A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J. Gaines addresses many social issues. Topics include but are
not limited to, love of others/self, commitment to others/self, acceptance of self/others, racism,
hatred of self/others, social class and social position, family heritage, injustice, the death penalty.
 A theme is a statement about one of these topics. It is not the topic, but an idea or belief
about the topic.
o Grant needs to accept his heritage and background in order to love himself and
others.
You must first construct a theme, which should express a central conflict in the story. This
conflict is the lesson which a character must learn before dying. The theme is your thesis
statement.
Example: Theme Construction
Who is given a lesson before dying? Grant.
What is the lesson?
A person cannot fully love others without first accepting self.
(Topics: Love of others/self, acceptance, heritage)
Conflict: Grant can’t get past his own conflicts about coming from
slavery, so he can’t really love other people unselfishly)
Theme of the Novel: Grant must accept his heritage and background before he can fully love
others.
Essay: In a 3-5 page response paper, identify one character in the novel, A Lesson Before Dying
by Ernest J. Gaines. Develop a central theme surrounding a conflict in the novel. Your theme
should answer the central question: Who is given an opportunity for a lesson before dying and
what is the lesson to be learned?
1. INTRODUCTION: Your paper must include a well-written introductory paragraph
which introduces the novel (title and author) and leads directly into your thesis
statement. Your thesis statement must be the last sentence of the introduction and is
your theme which answers the central question. [Points: 0-5 points]
2. BODY PARAGRAPHS: Your response (body paragraphs) must address the
following:
 The central conflict of your identified character: For example, Grant’s selfishness,
or the Sheriff’s or other townspeople’s belief that black men are animals
 The changes in the character throughout the novel
 How Jefferson’s death teaches the character a lesson?
 Whether the character is able to learn a lesson by the end of the novel
(If not, whether you think the character is on the way to learning this lesson before
he or she dies). [Points 0-20 points]
3. You must include at least 4 direct quotes from the novel with page numbers. [Points
0-20 points]
 Your quotes must be woven into grammatically correct sentences rather than
being isolated quotes.
 Signal phrases should be used, such as:
Vivian’s comment to Grant, that “………,”shows her fear that Grant may
never be able to change (72).
 In order to show a progression, your quotes must come from the beginning,
middle, and end of the novel. You may use more than three quotes.
 The quotes must be relevant and provide strong support for your essay
4. CONCLUSION: You must include a conclusion which summarizes your argument
and gives other insight into the novel. Your thesis statement should be restated or
referred to in the conclusion. [Points 0-5 points]
5. GRAMMAR AND CONSTRUCTION: Your essay must be free from grammatical
errors. Check for incomplete or fragment sentences. Check for run-on or lengthy
sentences. Check for spelling errors. Remember: the novel doesn’t “state” or “say” (A
novel or article doesn’t talk – the character, narrator or author does). Be sure to
identify the character as the person speaking. [Points 0-5 points]
 Automatic rewrites: Not identifying the novel and author
 Using the pronoun “You,” other than when directly quoted
 Not including the thesis statement/theme as the last sentence of the
introductory paragraph.
6. WORKS CITED – Novel, Connection to Movie The Green Mile
 5 points
THEME CONSTRUCTION
Who is given a lesson before dying?
What is the lesson?
Topics:
Conflict:
Theme of the Novel: