What are themes in A Lesson Before Dying?

Ernest J. Gaines drives home the themes of race relations, injustice, and salvation in ”A Lesson Before Dying” set in Pre-Civil Rights Louisiana where a black man is unjustly executed for murder.

What is the theme of A Lesson Before Dying Chapter 19?

Summary: Chapter 19 During the Christmas program, a particularly dramatic recitation of “’Twas the Night before Christmas” affects everyone deeply, but Grant becomes depressed thinking about the monotony of their routine. Every year they put on the same play and sing the same songs.

What is the theme of Chapter 5 A Lesson Before Dying?

Summary: Chapter 5 Grant teaches only five and a half months out of the year, because his students work in the fields the rest of the time. In a foul mood, Grant punishes his students for the slightest offenses, though they try to avoid upsetting him.

What is the theme of isolation in A Lesson Before Dying?

Isolation. Ernest J. Gaines novel, A Lesson Before Dying, transcends the racial barriers presented in the story. Not only does Gaines speak to the long, harsh history of white oppression of blacks, but to the unjust oppression in preset day society.

What does the Christmas tree symbolize in A Lesson Before Dying?

The Christmas tree symbolizes Jefferson because it shows how even though Jefferson was not as educated as Grant or did not have a great life or make the greatest decisions he was beautiful in his own way.

What is the significance of the gift under the tree in A Lesson Before Dying?

One Present Under the Tree Less work meant more time to practice. The Christmas tree is decorated and one lone gift sits under it. It is a wool sweater and wool socks that the children had pooled their money to buy. Everyone knows that the gift is for Jefferson, and this seems to have a sobering effect on the audience.

What is chapter 6 about in A Lesson Before Dying?

In Chapter 6 of A Lesson Before Dying, Grant waits at Henri’s house to hear whether or not he will be given permission to meet with Jefferson. He waits in the kitchen with Inez. Even though Henry told Grant to come at 5 o’clock, he is pretty much ignored until two and half hours later.

What does Grant find out at the end of chapter 5?

Grant angrily tells his classroom that the children who play with bugs will end up like Jefferson: executed by electrocution in Bayonne. He goes on to tell the children that he’s been asked to make Jefferson a man before he dies.

What lesson does Jefferson learn in A Lesson Before Dying?

He has learned his lesson: He is a man, not a hog. Jefferson no longer blames Grant for his situation. By offering Grant a sweet potato, he demonstrates his forgiveness and his affection for Grant.