A Lesson Before Dying Setting Analysis

The Importance of Setting A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J. Gaines is a thought provoking novel regarding the significance of the situation that black men were in during the 1940’s. The novel takes place in a small town in Louisiana that is known for its racial discrimination. Gilman chooses to tell the story of a black man condemned to death through an average school teacher who is pressured to help Jefferson, the accused, die “like a man”. The novel is factual, in that it describes the religious and discriminatory views of everyone during the time it takes place. It seems that if it were set in a different time period that the whole purpose in writing the story would be altered. The way white and black men thought in that time period was completely different to how men in today’s society not only view things racially, but also religiously. …show more content…
The question being asked is, how would the story change if it were set in a different time period? An acceptable year to compare to the one that the novel takes place in is 2014. In the story, Jefferson is accused of murdering two white men. Because of his actions, he is sentenced to death. It is unknown whether or not he is innocent, but because of his race, he has no option but to face the death penalty. In today’s society, this would not be the case. If the novel were to take place in 2014 instead of the 1940’s, more effort would be spent to prove that Jefferson were innocent. Although there are still people with discriminatory views, the extremity of it is less than back then. For the author’s sake, it would not be a smart decision to have the novel take place in 2014 because the main point of difference in race would be