These guests sometimes included Miss Emma, Grant's Aunt, and always Grant. As the days go by it is just Grant who goes to visit Jefferson, and with each visit, the more conversation takes place. This trend continues until finally there is a breakthrough one day when Grant finally realizes what it would be like to be in Jefferson's shoes and be faced with the idea of death. After this conversation, Grant starts to feel sorry for him and really starts becoming his friend, not just his teacher. As Grant tries to teach Jefferson how to become a man, he is becoming more of one every day. Not only does Jefferson learn from Grant, but Grant also learns a lot from Jefferson. Resulting in a friendship between the two men.
There are many themes present in the novel. I believe that two of the major themes in the book are Identity and Religion. The themes play a mjor factor in the way characters act and are represented.
Identity is a major theme that is present throughout the story. You see the Godmother of Jefferson, Miss Emma, continually worrying about not just her own identity, but that of her family name. She knows that she doesn't have much time left to live, and Jefferson will be dead soon, but in the meantime she wants to do what it takes to have her name live on with respect after she passes. This is the reason for her convincing Grant to teach Jefferson to be a man and to prove that he is not just a hog. On page 20, Miss Emma says, " They called my boy a hog, Mr. Henri, I didn't raise no hog, and I don't want no hog to go set in that chair. I want a man to go set in that chair, Mr. Henri."" Miss Emma had faced the fact that Jefferson was going to die, but she was concerned about how he would be remembered. That says a lot about the pride she has for her family name. I even think that when she would bring her home cooked food for Jefferson, that also had to do with the theme of identity. This told me that she wasn't going to let Jefferson live like the others who were locked away.