In A Lesson Before Dying Grant is the only schoolteacher in the town. Many of his kids are destined to fail and end up working in a farm. However, real people that lived through this time had very different experiences. Roceal Duke says,
“The idea of not going to college never crossed most of our minds.”
This quote is the exact opposite of Grant’s thought process. Grant’s former elementary school teacher told him that the only option if you’re a black in the south is to leave. Grant got very upset at this comment, but knew that there had to be some truth to it. The kids only come to school 5 and a half months instead of six due to the fact that they have to work. The superintendent of schools told Grant to focus on learning the Pledge and bible verses and nothing else. He figures that blacks only need to know the basics of education because they won’t be doing jobs that require it.
This quote completely contradicts Grant. There might be only one of his students that will end up going to college. For Roceal Duke, he claims that college was described as mandatory. Parents would expect it from their children and the teachers expected it from their students. Duke goes on to say that he was later enrolled in typing class. This makes it seem like his and Grant’s surroundings are very different. Grant doesn’t even have enough chalk, while Duke was learning how to use a keyboard. It seems odd, but it did happen during the time period.
