A Guide to the Ernest J. Gaines Center
This guide will give you information about Ernest J. Gaines and the Gaines Center at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.
Contact
Cheylon Woods
Contact:
Archivist and Head of the Ernest J. Gaines Center
Associate Professor of Library Science
400 E. St. Mary Blvd.
Lafayette, LA 70503
Associate Professor of Library Science
400 E. St. Mary Blvd.
Lafayette, LA 70503
(337) 482-1848
Website
"The Sky is Gray"
Background information:
Some information can be found in:
Questions to consider:
- Would "The Big Gray Sky" or "A Little Southern Town" been a title for the story?
- Scholars argue that the stories in "Bloodline" show the growth towards, and constraints on, manhood for the characters. How does James in "The Sky is Gray" precede towards manhood? How is he constrained in that movement?
- While in the dentists waiting room, James encounters two opposing views on what African Americans should do to combat racism. The student and the preacher argue, and James says he wants to be like the student. WHy does he say this?
- Much of Gaines' work appears to dread the encroachment of modernity on a rural location. DO you see any comment on this in "The Sky is Gray?" Does the story accept the coming of modernity?
- Why does James' mother refuse the extra salt pork at the end of the story? What lesson is she trying to teach James?
- The first few drafts of "The Sky is Gray" ended with "You not a bum,' she says." The final version ends with "You not a bum,' she says, 'You a man.'" How does the addition or subtraction of the last line affect the story's meaning?
Possible activities:
- Have students write down questions they have either about the story or Ernest Gaines then let them discuss their questions with one or two other students before having a class discussion.
- Have students write a letter to their younger self describing what it means to "grow up."
- Have students write about a personal experience where they "grew up."
- Have students research and present on Jim Crow and segregation in the South during the time that the story takes place. Have them discuss how Octavia and James navigate this landscape throughout the story.
- Have students discuss the differences between Martin Luther King Jr and Malcolm X during the 1960s. Have them examine whether or not the preacher and the student that James and Octavia encounter in the dentist's office can be representations of either man.
- Have students write about the role that language plays in their lives. Think about the scene where the student claims the grass is not green.
