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Christic common fig EssayThe character of Jefferson in Ernest Gaines A Lesson before Dying represents a figure upon whom the ridicule and disgraceful lot of his is cast. As a slow witted man, his handicap is treated as typical of his entire race, and this impairment as compared to other men is used as a symbol of the inferiority of his whole race. Throughout his experience as an accused and a convict, he comes to realize that his impending death will be of great significance to his race. He realizes that however he chooses to handle this death, whether with dignity or dishonor, will go to confer this quality upon his entire race.This places Jefferson in a situation that is akin to that in which Christ finds himself during his lifetime, and Jefferson efficiency t herefore be considered a Christic figure in the novel. Despite his humanity, Jefferson lays claim to having another nature. When described by his lawyer as creation no more able to plot the crime than a grab might have been, Jefferson latches on to this idea and considers himself as not fully human but having the nature of a hog. This connects him to Christ as he as well denied the human nature, claiming a more divine one as he walked on earth.Furthermore, just as Jeffersons hog-like nature precluded his ability to plot and reach the heinous crime of which he is accused and convicted, so was Christs divine nature one that prevented him from having the ability to commit the sins of humanity for which he was convicted. Therefore, the connectedness between Jefferson and Christ might already be seen to be a strong one as they both lay claim to natures that are non-human and that do not admit of the wrongs for which they are falsely accused.Throughout the novel, Jefferson can be seen to reclaim his humanity, after cosmos considered a hogbeing called one in the courtroomand then taking on the nature of the hog in his actions and finished his own confessions. He begins to change from his usual dim-wittedness into a more assured and cognitive being as he is encouraged to think and write the thoughts down in a journal. The reader begins to see his humanity shine through his debased aspect, very much like the humanity of Christ is evident despite his divine nature.Yet, though Jeffersons humanity represents an elevation (and Christs is usually considered a demotion from his deity), Christs humanity, like Jeffersons, might to a fault be seen in a manner of elevation, the way he was elevated on the Cross. Throughout Jeffersons time in prison, many more people came to visit himand the visits increased as he neared his execution. This demonstrates his elevation to a place of strike out and celebrity, akin to that place Christ now has in the world because of his death. Another aspect of his character that connects him to Christ is Jeffersons admission that he would like to be given a vat of ice-cream.This occurrence, fist of all, points toward the extent to which Jefferson has b een denied the pleasures of humanity, as he admits that he has never been granted more than a thimble full of this substance. This might be compared to the way in which Christ denies himself many worldly pleasures in order to maintain his disconnection from the sinful human nature. Secondly, this request might also be compared to one of Christs last requests, where on the Cross he asks for some water to quench his thirst.Jeffersons thirst might here be considered his lifelong deprival of this treat, and in this way both Christ and Jefferson seek to satisfy their thirst before dying. The writer of the novel places Jefferson in the situation of being a representative of his race. As a black man living in the south, Jeffersons wrongful imprisonment demonstrates the lot of his fellow black persons, who lived in a perpetual state of imprisonment within their black skins and within a system that grants them few freedoms because of the color of this skin.The human race connects him to Chri st in that Christ too was human but lay claim to a widely different nature. The Christic comparison continues with Grants attitude in Jeffersons presence, in which at one time Grant repents of his former attitude of reluctance to aid the condition of his race. He also mentions a feeling of being lost, and this too is confessed in the presence of Jefferson. This can be seen as a comparison of Jefferson to Christ, as Christs divinity endows him with the power to cause reality to feel their need for a saviorin the same way that Grant feels that Jefferson has the ability to lead him toward salvation.Christ is also the main historical figure that has claimed the ability to elicit repentance, just as Grant has felt the need to repent in the presence of Jefferson. Furthermore, the death which Jefferson is to face is one that is to represent the penalisation of his entire black race, and this represents a close comparison to the destiny of Christ, whose death was a representation of the p unishment of the sins committed by the entire human race.