jeffersons transformation
Jefferson’s Transformation Throughout the book, A Lesson Before Dying, the term hog is used in a cruel way to describe Jefferson. The term hog was first used with intent of possibly reducing his sentence of death. Jefferson was being tried for the murder of Mr. Grope the storeowner. It was not unusual at the time for African Americans to be putdown by being called a hog. Jefferson’s lawyer was referring to him as a hog as a defense that seemed practical at the time of post-civil war reconstruction. It was thought in the south that African Americans were substandard to whites, and Jefferson committing murder was just his incapability to make proper distinction between right and wrong. Prior to the verdict being announced, the defense and prosecution both had final statements that had lasting effects within the story. The prosecution accused Jefferson of being the last man standing after the robbery that went haywire; then stuffing money into his pockets and celebrating the occurrence by drinking over their dead bodies.