A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J. Gaines -- First Impressions

Ernest J. Gaines' A Lesson Before Dying starts off in a Louisianan courtroom where a man named Jefferson is being tried for allegedly killing a man during a robbery. From what is gathered, Jefferson is obviously being falsely accused of this crime, but because the novel takes place in pre-Civil Rights South (and also the fact that Jefferson himself is black), he is charged with first degree murder and sentenced to death by electrocution. This is the main idea of what's going on in the beginning of this story, where Jefferson's death sentence sets up everything else that is going to happen in the novel. Gaines interestingly starts off in the middle of a key scene in the story; there is no buildup to Jefferson's trial, nor is there a proper introduction for any of the main characters. I feel like he did this to somewhat get us straight into the story, without adding irrelevant information that would just slow it down. At one point, the defense attorney gives reasons as to why Jefferson is innocent of the crimes he is accused of, but in the process says some very degrading things about the man. He says that Jefferson is not a man, but a fool; a fool that would get himself in the trouble that he was in; a fool that lacks any sense of intelligence; a fool that only acts on command. He even says that Jefferson "acted the way he did" because of the traits he inherited from his African ancestry. The man who is solely responsible for keeping Jefferson away from a death sentence is also the one who degrades and belittles him at the same time. I think Gaines gave this character this kind of dialogue to show the audience when this novel is taking place, and the type of attitude people had during that time. From what is said, you can tell that A Lesson Before Dying took place during a time when ignorance and prejudice were very prevalent.