Upon reading A Lesson Before Dying, I came to the conclusion that sometimes the truth is too difficult to bare. Also, the text proves that having status and formal education does not always mean that you have more knowledge than others. Grant Wiggins, an educated, intelligent man comes face to face with the fact that not matter how much he tries, his education has not equipped him with the ability to free his students from their place in society.
One part of the novel that really gained my attention was the conversation between Wiggins and the reverend. On page 178, they’re discussing what Wiggins would do if Jefferson asked him about the existence of heaven. Wiggins, a skeptic, says that he’d rather not think of something like that even happening, and the reverend has a quick change of attitude. He quickly addresses why even if you tell people lies, they help people cope a lot of the time, and that that’s perfectly alright. The reverend says that he “lies at wakes and funerals to relieve pain” and to help people overcome their sadness. The reverend finishes his rant with “that makes me the educated one, and you the gump” implying that Wiggins has no right to judge him for his actions, and that he doesn’t have the same firsthand experience that the reverend has. This all shows that even though Wiggins is well educated and full of formal knowledge, he lacks this basic understanding. I think this really taps into the theme of “school isn’t everything”, and that a lot of the time we don’t learn important life lessons about humans, their thoughts, and their coping mechanisms.
Tag Archives: Extra Credit #1
Harry Potter and Education
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban entails the adventures of Harry Potter and his crew once again for a third year at Hogwarts. Aside form the plot, the book does a great job in depicting major themes. One theme in particular consists of ‘Education.’ The idea of Education is prevelant throughout the book because most of the scenes are taken at Hogwarts which is a wizardry school. Although it may not seem like it at times, but education is taken quite seriously at Hogwarts.
One example in which the idea of education is displayed, is through the character of Hermione. She is not only a hard worker, but an over achiever. In the third year back at Hogwarts, Hermione is taking twice the course load as she did previously. She is taking very difficult classes such ‘Dark Arts’ and ‘Magical Creatures’ along with several other academic courses. This exemplifies how some students take their education seriously at Hogwarts. Hermione taking a huge courseload while learning the arts of wizardry portrays the theme that Education is very important. Hermione also expresses the idea that school work is very importrant to Harry and Ron however, they don’t care quite as much.
In comparison to modern schooling today in NYC, Hogwarts is way more invested in their students education. On example being the structured schooling system at Hogwarts. All the teachers and strict, students require uniform, and they ensure ALL their students are doing well. Another example is the difference in lunch meals in Hogwarts and in NYC public schools. In the book and the movie, a full course meal is served at Hogwarts ensuring that all their students are fed well. This supports the investment that the school makes for the education of their students. Whereas, NYC public schools offer low quality lunch that may or may not be filling to many students.
My major point is that the education system in Hogwarts is really complex however good in many ways. The school values their students education dearly. It also teaches them wizardry which is by far “cooler” than anything taught in NYC. Although the school isn’t real, the book does a great job in portraying the theme of education throughout the story.
Personal Connection with Grant
While reading A Lesson Before Dying, I was able to put myself in Grant’s shoes and understand why he felt angry and also frustrated. Since he was educated he almost represented the town or neighborhood he lived in. He was given all these responsibilities that came with his education. Since he was educated people had expectations from him and thought he had acquired the knowledge of everything. Even though he was a teacher Miss Emma and his aunt made him a counselor for Jefferson or a so called psychiatrists without realizing that Grant was not knowledgeable of how to handle something like that because he was simply a teacher. There was so much pressure on him and he was ‘forced’ to do things like counsel Jefferson without his consent and people felt it was his ‘job’ to do it. I can completely relate to this situation because as a first generation college student there are many career expectations my family has for me. It’s like educating me is for their benefit more than my own. Since I will be educated I will be able to take care of all their legal issues or other problems which I probably have no knowledge about whatsoever. Already because I am the most educated so far in my family I am expected to tutor other kids in my family who are struggling in school even though I am not good at it and also I have to figure out tax forms for my family as well even though I am not even educated about it. Their high expectations thinking that only because I went to school I should know everything is not fair. It’s not fair to anyone and I think that is exactly how Grant felt and so do I.
Does one’s experience help another endeavor?
Experience plays a vital role in one’s learning ability. But when one shares their prior experience, it helps correlate with another’s endeavors. When one shares their prior experiences, they have a strong one-on-one with others. When people have the same interest and needs, the experiences shared has more value. Utilizing experiences is an active way to keep people engaged. Sharing prior experiences helps align with an ideal way that most learners choose to learn. This allows for one to not force knowledge. Books may be helping in one understand the world, but when someone shares their experiences they gain a whole new perspective. Rousseau once stated, “Let the sensed be the only guide for the first workings of reason. No book but the world, no teaching but that if fact. The child who reads ceases to think, he only reads. He is acquiring words not knowledge” (Pg. 14). This emphasizes that books helps one to gain knowledge however sometimes it is not enough. For example, let’s say you decide to take a certain class. You read the class description, etc. You’ve probably learned a lot about what the class offers. Nevertheless when you ask one about the class (how was it, etc.) you get a better understanding of that class. This goes hand-to-hand with most situations. People’s experiences helps one understand the world a little better. Not everyone goes through everything in life therefore sharing helps a lot.