Gaines 232). He also stated, “im strong, im a man” (Gaines 234). For the majority of the novel Jefferson stood firm in the belief that he was a hog, not a man. By Gaines’s redemptive and powerful words he tore down Jefferson’s insecure walls and resurrected a confidence within Jefferson. Many other people went to visit Jefferson, but their attempts at making him into a man failed. Gaines found success because he cared about Jefferson, and Jefferson could feel that compassion