THE NOVEL BROTHER MAN ASSIGNMENT
1) Some of the narrative techniques used in the book Brother Man by Roger Mais includes:
Imagery Foreshadowing
Tone Flashback
Characterization Point of view
2) Roger Mais develops characterization by using the five methods of characterization (how a character looks, how a character acts, how a character talks, what a character thinks and how others react to the character) effectively and efficiently. By doing this he gives the characters personality which the readers can relate to, sympathize, or past judgments on.
3) The story is set around the 1940’s in a place in Jamaica called Orange Lane which is an overcrowded part of Kingston ghetto.
4) Some of the themes in the book Brother Man are:
Love Revenge Hatred Superstition
Lust Greed Religion Deception
Abuse Jealousy Devotion Insecurity
5) The different plots in the book Brother Man are:
· Papacita and Girlie relationship: In the beginning of the book Girlie is upset with Papacita for coming home late as usual which makes her feel insecure as she thinks he is always out with another woman. Papacita is tired of her behavior of insecurity but still puts up with her. Later in the story he gets some counterfeit money and decides to take Girlie out to celebrate but their happiness is short lived when later they get into another encounter of fighting leaving Girlie abused and Papacita moving out. Girlie takes this on and becomes depressed and hateful which eventually leads to her stabbing Papacita to death.
· Papacita plan to frame Brother Man: Papacita’s lust for Minette caused him to provide Cordelia (who resented Brother Man) with counterfeit money to frame Brother Man so that he would go to jail. Papacita’s plan was to bail Brother Man out of jail in hopes that Minette being in total gratitude to him would give herself to him.
· Brother Ambo plans for revenge on Brother Man: In an earlier scene in the book Brother Ambo asks Brother man to keep his obeah instruments for him until the police stop investigating him. But Brother Man refuses and that initially starts Brother Ambo hatred for Brother Man. So when Cordelia goes to Brother Ambo for help for her son he fills her head with all sort of lies and wrong about Brother Man till she also seeks revenge and gets through to a certain extent in the end.
6) Foreshadowing was displayed with:
· Brother Ambo and Brother Man: it was hinted that they both were not going to get along or have a good relationship as a result of Brother Man’s refusal to keep Brother Ambo’s obeah instruments in the beginning of the book.
· Foreshadowing was also shown when Brother Man goes to visit Girlie after Papacita leaves her and tells her that she needs patience and courage in her life. Girlie replies by saying “Ah need courage, yes…an’ a good, strong knife”. This is foreshadowing because she ends up stabbing Papacita to death in the end.
Flashback was shown when Minette was reflecting on her past life before she came to live with Brother man. She was reflecting on how sad she was then to how much better it was with Brother Man.
7) Religion plays a very important role in the novel Brother Man. Reasons being, the author Roger Mais developed the main Character Brother Man as Jesus Christ. For instance, many people brought their sick to him to be healed and delivered and just like Jesus he would pray and carry out certain actions and they would be healed. Also he would go about fasting, reading his Bible and teaching the word of God to his many followers. Additionally, just as Jesus was rejected by the multitude Brother Man also was rejected and stoned almost to death. It is evident that the author uses Brother Man and the Christian religion to try and show that Rasta also believe in God and should not be judged wrongly because of their appearance.
By: Kurne Williams
