How Did Jefferson Learned In A Lesson Before Dying

In the book, A lesson before dying, Jefferson comes of age after he “ Becomes a man”, being taught how to by Grant. In the beginning, Jefferson is falsely accused of a crime he did not commit and sentenced to death for being at the wrong place, at the wrong time. Jefferson calls himself a hog, because that is what the public defender had called him. Grant is then chosen to transform Jeffreson into a man before he dies. Jefferson struggles, but in the end, Jefferson sees himself as a man, not a Hog, nor a child.
Early in the book, Jefferson viewed himself as not a man, but a hog, after his attorney calls him a hog, in his defense. When Grant visits Jefferson, Jefferson asks for corn and says, “I'm go'n show you how a old hog eat, "(58). Here, Jefferson literally refers to himself as a hog and not a man. When Grant is talking to Miss Emma, she tells him that she wants Jefferson to die a man, not as a hog. "I don't want them to kill no hog ……… I want a man to go to that chair, on his own two feet.(44)” Here, Miss Emma says she wants Jefferson to become a man before he dies, and she wants Grant to do it for her. Jefferson must become a …show more content…
Jefferson started to be able to tell that he is a man, and not a hog, “Man walk on two foots; hogs on four hoofs.”(220) Here, Jefferson is able to distinguish the difference between himself and a hog, meaning he is beginning to mature and turn into a man. Jefferson also makes other comparisons to himself and a Hog,” If I ain't nothing but a hog, how come they don't knock me in the head like a hog?” Here, Jefferson is saying he is different than a hog because he is treated differently than a hog is treated. This show how Jefferson is coming of age and turning into the man he needs to