Ernest Gaines Quotes

Powerful Ernest Gaines for Daily Growth

About Ernest Gaines

Ernest Joseph Gaines (July 15, 1933 – April 5, 2018) was an acclaimed American novelist and short-story writer, best known for his powerful portrayals of the African-American experience in rural Louisiana. Born in Oakville, a small, segregated community near New Orleans, Gaines was one of twelve children in a sharecropping family. Growing up amidst poverty and racial discrimination left a profound impact on his work, which often explored themes of identity, oppression, and the struggle for freedom. Gaines attended Tuskegee Institute (now Tuskegee University) and Charles Drew Junior College in San Francisco, but left both schools without obtaining a degree. It wasn't until he was drafted into the Army that Gaines found himself among educated individuals who introduced him to literature. Inspired by James Baldwin's "Go Tell It on the Mountain," Gaines decided to become a writer. After his military service, Gaines returned to Louisiana and began writing in earnest. His first novel, "Catherine Carmier," was published in 1959, but it was his second novel, "A Lesson Before Dying" (1993), that brought him widespread recognition. The book tells the story of a young black man who is sentenced to death and the teacher who tries to help him find dignity in his fate. Gaines's most famous work, "The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman," was published in 1971. The novel spans over a century and follows the life of an African-American woman from slavery through the civil rights movement. The book won the National Book Award and was adapted into an Emmy Award-winning television movie. Throughout his career, Gaines's work was marked by its rich language, deep compassion, and unflinching portrayal of racism. He continued writing until his death in 2018, leaving behind a powerful legacy that speaks to the resilience and dignity of African-Americans in the face of adversity.

Interpretations of Popular Quotes

"The only thing that can kill a dream is if you tell it to die."

This quote by Ernest Gaines emphasizes the resilience of dreams and aspirations in the face of adversity or skepticism. He suggests that giving up on one's dreams due to external pressure, criticism, or self-doubt can lead to their demise. Instead, nurturing and cultivating dreams is essential for them to remain vibrant and achievable. In other words, the power of persistence and faith in oneself are crucial factors in realizing one's dreams.

"A classic is a book people praise but don't read."

Ernest Gaines suggests that the term "classic" has evolved into a label for books that are highly praised yet rarely read, perhaps due to changes in literary tastes or cultural context over time. The focus shifts from genuine appreciation of the work's content towards acknowledging its historical significance, which may lead to the work being more admired than read by contemporary audiences.

"You think your own pain and your heartache are unprecedented in the history of the world, but then you read."

This quote by Ernest Gaines emphasizes that one's personal struggles and emotional hardships often feel unique and overwhelming, but reading about others' experiences reveals a shared human condition of pain and heartache across time and cultures. It encourages empathy and humility, implying that our individual stories are not as isolated or exceptional as they may seem. By opening ourselves to the narratives of others, we find solace in the knowledge that we are connected in our humanity, and inspired by the resilience and strength that can be found in the collective human experience.

"The only thing that separates us from the gladiators who fought in the Colosseum is a couple of thousand years."

This quote by Ernest Gaines emphasizes the human condition's timelessness across different eras, cultures, and societies. He suggests that although two millennia separate us from the gladiators who fought in the Colosseum, the struggles, fears, triumphs, and tragedies experienced by those ancient warriors are not fundamentally different from those we face today. Essentially, Gaines is saying that our basic human nature remains unchanged over time - a poignant reminder of our shared humanity despite historical and geographical divisions.

"If I'm going to die, I want to live first."

This quote highlights a profound appreciation for living and experiencing life fully before considering death. It emphasizes the importance of seizing every moment, making the most of our time on earth, and pursuing our passions and dreams with vigor, rather than accepting the inevitability of death without first truly living.

I write to try to find out who I am. One of my main themes is manliness. I think I'm trying to figure out what manliness really is.

- Ernest Gaines

Think, I Think, Figure, Manliness

I was raised by a lady that was crippled all her life but she did everything for me and she raised me. She washed our clothes, cooked our food, she did everything for us. I don't think I ever heard her complain a day in her life. She taught me responsibility towards my brother and sisters and the community.

- Ernest Gaines

Life, I Was Raised, Our, Cooked

When I'm sitting in the church alone, I can hear singing of the old people. I can hear their singing and I can hear their praying, and sometimes I hum one of their songs.

- Ernest Gaines

Singing, Church, Old, Hum

I try to write something that would interest anybody and keep them turning the page. You must have a plot and good storyline.

- Ernest Gaines

Good, Anybody, Them, Storyline

In the beginning, I tried to be a more cosmopolitan writer, but I realized that I was a country boy, and I had to deal with things I knew about and where I came from.

- Ernest Gaines

Country, Deal, Country Boy, Cosmopolitan

What I miss today more than anything else - I don't go to church as much anymore - but that old-time religion, that old singing, that old praying which I love so much. That is the great strength of my being, of my writing.

- Ernest Gaines

Love, Strength, Church, Old-Time

I suppose I started writing seriously at 16 years old. I thought I wrote a novel at 16 and sent it to New York! They sent it back because it wasn't novel.

- Ernest Gaines

Thought, New, Old, Novel

I write with as much objectivity as I can.

- Ernest Gaines

Write, Much, I Write, Objectivity

The mark of fear is not easily removed.

- Ernest Gaines

Fear, Easily, Mark

I think I'm a very religious person. I think I believe in God as much as any man does. I don't only believe in God, I know there's God.

- Ernest Gaines

Think, Religious, Very, I Believe In

I believe that the writer should tell a story. I believe in plot. I believe in creating characters and suspense.

- Ernest Gaines

Tell, I Believe That, I Believe In

Sometimes you got to hurt something to help something. Sometimes you have to plow under one thing in order for something else to grow.

- Ernest Gaines

Grow, Sometimes, One Thing, Plow

There will always be men struggling to change, and there will always be those who are controlled by the past.

- Ernest Gaines

Will, Always, Controlled, Struggling

Question everything. Every stripe, every star, every word spoken. Everything.

- Ernest Gaines

Question, Star, Spoken, Stripe

Grace under pressure isn't just about bullfighters and men at war. It's about getting up every day to face a job or a white boss you don't like but have to face to feed your children so they'll grow up to be a better generation.

- Ernest Gaines

Boss, Every Day, About, Feed

The sharecropper may lower his eyes, but not because he's less of a man. That's just a condition of society that such things exist.

- Ernest Gaines

Less, May, Lower, Such Things

A myth is an old lie that people believe in. White people believe that they're better than anyone else on earth - and that's a myth.

- Ernest Gaines

Lie, Believe, Old, Myth

Why is it that, as a culture, we are more comfortable seeing two men holding guns than holding hands?

- Ernest Gaines

Hands, More, Guns, Comfortable

Words mean nothing. Action is the only thing. Doing. That's the only thing.

- Ernest Gaines

Doing, Mean, The Only Thing, Action

All writers write about the past, and I try to make it come alive so you can see what happened.

- Ernest Gaines

Past, Alive, About, All Writers

Today I must write a paragraph or a page better than I did yesterday.

- Ernest Gaines

Yesterday, Better, Paragraph, Page

I knew I wanted to be a writer and I knew if I had a wife and family, I would neglect something, and I was afraid it wouldn't be the writing.

- Ernest Gaines

Wife, Knew, Had, Neglect

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