I

NTRODUCTI
ON

TheTr i
alsofBr otherJer
oisaplaybyNi geri
anwr i
terWoleSoy i
nka.Itwasfir
stproducedinthe
dini
nghal l
atMel lanbyHall
,Univ
ersi
tyCol l
ege,
Ibadan,Niger
ia,inApril
1960.Notable
producti
onswer estagedattheHampst eadTheatreClubinLondondur ingJune1966,andat
theMewsTheat r
e,NewYor kCit
y,begi
nningattheendofOct ober1967.Theplaywasf i
rst
publi
shedi nNiger i
ain1963andbyOx fordUniver
sityPressi
n1964.i tisavai
labl
efrom t
he
samepubl isherasoneoff i
veplaysinSoy i
nka'
sCol l
ectedPl
ay s2.

TheTr i
alsofBr ot herJeroisalightsati
riccomedyt hattakesaim atr el
igioushypocri
syinthe
form ofacharlat an,orfraud,namedBr otherJer o,whopr eachestohi sf oll
owersonBarBeach
i
nLagos, Nigeria.Jer oisamast erofmani pulati
onandkeepshi sfoll
ower sinasubservi
ent
positi
onbecauseheunder st
andswhatt heyl ongf or—money ,socialstatus,andpower—and
conv i
ncesthem t hattheywi l
lsoonbeabl etof ulf
il
lthesemat eri
ali
sticdesi r
es.Fort
heirpart
,
theyaregulli
bleenought obeli
ev ehi
m.Thev ital
it
yoft herogueJer omakeshi m apopularfi
gur
e
wi t
haudiences, andt hi
sr ambunct i
ous,humor ousplayisoneoft hebest -
knownandmost
frequentl
yperfor medofSoy i
nka'searlywor ks.

AUTHORBI
OGRAPHY

Nigeri
anpl
aywr
ight
,poet
,nov
eli
st,
andessay
istWol
eSoy
inka,
whosegi
vennamewas
Akinwande

Oluwol
e,wasbornonJuly13,1934,inIsar
a,Ni
ger
ia.Bor
nint
otheYorubatr
ibe,
hewastheson
ofAyoandEniol
aSoyinka;
hisfat
herwasaheadmast erofaschool
establ
i
shedbytheBri
ti
sh.
Atthet
ime,Ni
geriawasunderBrit
ishrule.

Soyinkaatt
endedtheUniv
ersit
yofI badanandconti
nuedhiseducati
onattheUniver
sit
yof
Leeds,Engl
and.Hegraduatedwi t
hhonor s,wit
habachel
orofartsdegr
eeinEngli
shin1957and
thenspentoverayearasaplayr eaderattheRoyal
CourtTheatr
einLondon.Hisearl
yplaysThe
SwampDwel l
ers,
TheLionandt heJewel, andTheI
nvent
ionall
recei
vedproducti
onsinLondon
i
n1958and1959.

Retur
ningt
oNi ger
iain1960,j
ustafterNiger
iabecameindependent
,Soyi
nka'scar
eerasa
dramati
stf
louri
shed.Heestabl
ishedar eput
ati
onforblendi
ngYorubainf
luenceswit
hWester
n
dramati
cstyl
es.Hefoundedtheatergroupsandproducedandactedinhisownplays.TheTr
ial
s

1
ofBrot
herJer
owasfir
stpr
oducedatIbadan'
sUniver
sit
yColl
egeinApri
l1960,t
hesamey
earA
DanceoftheFor
est
swasproduced.Soyi
nka'
sfi
rstnovelwasTheInt
erpr
eter
s(1965)
.

Duri
ngt he1960s,i
naddi
ti
ont ohol
dingv ari
ousteachi
ngpositi
onsatuniversit
iesinNigeri
a,
Soyinkawasal soapoli
ti
calacti
vi
st,workingtocombatgov er
nmentcorruptionandcensor shi
p.
Whenaci vi
lwarbrokeouti
n1967, Soyi
nkawasar r
estedandimpri
sonedf ormor ethantwo
years,spendingfi
ft
eenmonthsinsolit
aryconfinement.Sever
alofhi
swr i
tingswer einf
luenced
bythisper i
odofimpri
sonment,i
ncludi
ngt heplayMadmenandSpeci al
ists(1971); apoetr
y
coll
ection,AShutt
leint
heCr y
pt(1972);andanov el,
SeasonofAnomy( 1973) .

