Passive Characters In Ernest Gaines A Lesson Before Dying

Authors are criticized constantly; chastised for their employment of literary elements such as allusions, motifs, and word choices. Ernest Gaines has been castigated for the utilization of passive characters in his famous novel, A Lesson Before Dying. His castigation is wrongful simply as a result of the fact that I do not believe his main characters are passive for the entirety of the book. His characters are accused of refusing to fight the injustices surrounding them. While this refusal is apparent throughout his work, Gaines does a commendable job developing a form of aggression in his more passive characters. When Jefferson, a slow-witted black man, is accused of a murder he did not commit and is sentenced to death by execution, his

He acts as a hog would because he became obsessed with the idea that he is not a human as his lawyer presented. The first of many visits was infuriating for both Grant and Jefferson. Grant, not wanting to be there in the first place, is annoyed that Jefferson is acting like an animal and not much progress is made. It takes four visits for Grant to understand that what he once thought of as an insurmountable task, is now quite realistic. On this fourth visit, Jefferson is contumacious, but a wall is broken, a milestone reached. Grant explains to Jefferson, “‘[y]ou’re not a hog… You’re a man,’” (Gaines

Jefferson has spent the majority of his life working for very little money, doing what people tell him to do. This passive lifestyle works for him until the day of the murder; not having any part in the actual infraction, his non-aggressive personality allows him to be accused and convicted of the horrendous crime. In his last few days, Jefferson spends a lot of time writing in the journal Grant gave to him; something no one, including Grant and Jefferson himself, would have expected. In this journal, Jefferson tells of his surroundings, the noises, people, and food in the jail. He also raises some questions that makes readers question how passive this man might actually be. He asks why poor people suffer more than the rich and why the Lord caters to the whites more than the blacks. He mentions that he believes he is better than what the white men