Racial Comparisons

The racism of the Jim Crow South can be clearly compared with the novel A Lesson Before Dying, by Ernest J. Gaines, and the sonnet “If We Must Die,” by Claude McKay. A main theme in the novel, degrading Jefferson into believing he is a hog, is also mentioned in the poem. Another example of comparison is the goal to “nobly die” rather than to be looked upon as a worthless death. A third similarity is the idea of fighting a common foe rather than yield to defeat. Both of these pieces focus on the enduring racism in the post-Civil War southern society and ways to overcome it.

The reference to hogs in both writings displays the dehumanization used by whites to degrade blacks during the first half of the 20th century. In the story, Jefferson’s lawyer argues that because he is so useless and unintelligent, the jury “might as well put a hog in the electric chair” (8). This shows how blacks, even though slavery had been abolished, were still looked down upon. They were not considered human; African-Americans were compared to filthy animals. In McKay’s poem he states that he does not want blacks to be killed as worthless hogs. He believed that if they were to die, it should be with dignity. They should stand up and revolt rather than continue to be abused and mistreated.

Dying nobly is a main theme in the story and is equally reflected in “If We Must Die.” After Jefferson’s trial and conviction, Miss Emma asked Grant “Can you change him from a hog to a man in the little time he’s got left?”(21). Emma strives to convince Jefferson that he is worth something; he is a man, not an animal. Because he has not been told otherwise, he believes what the whites are saying about him is true. In McKay’s poem, he argues to “die nobly” so that “our precious blood may not be shed in vain.” One must die for a cause rather than accept an unjust punishment dealt to them. People in general should