Aft
erhisr el
easein1969, Soyi
nkawentintoexi
leforsi
xy ear
s,l
i
vinginGhana,Engl
and,andthe
Unit
edSt ates.HisplaysJero'
sMet amor
phoses(1974),TheBacchaeofEuri
pides(
1973)—an
adaptat
ionofEur ipi
des'workandoneofSoy i
nka'
sbest-knownplays—andDeathandtheKing'
s
Horseman( 1975)datefr
om thisperi
od.

Soyi
nkar et
urnedtoNigeri
ain1975andremainedpoli
tical
l
yacti
ve.Hespokeoutagainst
repr
essionunderthemili
tarygover
nmentt
hatruledNigeri
afr
om 1979to1983.Duri
ngt hi
s
peri
od,Soyinkawasprofessorofcompar
ati
veli
terat
ureanddramaticar
tsattheUni
versit
yofI
fe;
hewasal soav i
sit
ingpr
ofessoratYal
eUniv
ersit
yandt heUni
versi
tyofGhana.

I
n1984, anotherofhismostpopul arplays,APl ayofGi ants,wasproduced, andin1986, Soyinka
wasawar dedt heNobelPrizeforLit
erature,thef irstAfr
icanwritertoreceiv
et hi
sawar d.In1994,
Soyi
nkawasaccusedoft r
easonbyt heNi gerianmi li
tar
ygov er
nment ,andheonceagai nwent
i
ntoexil
e,traveli
ngandlecturi
nginEur opeandt heUni t
edStates.Her etur
nedt oNigeri
ai n1998,
whereanewgov er
nmentwaspr omi si
ngt orel easepol i
tical
prisonersandhol delect
ions.Since
hi
sretur
nhome, Soyi
nkahaspublishedacol lect ionofessay s,TheBur denofMemor y,The
MuseofFor giveness(1998),andamemoi r
,YouMustSetFor t
hatDawn( 2006).

PLOTSUMMARY

Scene1

TheTrial
sofBr otherJer
obeginswithasinglespotl
i
ghtil
luminat
inganother
wi sedarkstage.In
thespotl
ighti
st hemaincharacter
,Brot
herJeroboam,whospeaksdi r
ect
lytotheaudience.He
i
denti
fieshimselfasaprophet,bywhichhemeanspr eacher.Hehasbeenapr ophetforalong
ti
me,hesay s.Hisparent
sthoughthewasi deall
ysuit
edtosuchar ol
ebecauseofhi slong,t
hick

2
hair.Heenjoyshiswor k,whi
chcomesnat urall
ytohim.Thenher eveal
st hati
nrecenty ear
s,
manypr eachershav etakentot helocalbeach( BarBeach,Lagos)topreachandat tr
actconvert
s,
andt hereisaggressi
vecompet i
ti
onamongt hem f
oravail
ablespace.TheTownCounci lhadto
got othebeacht osettl
ethedisputesandal l
ocateaterri
torytoeachpreacher.Jeroboam
helpedapr eacherhereferstoashi sMast ergainalargepor t
ionofthebeach,alt
houghhe
admi tshewasonl ydoingsobecausehet houghtitwouldwor ktohisownadv antage.Jerothen
goesont osaythattherearefewwor shi
pper scomingtothebeacht hesedays.Manypeopl e
prefertostayathomeandwat chtelevi
sion.

Het el
lst heaudi encet hathispur
posei st
ot el
lthem abouttheev entsofonepar ticulardayi n
hisli
fe,whi chdi sturbedhi m.Healsoment ionshowhewascur sedbyhi sMast er.Hei s
i
nterrupt edbyt hesuddenappear anceofhi sMast er
,OldProphet ,whor epri
seshisor iginalcurse,
accusingJer oofhav ingdrivenhi
m offhispieceoflandont hebeach.Jer oboam, knownt ohis
fol
lower sasBr otherJer o,paysnoattenti
on.Het ell
stheaudiencet hattheol dmanwasaf ool
nottor ealizethathe, Jero,wasreal
lyonlyoutforhimself.OldPr ophetcont i
nueshiscur se,
sayingt hatJer owi llber ui
nedbyhisappetiteforwomen, andthenexi ts.Jeroadmi tst heold
manknowst hathi soneweaknessi sf orwomen, sohehasdeci dedtoav oidwomen.

