Lesson Before Dying Character Analysis

Character Analysis Essay: Grant Wiggins of “A Lesson Before Dying” Grant Wiggins is very conflicted and confused about many aspects of his life when he comes back to his home town. Despite his reluctance, he is eventually forced to overcome his defeatist attitude and accept the sense of responsibility that Tante Lou and Miss Emma are trying to instill in him. Grant is also haunted by his past having grown up in a very racist small town which he could never find a way to deal with. I believe that, much like myself, Grant Wiggins experiences a great deal of internal struggle and confusion when he returns to his home town. I think that he is trying to get over the negative experiences that he had during his childhood in Bayonne by moving away to attend college and begin his career. Unfortunately, this approach did not work for him and his unresolved issues ended up affecting other parts of his life such as his relationship with his Aunt, his relationship with his girlfriend, Vivian, his willingness to help other people such as Jefferson, and his ability to accept responsibility for his actions. One example of Grant’s discontent with his life and the place that he grew up and the circumstances that he faced growing up manifests itself in the form of the Christmas program. Grant quickly grows frustrated with the program because it is the same as it was when he was in school there. That realization made him think that if something as trivial as the Christmas program hasn’t changed since he had been a student at the school, then there was no point in trying to change the world because he was bound to fail anyway. As a result of his disappointment with himself and growing frustration with the situation, he responds by becoming angry with and distancing himself from the people that he is attempting to help. The Christmas program is an example of symbolism which is supposed to represent Grant’s frustration with himself and the disappointingly small amount of progress