Summary - Ti-jean And His Brothers And Derek Walcott PDF

Preview

Summary

TI-JEAN AND HIS BROTHERS AND DEREK WALCOTT...

Description

TI-JEAN AND HIS BROTHERS AND DEREK WALCOTT – Derek Walcott – won the Nobel prize – he and his brother Roderick were born in St. Lucia and raised by their mother after their father died – his mother was the headmistress of a school so Walcott received a good education in English and was encouraged to pursue the interests of the arts – studied in college, tension between Euro-centered education and desire to create a theater representative of the native cultures has created a controversy – wrote a play about Haiti’s revolution—Haiti Christophe – formed the Trinidad Theater Workshop in 1950s and remains a legacy to his name – native Caribbean drama performed in a distinctive West Indian style, fused it with non-Caribbean theater forms – formidable playwright and poet, one of the most revered poets of the 20th century – Synopsis of Ti-Jean – dancing with the devil is a recurring image in the story – Ti-Jean is set in Trinidad – portrays modern political realities and an ancient St. Lucian legend – first scene establishes the story framework of the main plot – all brothers align with a particular archetype – triparte structure, and the two brothers are foils to Ti-Jean – the play is a folktale and a rite of passage play – contemporary political commentary, old colonialists used labor for profit in Trinidad’s colonial past – ‘’Burn burn burn de cane!’’ is blended into the framework of the play and foreshadows Ti-Jean’s triumph over his adversary – blend of local dialects and speech rhythms to complement Walcott’s poetic license – uses Creole folk songs and calypso music to provide atmosphere – creating environment through body language, creates theatrically exciting scenes with animals and spirits – Theme – modern political realities of the West Indies – conflict between upper and lower caste, presents archetypal characters fighting the Devil – plot borrowed from a St. Lucian folk narrative – the number 3 plays an important role, 3 brothers and 3 scenes of the play – 3 represents the Holy Trinity – Setting – Trinidad, Trinidad Creole culture, story takes place in the rainforest of the Trinidad, animals are telling the stories – Singing – Gros Jon sang when he left home – Mi Jean sang the song of silence – Ti Jean sang when he was comparing himself to David and Goliath – devil sings when he eats the human flesh and there is an explosion every time he does this – Characters – Gros-Jon is the strong and stupid eldest brother – Mi-Jean is the second and most intellectual brother – Ti-Jean is the youngest brother with the most common sense and trusts that his faith in God is enough to overpower the devil – mother is the widow who raised all 3 boys – the bolom is the demonic soul of an aborted fetus who wants life and works for the devil – the devil is the main antagonist who can shape-shift and doesn’t feel any emotions and only wants to eat – Elements of the Play – tragicomedy, frame narrative, triparte structure, comedic aspect, dialect speech – Symbolism – major theme is colonialism, and each brother represents a phase of opposition towards colonial rule – Gros-Jean represents strength against the opposition, but the devil represents colonial oppressor

– Mi-Jean represents intelligence against the opposition, – Ti-Jean represents belief in God, common sense, and taking advice from other people, like his animal friends – the Devil and the many masks he wears represent colonial oppression – Bolom represents the community that wouldn’t be born, and when he is born, it represents the community that can come to be – Morality— faith in God is better than strength and intelligence, Ti-Jean is compared to David – Ti-Jean and his Brothers – The play has the model of a fairy tale, but with a more mature story. The animals of the rain forest tell the story of Ti Jean and his two brothers, and their plight against the devil. – Bolom offers the 3 brothers a challenge against the devil and the objective is to win and evoke emotion in the devil so that they can live in wealth and peace, if they lose the devil will eat them – The first brother, Gros Jean, sneaks out of the house and leaves home to go and work on the plantation, having the utmost confidence in his strength. The Devil takes on the form of the White Plantation Owner and angers Gros-John by undermining his work and refusing to call him by his actual name. Gros-John loses all his patience and eventually gets eaten by the Devil. – Mi-Jean leaves to be a ship captain and a lawyer and plans to beat the devil with silence and a smile. The Devil is disguised as a Plant and is at first frustrated with Mi Jean not speaking. Mi Jean is forced to look after a goat that keeps running lose and he constantly has to run after it. The Devil makes fun of him by comparing his intelligence to the goat’s and insults him by implying that the goat is more intelligent than him. Mi-John loses all his patience and eventually gets eaten by the Devil. – Ti-Jean finally has his chance, his mother tries to keep him at home but Ti-Jean is not afraid to meet the Devil because of his trust in God. Ti-Jean compares himself as David meeting Goliath. – The frog, cricket, bird, and firefly, who serve as narrators for the story, are worried about Ti-Jean. – Ti-Jean finds an old man, who is really the Devil in disguise (the old man has a tail) – Ti Jean sets out to defeat the devil, and is caught by two of the devil's minions looking at his brother's graves. They assign him to catch the same goat as before, which Ti Jean castrates. – The Plantation Owner tell him to count all the leaves in the sugar cane field, which Ti-Jean tells all the plantation workers to burn. The devil and his friends return, drunk, and discover that Ti Jean has also burnt down their house. Bolom tells the devil to be reasonable and fair... – The devil then becomes enraged. Ti Jean calls him out on this, and claims that he has won. The devil plays unfair and starts to kill Ti Jean's mother, telling him that he will only win if he sings for her. – Ti Jean's animal friend's encourage him to sing, which he does. The devil feels sympathy, cries out of sorrow, and grants Ti Jean his wish. – Ti-Jean wishes for the bolom at the beginning of the story to have life. The bolom is 'born', and they all sing in a dramatic ending. The devil leaves, but not w/o promising that he and Ti-Jean will meet again. –...