Scene2

Iti
searlymor ni
nginaf i
shingv i
ll
age.Chumeent ersonabi cy
cle,withhiswif
eAmopesi t
ti
ngon
thecrossbar.Thebicycl
est opsabruptl
yinf r
ontofJer o'
shouse, andAmopei saggrievedat
whatsheconsi dersChume' sinconsi
derateness.Theysquabbl e,withAmopecompl ainingthat
thebumpyl andinghurtherfoot.Iti
sclearthattheyarenothappi lymarri
ed.Thesquabbl e
conti
nuesasChumeunl oadst hebagcont aini
ngt hei
rlunch.Shet el
lshi
mt omakesur ehedoes
notspil
lit
.Chumesay shehast ogobecauseot herwisehewi l
l belatef
orwork.Amope
respondsbychi di
nghimf orhislackofambi ti
on.

Jerol
ooksoutfr
om hiswindowandseesAmope.Het riestoescapefr
om hishousewi
thout
Amopeseeinghim,butheisnotsuccessful.Amopeconfront
shim,sayi
ngthatheowesher
moneyandthathepromisedtopayhert hreemonthsago.Jeromakesanexcuseandgoes
backi
ntothehouse.

Awomant raderpassesbyonherwayt ot
hemarket.Sheisselli
ngsmokedfi
sh.Amopespeaks
toherinasur l
ymannerandt het
wowomenexchangei nsul
ts.Nosalei
smade.Amopet hen
catchessightofJeroescapi
ngfr
om hishouset
hrought hewindow.Shehur
lsabuseathim and
alsoatthetrader
,whohasnowdi sappear
ed.Aboywalkspasther ,
beati
ngonadrum,andshe

3
i
nsul
tshi
m, t
oo.Thesceneendswi
thAmopecompl
aini
ngaboutJer
o,t
hef
ish-
sel
l
er,
andt
he
boy,
whom shecall
sabeggar.

Scene3

Ashor twhi l
elater
,Jero,athischurchont hebeach, speaksdirect
lyt otheaudience.Hesay s
thatheboughtav elvetcapefrom Amope, andhehopespeopl ewi l
l star
tcall
inghim bysome
i
mpr essivenamebecauseofi t,
suchas" Velvet-
heartedJeroboam. "Hewant sanamet hatwil
l
appeal totheimaginationsofhiscongr egati
on.Heal socomplainsaboutAmope, cursi
ngher
andsay ingthatthecapewasnotwor thwhatshewasaski ngforit.Heconf essest hathelikes
tokeephi sfoll
ower sdissati
sfi
edwi t
ht hei
rliv
es,sot hatt
heywi l
lkeepcomi ngt ohi m.For
exampl e,herefusestogi vehi
sassistant,Chume, permissi
ont obeathi swife,becausehewant s
Chumet oremai nfeeli
nghelpless.

Jerowatchesasanat t
racti
vegir
l passes,andthenpr ay
st hathewi l
lbeablet or
esist
temptati
on.Chumeent ersandpray swithhim.JeroissurprisedthatChumei snotatwor k,
and
Chumesay shei ssi
ck.OutofChume' sheari
ng,Jerorevealshiscontemptf orChume,andis
sati
sfi
edthatthi
ssimplemanwi llnev ertr
ytobecomehi sequal .HeisalsogladthatChumehas
foundhim onthebeacht hi
searl
yi nthemor ni
ng,becausehel i
kestopretendthathesleepson
thebeach,whereasi
nf acthesl
eepsi nabedi nhishouse.

