472 Gaines, Ernest J.
assistance of older students when he organizes the
teaching of the youngest. The miserable school
conditions make the children realize their low
personal value to their society and deprive them
of their aspirations. Despite this, the children at
school not only acquire the basic skills, but they
also learn to help one another and to act collectively.
An important episode that shows the strengthen-
ing of bonds between the youngest members of the
African-American community is their preparation
of a nativity play for Christmas festivities.
The centrality of the church in the black quarter
points to the significance of religion in the com-
munity’s life. African Americans are poor people
who bear humiliation on a daily basis; that is why
they need spiritual support and religious consola-
tion so much. The hope that there is a loving God
makes their lives tolerable and saves them from utter
resignation. Thus it is understandable that Reverend
Ambrose, who is in charge of the church, is a figure
of authority in the black people’s eyes and a natu-
ral leader of their community. He allows them to
believe that the salvation of souls will be a compen-
sation for the privations and humiliations of earthly
life. Although he has doubts about his methods, and
even about his calling, he realizes that he would fail
his people completely if they knew about his incer-
titude; therefore he remains firm in his public role.
It is important to notice that women play a cru-
cial role in the African-American community. The
main female characters in A Lesson are Miss Emma,
Jefferson’s godmother, Tante Lou, Wiggins’s aunt,
and Vivian, his beloved. Miss Emma and Tante Lou
are both women of faith; in particular, they believe
that Jefferson will regain his dignity and religious
consciousness before the execution. The two women
cooperate closely with Reverend Ambrose, who not
only confirms them in their faith, but also suggests
to them ways of influencing Grant and Jefferson.
Although Miss Emma and Tante Lou are elderly
and therefore delicate women, they know how to
exert pressure on men and they instigate actions
undertaken by men. This is particularly true of
Grant who unwillingly yields to his aunt’s persua-
sion after she has blackmailed him. Miss Emma and
Tante Lou function as mother figures for Jefferson
and Grant, respectively. Even Vivian, though she is
Grant’s lover, offers him almost motherly support.
It can be said that the black community in Gaines’s
novel has certain matriarchal features.
The significance of women in the black com-
munity accounts for the contrast with the strictly
patriarchal white community. In general, in patriar-
chal societies all power resides in the hands of men.
In A Lesson the white community is represented
almost exclusively by male characters. Moreover, the
white men portrayed by Gaines belong to the local
elite, as they are landowners and entrepreneurs,
or they hold various public offices. For example,
Henri Pichot owns the plantation, Louis Rougnon
runs a bank in a nearby town, and Sam Guidry is
the sheriff. They stand for economic privilege and
institutional power.
Marek Paryzrace in A Lesson before Dying
The relations between the communities of whites
and blacks are determined by the difference in race
and the resulting prejudices. The context evoked
in the novel is characterized by a long history of
racism, which has become a social norm. Even
though A Lesson’s racism does not portray brutal or
violent forms of racism, it inevitably highlights a
variety of situations where white people have been
involved with blacks. The best illustration of how
whites assert their superiority and remind African
Americans that they are seen as an inferior category
of human is the episode when Grant comes to Mr.
Pichot’s house and has to wait in the kitchen for
more than two hours before the host kindly meets
him. In general, when a black person wants to be
treated favorably by whites, he should speak humbly
and avoid looking white people straight in the eyes.
White people control African Americans by
means of certain oppressive measures, sanctioned by
the law; indeed, Jefferson’s punishment for a crime
he did not commit is the most striking example
of racial oppression. Gaines presents the young
convict as a scapegoat, in other words, a man who
is punished mercilessly, even though he does not
bear any guilt. The mechanism of scapegoating
manifests itself in relations between individuals as
well as between groups, such as national or ethnic
communities; Gaines is interested in the latter case.