Final answer:
Ernest J. Gaines employs sarcasm and humor in A Lesson Before Dying to critique the flawed education system, highlighting the struggle and irony in the expectations placed on those deprived of proper educational resources.
Step-by-step explanation:
Use of Sarcasm and Humor in 'A Lesson Before Dying'
In Chapter 7 of A Lesson Before Dying, Ernest J. Gaines uses sarcasm and humor as rhetorical techniques to critique the education system. For example, when the story-teller discusses the ironic benefit of a country schoolmaster being refused the hand of a Dutch heiress, it is a sarcastic nod to the idea that deprivation can somehow lead to greater opportunity. This mirrors the wider theme of the narrative where the underprivileged circumstances, especially in education, are juxtaposed with the need for personal growth and societal advancement.
Gaines's narrative continues to explain the struggle to become literate in an oppressive environment, where the main character has to use 'various stratagems' due to the lack of regular instruction, highlighting the deficiencies in the education system for the marginalized. This use of humor and sarcasm provides a nuanced understanding of the broader social issues being addressed in the book, aligning with a common theme in literature that humor can reflect and critique societal norms.
The underlying message Gaines delivers is the irony of expecting the oppressed to educate themselves despite the numerous obstacles they face, often put in place by the very society that requires their advancement. This approach is reflective of the similar criticisms presented by Frederick Douglass in his account, where teaching a slave to read was seen as 'an unpardonable offense.' The humor serves to underscore the absurdity of such societal contradictions and injustices.