Chumeasksper missi
ont obeathi swi fe,j
ustonce.Jer orefusesandest ablisheshisaut horit
y
overChumebyr emindinghimt hathepr edictedhewoul dbecomeChi efMessenger .Nowhe
predictshewi l
lbecomeChi efClerk.Chumecont inuest ocompl ainv i
gorouslyabouthi swi fe,
whileJer oasksGodt of orgi
vehim.Thecongr egat i
onst art
st oar ri
ve,andJer ocomment sabout
howhehascy ni
callyprophesiedtot wooft hem t hatt heywilladv ancetheirpol i
ti
cal careers.
Thenhet ell
sChumeoncemor enott obeathi swi fe.Thecongr egat i
onbegi nst osingahy mn,
dancingandcl appingwi ththerhythm.TheBoyDr ummerent ers,chasedbyascant ilydressed
woman.Theypassbysev eralti
mes, andJer ogoest ointer
ceptt hewoman, whom he
recognizesashi sneighbor.Thisleav esChumet ocont i
nuet heser vi
ce,whi chhei sincompet ent
todo.Her epeat
edlyasksGodt of orgiveonepeni tentwoman, whoi shav i
ngaki ndoff it,asthe
congr egati
onsay s,"
Amen. "Thewomanev ent ual
lybecomesst il
l,andChume, encour agedby
thesuppor theisget t
ingfrom thecongr egation,cont inueshispr ayer,aski
ngGodt opr ov i
de
them wi t
hmor emoneyandmor estat usint heirwor k.

Theangrywomanreappear
s,t
histi
mei npossessi
onoftheboy
'sdr
ums,whil
ehefol
l
owsher
.
Hedeniest
hathewasabusingherfat
herbydrummi ng,
whichi
swhysheisangr
ywit
hhi
m.

4
Jeroretur
ns.Hecl othesaretornandhi sfaceisbleeding;hehasbeenat t
ackedbythewoman.
Hecompl ainsaboutbei ngtormentedbywomen, andChume, wit
hhisownwi fei
nmi nd,r
eadil
y
agrees.From somethingChumesay s,
Jeroreali
zesthatChume' swif
ei sthewomanheowes
moneyt o.Hopingtof reehimselffr
om herrequestforpay ment,heauthori
zesChumet otake
herhomeandbeather .HealsoinformsChumet hattheSonofGodhasgi venhi
m,Jero,anew
ti
tl
e:theImmacul ateJer o,
Arti
culateHeroofChr i
st'
sCr usade.

Scene4

Iti
slaterthatdayi nfrontofJer o'shouse.AmopeandChumear equar r
eli
ngagai n,andChume
tel
lshiswi f
eiti sti
met ogohome.Sher epl
iest hatshei snotmov ingunt i
lsheget shermoney .
Jeroent er
s,hides,andobser vest hem, asAmopet auntsChumeabouthi shumbl estationinli
fe.
Chumet el
lshert oshutup, whichast onishesAmope, whot hinksherhusbandmusthav egone
mad.Chumet ri
estof orcehert ocomewi thhim, butsher esistsandbangsont hedoorofJer o's
house, cal
li
ngf orhelp.Jer oignor eshercr i
es.Chumet r
iest of orceAmopeont ot hebicycl
e
whileshepr otestsloudly.Nei ghbor sgat hertowat cht hescene.Amopedar esherhusbandt o
kil
lherandcal lsonJer oagai n, sayingt hatifJer owillcurseChume, shewillabsolveJer oofhis
debt.Chumequest ionshi swi fe,discov eri
ngt hattheyar eout sideJer o'
shouseandt hatitisthe
preacherwhooweshi swi femoney .Hehadnotsuspect edt hisbef ore,butnowher eali
zeswhy
Jerofinall
yagr eedtoallowChumet obeatAmope.I twasf ort hepr eacher'
sownconv enience.
Angry,heget sonhi sbicy cl
eandr i
desof f
,tel
lingAmopet or emai nwher eshei s.

Scene5

I
tisnight
fallatt
hebeach.Amani spracticinggiv
ingaspeech,andJer oobserveshim.Hesays
themani sanambi ti
ouspolit
ici
anwhocomest othebeachtorehearsehi sspeechesfor
Parli
ament,buthenev erhasthecouraget omaket hem.Jerot
hent hinksofChume, assumi
ng
thatbynowhewi llhavebeatenhiswife.Thi smeansthathewil
lbeconf identandnolonger
needJero,butatleastitwil
lhaveri
dJer ooft hewoman'sdemandsf orpay ment.

Jerothenturnshisattentionbacktothepoli
ti
ciananddecidestorecrui
thim asafol
lower.At
fi
rstthemani snotinterested,butJer
ogetshisattenti
onbysayi
ngt hathehadav i
sioninwhi
ch
hesawt hismanel evatedt otheposit
ionofMinist
erforWar.HesuggeststhatGodmi ght
withdrawHisfavorifthemandoesnotbecomeabel i
ever
,andhesuggeststhattheypray
together
.

