I Is Not There Yet I Was There Mean
The novel starts off with Grant Wiggins saying “I was not there, yet I was there” (Gaines, 1). What Grant means by this is that he is physically not at the trial, but he knows everything that is going to occur at the trial. That one line already shows what Grant thinks of the society he lives in. The society Grant lives is in a racist community. He does not like the white people and thinks they are awful people. It also characterizes Grant and shows what his views are throughout the book. Another way the quote can be interpreted is how Grant understands Jefferson and his situation. He does not physically experience the pain that Jefferson is going through and he does not know him very well, but he is there to help him go through his situation.
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Yet six months later they have come and unlock your cage and tell you, We, us white folks all have decided it’s time for you to die, because this is the convenient date and time” (158). Grant shows that he is angry at the white people for not being fair-minded with Jefferson. They automatically sentence Jefferson to death with no evidence that Jefferson committed the crime. The way Grant told the story in the novel is Brother and Bear pick up Jefferson and the three of them go to the store. Brother and Bear demand whiskey from Old Groupé, and Old Groupé refused to give them any whiskey until they gave Old Groupé all the money. Things get out of control and shooting started and it ended with Jefferson being the only one alive. Jefferson did not know what to do. He panicked and saw a full drawer of money and decided to take the money even though he knew stealing was wrong. Two white men walk in and see the scene and automatically blame everything on Jefferson. Jefferson is at the wrong place, at the wrong time. Now since he is a black man it made everything worse for him. The people that decided his death were all white men and the men that decided that he is guilty were all white men also. There is never a chance for equality in the South for a black man like Jefferson. Grant knows what is going to happen to Jefferson, but he cannot do anything about it except help him die with pride and
Yet six months later they have come and unlock your cage and tell you, We, us white folks all have decided it’s time for you to die, because this is the convenient date and time” (158). Grant shows that he is angry at the white people for not being fair-minded with Jefferson. They automatically sentence Jefferson to death with no evidence that Jefferson committed the crime. The way Grant told the story in the novel is Brother and Bear pick up Jefferson and the three of them go to the store. Brother and Bear demand whiskey from Old Groupé, and Old Groupé refused to give them any whiskey until they gave Old Groupé all the money. Things get out of control and shooting started and it ended with Jefferson being the only one alive. Jefferson did not know what to do. He panicked and saw a full drawer of money and decided to take the money even though he knew stealing was wrong. Two white men walk in and see the scene and automatically blame everything on Jefferson. Jefferson is at the wrong place, at the wrong time. Now since he is a black man it made everything worse for him. The people that decided his death were all white men and the men that decided that he is guilty were all white men also. There is never a chance for equality in the South for a black man like Jefferson. Grant knows what is going to happen to Jefferson, but he cannot do anything about it except help him die with pride and