Ernest Gaine's Dignity In A Lesson Before Dying

The principle of human dignity is one of the core principles of the doctrines of ethics and Christianity. The concept of human dignity plays a central role in the standard. Every human has the basic rights in respect of both himself and by others. Human dignity is possessing strong morals and being in a worthy state of respect and honor. Dignity involves respect and compromise among the people in society. In life, dignity is very important because it allows individuals and groups to feel respected, and connected with others around them. Dignity is something that a person has within themselves. Although people can treat you with worthiness and honor, it cannot be handed to you, it simply comes within yourself. In Ernest Gaine's …show more content…
In a Lesson Before Dying, Grant, the protagonist, and narrator of the novel is an elementary school teacher, who has taken on the of making Jefferson a man. Since Grant has spent his whole life in a segregated, racist community, his views on dignity and their job as men are counterproductive. In the beginning of the novel, Grant was asked by Miss Emma to go and visit Jefferson and teach him to die with dignity. Grant replies by saying, “I’m the teacher ... and I teach what the white folks around here tell me to teach—reading, writing, and ‘arithmetic. They never told me how to keep a black boy out of a liquor store,”(Gaines 13). In this quote, it is …show more content…
Dignity has the potential to change the world, but only if people like you help to spread its profound message. Towards the end of, In a Lesson before Dying, the characters realize that their individual survivals depend on the mutual support they have for each other. Although it is Jefferson's story, it is equally Grant’s story because in the end they learn the lesson, of dignity and respect for each other and for