5
Whil
eJeroisworki
nghiswil
esont hepoli
tici
an,Chumeenters,
tal
ki
ngt ohi
mself.Heisfur
ious
wit
hJero,nowthathecanseethroughallthepreacher
'sl
i
es.Hewonder swhet
herthepreacher
andAmopehav esomekindofrelat
ionshi
pt hatheknowsnothi
ngof,andhesoonconv i
nces
hi
mselfthatt
heyarei
nfactl
overs.Heexits.

Thepoli
tici
aniskneeling,eyesclosed,atthefeetofJeroast hepreacherasksGodt opr
otect
him.Chumer ushesin,brandishingacutlassandaccusingJer oofadultery
.Jer
orunsaway ,wit
h
Chumechasi nghim.Thepol iti
cian,unawareofwhathast akenplace,openshiseyes.Fi
nding
thatJer
ohasv ani
shed,hethinkst hatGodhasmy ster
iouslyspir
it
edhi m away,
andhebowshi s
headinreverence.

Jer
or etur
nsandspeakstotheaudience,
say
ingthatsoont hewhol
et ownwil
lhearfr
om the
pol
it
icianaboutthepr
eacher
'smir
aculousdi
sappearance.Thepoli
ti
ciansi
tsdown,hopi
ngthat
i
fhehasf ait
h,Jerowi
llr
eappeart
ohi m.

Jer
ot el
lst
heaudiencethathehascontactedthepol i
ceandarrangedforChumetobesentt oa
l
unati
casylum f
oray ear.Henoti
cesthatthepolit
ici
anhasfall
enasleepandsaysthatwhenhe
wakes,he,
Jero,wil
ltel
lhimthatChumei sanagentofSat anandmustbeputi nastrait
jacket.
Hepicksupapebbleandt hrowsitatt
hepol i
ti
cian,whowakesup, seesJero,
andhailshim as
Master.

CHARACTERS

Amope

Amopei stheshrewishwi feofChume,wellpr act

icedatadopt i
ngt heroleofamar tyrand
i
ndulgi
ngi nconstantbickeri
ng.Shecomplainsaboutheri ll
-t
reatmentatChume' shandsand
taunt
shimf orhislazi
nessandl ackofambition,remindi
nghi mt hathisol dschoolfriendsar e
nowgov ernmentmi ni
sters.Theyri
deincars,buthest i
llgetsaroundonabi cy
cle.Latershe
compareshisjobunf avorabl
ytothatofasani tar
yinspector,whoatl easthasamot or cycle.
Amopesuppl ement sthemeagersalaryChumebr ingshomebyt radi
ngv ari
ousitems, andshe
saysshewor kshardf orwhatevermoneyshecanmake.Shesol dav elvetcapet oJer o,for
example,alt
houghhehasy ettopayfori
t.

Amopedoesnotappeartoli
vei
nabj
ectpovert
y,al
thoughcert
ainl
ysheandherhusbandhav
e
l
imi
tedf
inanci
alr
esourcesandshel
ongsforsomethingbet
ter
.Herhusband'
spassiv
e

6
acceptanceofhishumbl er oleinlif
ei saconstantgoadtoher.Shehasnor espectf
orhim and
l
osesnooppor tunit
yt oridi
culehim andsneerathi m.Amopei sanasserti
ve,combativewoman,
chronical
l
ydissati
sfiedandf r
ustr
at ed.Fornoapparentreason,shepi
cksaquar r
elwit
ha
passingfemaletr
ader ,andt heytradei nsul
tsf
orawhi l
e.ShealsoconfrontsJeroaboutthenon-
paymentofhisdebt .Unlikeot her
s, sheisnotawedbyhi sclai
mt obeamanofGod; shesees
thr
oughhi mimmedi ately.Shei salsodet er
minedtogethermoney .

WhenChume, whohasf i
nall
yrecei
vedpermissi
onfr
om Jerotobeathi swif
e,st
andsupt oher,
tal
ksback, andtri
estoforcehertogohomewi t
hhim,shei
sconv incedthathehasgonemad.
Shepr obablyneverguessesthatherweakhusbandhasbeenhar bori
ngsuchangeragainsther.
Shecr eatesanoisyscene,dari
nghim agai
nandagaintoki
llher,whichshemustknowhewi l
l
not,butitdoesgiveherthechanceoncemor etoactthemartyr
,andi nfr
ontofother
s,t
oo.

