Document Information
- Chapter: Chapter 29
- Scene: Jefferson’s Diary, first entries
- Draft: Manuscript
- File location: Box 11, folder 5
Discussion Questions
- In the manuscript and typescript versions of Jefferson’s opening diary entries, what differences do you notice in his dialect, grammar, and sentence structure? How do these revisions reflect Gaines’s portrayal of Jefferson’s voice and literacy?
- What changes do you notice in Gaines’s portrayal of Jefferson’s dream between the manuscript and typescript drafts? How do these revisions shape your understanding of Jefferson’s emotional state?
Jefferson’s Diary
Mr. Grant you say write something but I don’t know what to write and you say I mus be thinking bout things I ain’t telling nobody and I ought to put it on paper but I don’t know what to put on no paper ‘cause I ain’t never been able in all my life to I don’t think I never no I never wrote a letter in all my life ‘cause nan-nan use to write to ma mon get one of the other children to write her letters and read her letters for her not me—I cant think of no more to say right now maybe later
It’s evening and I done et my sandwich food and drunk my milk and the sun coming through the window I cause I can see it on the floor and I can hear ned and them up into they talking nothing more right now.
I couldn’t sleep last night ‘cause I kept on dreaming it and I don’t want dream it cause I’m just walking to somewhere but I don’t know where it’s at they taking me and ‘fore I get to the door I wake up I wanted to write in the tablet las night but you ain’t got no light in here at night so I’m writing this morning soon is sun up to see good but now I don’t know what more to say for now.
Document Information
- Chapter: Chapter 29
- Scene: Jefferson’s Diary, first entries
- Draft: Early typescript
- File location: Box 11, folder 5
Discussion Questions
- In A Lesson Before Dying, food functions as a central motif that reveals characters’ moods, social positions, and relationships. How do the changes Gaines makes to the food items in the opening diary entries of Jefferson in the manuscript and typescript versions shape our understanding of Jefferson’s captivity?
- Compare the descriptions of light and visibility in the manuscript and typescript. How do these shifts influence the overall mood of Jefferson’s diary entries?
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Jefferson’s Diary
mr grant you say write something but i dont know what to write and you say i must be thinkin bout things i aint telling nobody and i ought to put it on paper but i don’t know what to put on no paper cause i aint never been able in all my life to i dont think i never no i never wrote a letter in all my life cause nanan use to get them other children to write her letters and read her letters for her not me so i cant think of no more to say right now maybe later
its evening and i done eat my rice and beans and drunk my milk and the sun coming through the window cause i can see it splash on the floor and i can hear ned and them talking and nothing more right now
i couldnt sleep last night cause i kept on dreamnin it and i don’t want dream it cause im just walking to somewhere but i don’t know where its at and fore i get to the door i wake up and i want to write in the tablet last night but you aint got no light in here but the moon so im writin this morning soon is sun up but now i dont know what more to say for now