A Lesson Before Dying Essay Journal Response: Discrimination of the Colored people
Within this second section of readings, I have observed the extreme amounts of discrimination presented toward the people of a colored nature. The respect in which the white people show is clearly unacceptable. The blacks are not even given a chance to show who they are and what they can be.
Discrimination is evident throughout the novel, and I feel that is clearly is a major theme. The novel has presented to myself that the blacks were not deserving towards receiving any respect.
When the superintendent came to visit the school, the impression I received was such that the white peoples in that time thought that the blacks were unclean, and uneducated. This seemed to be extremely hypocritical because the board was not willing to give them the money for new books. Equality between the two races was not evident at all. The blacks were not given a chance to show how they measured up to everyone else. I was impressed with how the resources were used to their fullest, and you never know, this school could and if not, had the potential to being the best school in the state.
Not being able to show potential was also evident with Jefferson.
Everyone has thought of him as a hog instead of a man, and this is all because of his race linked with discrimination. Jefferson was called a hog because he was on trial for a murder, a murder he did not commit. He was put on trial for this murder for one of many reasons, and one reason being his color. He was called a hog because he had no intelligence. If Jefferson was given some school in his earlier years, I believe they would not have referred to him this way. As Wiggin’s attempts to make Jefferson a man, I believe that this will show the potential he has, which will also reflect upon the rest of the community.
Beating the white people at what they think they are so superior to the blacks, it shows how equal the two races are. Our world is very unique, but we all are the same no matter what race each of us are.
When push comes to shove, there is not a type of fairness between the two races. The controlling white people say that the black people are not superior to them even though they are not given the same chances. The Black people seem to have worked extremely hard and defiantly equally to the white people. Just as Wiggin’s says, “You want me to stay away and let him win? The white man?” (p.
84). This shows how much the blacks had to show how good they are and could be. It was not fair how much harder they had to work to become accepted into society. This acceptance in society is important because it builds self-esteem, and paves the way for the many generations to come, and give them a chance others were not given. .