BoyDr
ummer

TheBoyDrummerappearsinscene2, car
ryi
ngadrum oneachshoulder
.Hewal kstoward
Amope,banginghi
sdrums,butAmopeshooshi m away.Heappear
sagai ninscene3, r
unning
acr
ossthestageasheisbeingchasedbyawoman.Whent hetwocharactersreappear
,the
womanisinpossessi
onofthedrums, andtheBoyDrummerpleadsfortheirret
urn.

Chume

Chumei sAmope' shusbandandanassi st

antt oBr otherJer o.Heusedt obeal abor er,butnow
hewor ksaschi efmessengeri nt helocalgovernmentof fi
ce.Chumei sasi mple, i
nef fecti
veman
whof eel shedoesnothav eanypowerorcont r
ol inhi sli
fe.Hei snaggedandt aunt edbyhi swif
e
forhisl ackofambi ti
on,andhewoul ddearl
yl ovet oasser thimsel fbybeat i
ngher ,butJer owi l
l
notgiv ehi m permissiont odoso.Chumecl i
ngst oJer obecausehei sweak, andt hecy ni
cal
Jero,whohasonl ycont emptf orhisassistant,giv eshi m hopet hathisli
femayi mpr ov e.
Althoughi ti
shighlyunl i
kelythatChumewi lleverbemor et hanachi efmessenger ,hei sso
bitt
erlyconsci ousofhi sweaknessandhi slowl yst atusthathebel i
evesJero'spr ophecyt hathe
willevent uall
ybecomechi efclerk,withpowerov erothers.Chumei s,infact,afairl
ydecentman.
Hedoesnotdr i
nk,smoke, ortakebr i
bes—Amopesay stheonl yr easonhedoesnotdr inkis
becausehecannotaf fordit—andhi semot i
onsr undeep.Whenheget sexcit
ed, hel apsesi nt
o
pidginEngl i
sh.ButChumesi mplydoesnotknowhowt odeal withhiswi f
e.Not hinghedoes
satisf
iesher .Heev entuall
ymanagest ogetJer o' sper missiont obeatAmope, andheal so
becomesconv i
ncedt hatAmopeandJer oar ehav inganaf f
ai r
.Thismakeshi mf urious, andhe
goesaf terJero,brandishingacut lass.Buthei snomat chf orJer o'spower sofmani pulat
ion,
sincet hepr eacherar r
angesf orChumet obel ockedupi nal unaticasylum foray ear .Chume

7
t
her
efor
epay
sthepr
icef
orbei
ngt
hegul
l
ibl
evi
cti
m oft
hewi
l
ypr
eacher
.

Br
otherJer
o

BrotherJeroisdescr i
bedasa" beachdivine."Heisapr eacherwhohasnobr i
cks-and-mortar
churchbutpr eachestohisfol
lower sont hebeach, asmanyot herlow-statuspreachersdo.Jero
i
sacy nical
,manipulati
vechar
latanwhoappear stohav enogenui nereligi
ousbeliefsatall
.But
hehasl onghadat al
entforpr
eachi ng,
whi chshowedupev enwhenhewasachi ld.Hisfamily
encouragedhi mt obecomeapr eacher
,andheat t
achedhi msel ft
oanest abli
sheddi v
ine,Old
Prophet, whoactedashi sspi
ri
tual mentor.Jerowor kedhardf orOldPr ophet,securi
nghi ma
terr
it
oryont hebeachwher ehecoul dpreach, butthenhef orcedOl dPr ophetoffhispatchand
tookov ertheministr
yhimself
,amov ehehadbeenpl anni
ngf rom thebegi nni
ng.

