From the beginning we’ve known that Grant dislikes the town he lives in, and is torn by wanting to leave. He even had the chance, when he visited his parents in California, but then he came back. I never really understood why he still felt so strongly about his town until the Christmas show.
Throughout A Lesson Before Dying, Grant has been cynical, feeling trapped and powerless, and for good reason. Many times he’s alluded to the cycle, or really cycles, that the community and its people are stuck in, that keep them trapped in a hard life. I could understand how and why Grant became so cynical, but I didn’t understand why he came home, if it depressed him and made him feel that he could not make a change. Speaking of feelings, I was pretty indifferent to Grant at first, because he seemed so apathetic or angry at everything (except for Vivian). I was almost as frustrated as Grant because I couldn’t understand why he was here if he had a chance to leave and hated it. He never really showed any affection for his hometown in the present.
But during the Christmas show, despite his best efforts to stay detached through anger, there were a few moments that still touched Grant (and through him, me). I had to reread the passages a few times to be sure, since Gaines (as any writer should be) is a master of ‘show don’t tell.’ All that signaled to me that these moments meant anything to Grant were the extra details he gave us while describing them. He described in detail the recitation of “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas,” the children’s efforts to buy Jefferson a present, and the food one of Grant’s student brought to him.
I think these moments affected Grant so much because they represent a surprise, something new in the routine. He can see in a way, however small, that there are people in his community who are talented. And this renewed sensitivity to people carried over in Grant’s interactions with Jefferson. He seems to really start caring about what happens to Jefferson, and not feel put up to this crazy task by Miss Emma and his aunt. Later when Grant goes to see Vivian after talking to Jefferson, he doesn't just complain about having no idea of what to do. He acknowledges that success and change are also up to Jefferson, and opens up more to about his own feelings. By Grant realizing and taking for himself a manning in working to help Jefferson, he seems so far to be doing the same with helping his community. Maybe through the effort to “make Jefferson a man,” Grant will realize that staying in his hometown doesn't make him any less of a man.
You make a good point about the core of Grant's frustration. From what I understand, you are saying that Grant feels his efforts are futile because there is no change in his community, but he keeps trying to change things. He is moved during the Christmas celebration because what happens then IS something new. And most of all, Jefferson's (for lack of a better word) transformation is something extremely new. In the long run, it could really change something in his community, and maybe that's why Grant feels that Jefferson, and not himself, is the hero.
ReplyDeleteThis is a really complex scene. As you note, it seems to epitomize Grant's feelings of separateness and detachment from his community, and his general sense of futility about education. At the same time, we see Grant being affected by the scene, even as he stands "outside," with his critical perspective. On one hand, seeing the "same" show year after year, with different kids in the same positions, seems to reflect the futility and "cycle" that we've discussed--the mere fact of this being a repeated tradition, with basically the same program each year, perfectly captures the seeming lack of progress or development, and this depresses Grant.
ReplyDeleteAt the same time, though, it *is* a tradition, and there's a simultaneous sense of seeing the whole community come together, in their predictable roles, as a powerful thing, some meaningful "roots" wherein Grant plays a key role in the larger community. The mere fact that he can name every kid and adult in the room, knows who is related to whom, whose older brothers and sisters he's taught, shows how connected he is, despite his desire to disconnect. As Vivian says elsewhere, he's "committed"--even if he often doubts that commitment.