jefferson was in jail for killing which he didnt do and stole money
“What justice would there be to take this life? Justice, gentleman? Why, I would just as soon put a hog in the electric chair as this” (Gaines 8).
His attorney uses the word 'hog' with a purpose in mind. It denotes imagery, and it is meant to make the reader (and the jury) perceive Jefferson as intellectually inferior; uneducated; even incapable of learning. Thus Jefferson is portrayed as lower than a 'filthy swine."
Miss Emma is grief stricken by the attorney's statement. She doesn't want Jefferson to die like the lowest swine; she wants him to die with dignity, and the attorney had taken away any dignity he made have had with such a statement.
A Lesson Before Dying/ Chapter 2