Jerohasnoet hicalvaluesatall,andhepr ey supont heweak.Hei sv eryeffectiveatthis

becausehehasagoodunder standingofhumanpsy chology ,especiallyofthosewhocome
withinhisor bit
.Heknowst hatpeopl ear egener all
yunhappywi ththei rlotinlif
eandwantmor e.
Her eelst hem i nbypr ophesy i
ngt hatt heywi l
l prosperi nt heircareersandbecomei mpor t
ant.
Het ell
st hei nsignifi
cantpol i
ti
cian, f
orexampl e, thathewi llbecomeami ni
ster,andheal so
reportsthatoneofhi sf avori
tepr opheci esi stot el
lpeopl et hattheywi l
lli
vet obeei ghty
.Ifthey
donot ,theyar ehar dl
yi napositiont ocompl aint ohi mt hathewaswr ong.Jer odoesnotr eally
wantt oempoweranyofhi scongr egation.I ntr uth,hecar esnot hi
ngf ort hem.Hel ikestokeep
them dependentonhi m, soitisinhi sint erestst okeept hem weakandunabl etohel p
themsel ves.Her ef
usest oallowChumet obeathi swi fe,forexampl e,becausehet hinksthat
woul dgiveChumeasenseoff ulfil
lmentandhewoul dnol ongerlookt oJer oforguidance.Jero
l
ikesot her st othinkhei simpor tant,whi chi swhyhemakesupal lkindsofnamesf orhimsel f
thathehopest hecongr egati
onwi l
ladopt ,suchasI mmacul ateJer oandAr ticul
ateHer oof
Christ'
sCr usade.Hel i
kest obedi stinctive, t
ost andoutf r
om t hecr owd.Hehasav eryhigh
opinionofhi msel f,
althoughhedoesacknowl edget hathehasaweaknessf orwomen.

Jer omaybeunscr upul

ous, buthei sgoodatwhathedoes.WhenAmoper elentl
esslycomes
afterhimforhismoney ,hecunni nglyusesChumet ogetthebetterofher .WhenChumechases
afterJero,bel
i
evingt hatthepr eacherishavinganaff
airwit
hhiswi fe,Jerosoont ur nsthe
situat
iontohisadv antage,arrangingforChumet obesentt oalunaticasy lum.Byt heendofthe
play,Jerohasatt
r actedintohisor bitt
heMemberofPar l
i
ament ,afarmor ei nfl
uentialf
igur
e
thanChume.Thi ssuggest sthatJeroi sabouttomoveupi nthewor ld,atleastintermsoft he
statureofthepeopl eheisabl etomani pul
ateandcont
rol.

8
Despi
tehi
smanyf aults,Jeroisanamusi
ngcharact
er.Hi
sredeemingquali
tyi
sthatheisful
ly
awareofwhatheisdoi ng,doesnotf
oolhi
mself
,andopenlyconf
esseshiscyni
cism andsel
fi
sh
motiv
estotheaudience.

Br
otherJer
oboam

SeeBr
otherJer
o

MemberofPar
li
ament

TheMemberofPar l
iamenti sanambi ti
ousbutt imidpolit
ici
anofl i
ttl
epol i
ticali
mpor t
ance.He
goest othebeacht orehearsethef i
eryspeecheshepl anst ogi vei
nPar li
ament ,buthei stoo
fri
ghtenedact ual
lytodeliverthem.Hei s, atfi
rst
,hosti
l
et oJer o,butJerosoonout wi t
shi m by
playi
ngont heman' sambi t
ion.Hei ssof l
at t
eredwhenJer otellshimt hathewi l
l become
mi ni
sterforwart hatheist heneasilymani pulat
ed.Jer
oconv inceshi mt hatferventpr ayer
woul dadvancehi scausewi t
hGod, andt hemancompl ieswithouthesi t
ation.Het hinksJer oisa
realprophetandmanofGod.Jer o,ofcour se,pl
ansonlytousehi mf orhisownends, butallt
he
polit
ici
ancant hi
nkabouti shisfutureelev at
iontotherankofmi ni
sterforwar .

Ol
dPr
ophet

OldPr opheti sthepreacherwhoact edasJer o'

sspiri
tualmentor.WithJero'
shel
p,Ol
dProphet
stakedoutat erri
toryforhimselfonthebeach.ButthenJer obetray
edhim bydri
vi
nghim away
from hispat ch.Furi
ous, OldProphetcur
sedhi m,decl
aringthatwomenwoul dbeJero'
sdownfal
l.
Jeropr etendst otakenonot i
ceoft hecurse,
althoughinfactitworri
eshim.Hehasnorespect
forhisf ormertutor,refer
ri
ngtohi m asafool
ish"olddodderer."

Peni
tent

ThePenit
entisawomani nJer
o'scongr
egati
onwhohasaparoxy
sm,aki
ndofemotionalf
it
,
duri
ngareli
giousser
vice.Shel
iesonthegroundmoani
ngasChumeandthecongr
egati
onpray
forher
.

