Ti-Jean and His Brothers Essay outline

Due: Monday 10th February 2020

Atharva, Grade 10
Question
2. Characters who are not foremost in the plot of a play can sometimes be of great significance to
what happens. In this play
a. Discuss the role played by
i. Bolom
ii. Mother
b. Explain how each character contributes to the themes of this drama.

Outline
a. i. Bolom

The Bolom is an unborn child, who is one of the Devil’s servants, The Bolom first makes
an appearance in the Prologue, where it is commanded by the Devil to inform the Mother
and the three brothers that the Devil has bestowed a challenge upon them. He who gets
angry loses the challenge. If the Devil wins, then the Devil will eat the defeated, if one of
the brothers win, then the Devil will reward them with a shower of sovereigns (page 33,
Prologue). In the Prologue, the Bolom is very frightening, but by Act 3, when Ti-Jean
defeats the Devil, but the Devil doesn’t keep his side of the bargain, and the Bolom
pleads to the Devil to reward Ti-Jean. By the end of the play, the Bolom becomes Ti-
Jeans brother, because he is transformed by the Devil into a mortal, upon Ti-Jean’s
request.
 Author’s Purpose: To highlight the theme of the supernatural (a type of force,
which is beyond logical thinking or the laws of science), as well as the theme of
identity. Walcott does this by characterizing the Bolom as a cursed, unborn child,
which is scientifically impossible. We know this because on page 31 of the
prologue, Walcott makes the mother call the Bolom “Child of the Devil”.

ii. Mother

This is the mother of the three brothers: Gros-Jean, Mi-Jean and Ti-Jean (page 26). She is very
poor, and lives in a hut. We know this because Walcott indicates this in the very first stage
direction of the prologue. It is very likely that the mother is stressed, but is trying to stay as
positive as possible. The reason for this is because on page 29, when the brothers quarrel, she
says “My sons, do not quarrel, here all of us are starving”. By making the mother say this,
Walcott introduces the theme of poverty to the audience. In Act 3, Ti-Jean’s mother feels very
miserable and anxious. We know this because on page 53, she tells Ti-Jean that he is her last son,
and that if he dies, then she will be all alone. She also says that Ti-Jean is very young and is
hardly a man. By making her say this, Walcott informs us that the mother is very anxious and
afraid to what will happen to Ti-Jean. However, this changes on page 54, where Ti-Jean’s mother
feels less apprehensive. We know this because on page 54, the mother says that none of her two
sons asked her for her strength, and they thought little of her knowledge, but now the last of her
sons is knelling down at her feet, asking for her blessings. Based on what the mother said, this
tells us that Ti-Jean’s mother has a sense of hope in Ti-Jean, because he is asking his mother for
advice. By doing so, Walcott also gives the audience an insight of the healthy and loving
relationship that exists between Ti-Jean and his mother.
 Author’s Purpose: To highlight the themes of poverty, love and Female rights.
Walcott does this by emphasizing how poor the hut is (in the first stage direction
of prologue), the Mother’s love for each of her sons, as well as making the first
two sons disregard their mother’s advice (Acts 1 and 2). This helps in providing
the audience with historical and cultural context of the environment that existed
in the Caribbean during the colonial period.

b.
How the Mother plays a role in the themes of nature and female rights:
Gros-Jean didn’t listen to his mother’s advice, and in Act 2, Mi-Jean did that same thing, because
Mi-Jean (just like Gros-Jean) disrespected nature and was arrogant. By arranging the events of
the play in such a manner, Walcott helps us understand how important it is to respect women, by
reminding us how they were treated in the past. Walcott also symbolizes the character of Mother
with mother nature, because every time one of the brothers disrespected their mother and also
disrespected mother nature, they always failed. However, Ti-Jean succeeded because his
respected both: his biological mother, as well as mother nature. By doing so, Walcott emphasizes
how important respect is, in terms of respecting your elders and nature.
How the Bolom contributes to the theme of the Supernatural and the Divine
Walcott incorporates the theme of the supernatural by characterizing the Bolom as a cursed,
unborn child. We know this because on page 31 of the prologue, Walcott makes the mother call
the Bolom “Child of the Devil”. This highlights that the Bolom as a character that is immortal,
resulting in it breaking the boundaries of scientific and logical reasoning. By doing so, Walcott
makes a historical reference to early humans, who questioned the existence of god, or a divine
force. The Bolom also signifies the theme of the Divine, because in Act 3, Walcott gives the
Bolom a very heavenly characteristic. He does this by making him plead to the Devil to be fair to
Ti-Jean. By making one of the antagonists support their opposition, Walcott references the theme
of the Divine.