Serendipity

So far I’ve really enjoyed A Lesson Before Dying . I thought I wouldn’t be able to relate to it at all, but in a way I do. Though Grant is a college graduate, he seems to be as uncertain about what his role is in this world is. Granted (see what I did there), he is dealing with a long cycle of injustice, while I’m just a teenager trying to figure out what I want to major in.  Grant has a desire to make a change, he studies and works hard to get an education so he can help others do the same and end the cycle of being considered inferior. Yet he feels hopeless. When he goes to Henri Pichot’s home to request visitation, he is still referred to as a “boy”. When he tries to ask for new materials for his students, he is essentially told to deal with it. Finally, when he receives wood from his former classmates he feels as though his work is futile. There is a cycle that he alone couldn’t break.  Then he recalls his own teacher saying, “What do I know about life? I stayed...

Throughout As I Lay Dying , I’ve found the entire Burden family to be rather non-cohesive. They don’t confide in each other, they seem to show no sense of camaraderie whatsoever, and anytime they do interact, they seem to be in some sort of argument. I thought each child was equally as distant from the family as the others but throughout the reading it seemed as though Jewel was the exception. Jewel narrates only one chapter in the entire story, thus I originally thought he would be a rather minor character, especially since he seemed emotionally detached from other humans. During the journey to bury Addie he rides separately from the rest of the family, he doesn’t talk to anyone unless it is vital.  As the narrative went on though, more and more often Jewel was brought up; thus indicating his importance to the story. Though Darl refers to him as “wooden and solid”, Jewel seems like the thread that keeps the family tethered to Addie and the goal of their trip. Though Jewel is ...