ToughMamma

TheToughMammaisanangrywomanwhochasesaft
ertheBoyDrummer ,
accusi
nghi
m of
usi
ngthedr
um t
oabuseherf
ather
.Shei
sJer
o'snei
ghbor
.Offst
age,sheget
sthedrumsfr
om

9
theboy,leavinghimtofoll
owheronstagepl
eadi
ngf orhi
sdrumsback.Thewomanis
aggressi
v e.WhenJerotri
estointer
veneint
hedispute,
shescrat
cheshi
sfaceandheendsup
withhisclothestor
naswel l
.(Thi
sinci
dentt
akesplaceoff
stage,
andthewoman'sr
ole
thr
oughouti sanon-speaki
ngone.)

Tr
ader

TheTraderisawomanwhopassesbyAmopewhi l
eAmopewaitsoutsi
deJero'
shouse.Sheis
onherwayt othemar
kett
osellfi
sh.SheandAmopeexchangeangr
ywor ds.Amopeappearst
o
bel
iev
et hatt
hewomanistradi
nginstol
enproper
ty.

YoungGi
rl

TheYoungGi rl
frequentsthebeachnearthespotwher eJer
opreaches,
andheobser
vesher.
Whenshegoest oswim, hethi
nksshelooksdir
ty,butwhensheretur
nsshel
ooksmuchmor e
at
tract
ive.Jer
oobser vesthesametransf
ormationinthegir
lev
erydayandtr
iest
oresisthi
s
l
ustful
thoughtsabouther .

THEMES

Hy
pocr
isyandRel
i
giousChar
lat
ani
sm

Theplayi sasat ir
icalattackonr eli
giouschar lat ansorfrauds, l
ikeBr otherJer o, whomakea
mocker yofgenui ner eli
gion.Jer oappear stohav enogenui nef ai
t hatall.Event houghhepr ays
forandwi thhiscongr egat i
on, hedoesnotbel iev eawor dofwhathet ell
sot her s.Ev ery
t hinghe
saysist osecur ehisownposi tionandkeephi sf ol
lowersinasubor dinatepl ace.Hei ntuitsthat
whatpeopl ewanti snotspi r
itual knowl edgebutmat er
ialadv ancement ,andt hi
si swhathe
promisesGodwi l
ldeliverf ort hem.Ahy pocri
tei saper sonwhopr eachesonet hi ngbutdoes
another,andt hisisaper f
ectdescr iptionofJer o.Nodoubthespeakst ohi scongr egationabout
theneedf orhonestandupr ightl iving, buthebuy sacloakf rom Amopeandi tappear shehasno
i
ntenti
onofpay i
ngf orit.Hei sl i
ttlemor ethanacr ook,alway salertfornewway sofi mpr essing
hisgull
iblefollowersandkeepi ngt hem wi t
hint hef ol
d,ascanbeseenbyhi smusi ngsabout
acquir
ingsomegr andt itl
ef orhi msel ft hatwoul dmakehi scongr egati
onev enmor emal leablein
hishands.Jer oknowst hathei sadr eadf ulexampl eofapr eacher( orprophet ,
whi chi st heterm
heuses) .Neart hebegi nni ngoft hepl ayhequot esapr overb: "
Ther eareeggsandt herear e
eggs.Samet hingwi thpr ophet s."Hemeanst hatnotal lprophetsar ethesame; somemaybe
good,somebad; somemaybegenui ne, whileot hersaref akes.Jer owell knowst hathei saf ake,
buthef eelsnot wingeofconsci enceabouti t
.Al thoughhisf oll
ower sar enotact uallyshown
givi
nghi m money ,theypr obabl ydo, sinceJer or eferstothem as" customer s":"Ialway sgett hat

10
feeli
ngever
ymor ni
ngthatIam ashopkeeperwait
ingforcustomers."
Heal sorefer
stohis
rel
igi
ouscall
ingasa"tr
ade."I
notherwords,Jeroi
srunningabusiness;hemer elypr
etendst
o
becommuni cati
ngknowledgeaboutthespi
rit
ualr
ealm.Hei safraud,butacleverone,andt
he
audiencei
samusedbyhi santi
csandhisplots.

11