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Ernest J. Gaines A Lesson Before Dying

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Ernest J. Gaines A Lesson Before Dying
First formal Essay A Lesson Before Dying Harper 1

Kerstin Harper
P.Piatkowski
English 3 Honors
9/5/10

Most of today’s research consists of surfing through the web and, copy and paste. Although in Ernest J. Gaines case, author of a lesson before dying, he actually gathers research and actual evidence himself. Research is an attempt to find out, while evidence is proof of what actually happened. The research and evidence that Gaines collected were crucial to the story and without could have changed the outcome of the book. Many statements could have been false if Gaines didn’t conduct his research. Research and evidence are two vital aspects of literature that shaped A Lesson Before Dying into the piece it is. Earnest J. Gaines intensely gathered information through out the entire process of writing A Lesson Before Dying. He read articles about older executions, talked to his students about there cases, interviewed a sheriff, and even had pictures of the electric chair posted in front of him while he was writing. “I want to discover, as you, …show more content…
He sent letters to the warden’s office and never received a reply. Another one of Gaines colleges helped him by letting him visit an ex-sheriff of a small town. There he asked the question he had proposed to the warden’s office. “The sheriff told me it would be left entirely to the discretion of the sheriff of the jail, who was totally in charge and made all the decisions.” (Gaines, “Writing, 772) This played a huge role because this now let Grant visit Jefferson and try to work with him in jail. It also set up the idea of Grant having to ask whites for rights and being belittled. Through just the colleges around Gaines he researched with the interviews and established valuable info the story couldn’t be
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