Grief
Grief—deep sorrow over the death or loss of someone or something—is among the most central themes in Brother. Chariandy establishes the theme cryptically, hinting at Francis's death early in the book but withholding the circumstances around his shooting until the book's climax. This choice is a way of narrativizing Michael's and Ruth's inability to process their grief over Francis's police killing, an event so tragic and unjust that it keeps Michael and Ruth stunted in their lives. While Michael prefers to isolate himself and his mother from the world, Ruth's mental health suffers and she acts erratic. It isn't until Aisha returns to the Park to grieve her father that Michael and Ruth begin to open themselves to painful and tender memories of Francis. With Aisha's influence, the two begin to move out of their grief and approach life with a new but bittersweet optimism.
Denial
Related to grief is the major theme of denial. Rather than acknowledge Francis's death, Michael and Ruth remain stuck in the denial stage of grief, meaning they cannot admit the loss into their consciousness. This denial is evident in both characters' inability to speak openly about the loss, Michael's effort to get rid of anything in the house that might remind his mother of Francis's existence, and Michael's anger at Aisha when she attempts to get Ruth to remember her son. Ultimately, Chariandy depicts how denial becomes a convenient defense mechanism for people experiencing trauma so great that only steady, painful, and vulnerable confrontation can help them overcome it.
Mental Illness
Mental illness is another major theme in the novel. Chariandy explores the theme mainly through Michael's mother, Ruth, whose mental health suffers following Francis's death. Early in the book, Chariandy hints at Ruth's compromised psychological state when Michael and Aisha enter the house at night. Michael is cautious not to do anything that might disturb his mother, who has become mentally fragile in the ten years since her eldest son died. However, aside from Ruth's diminished capacity for work, dementia-like wandering in the neighborhood, and her occasionally forgetting that Francis has died, the extent to which Ruth's mental illness is a byproduct of grief remains uncertain. While staying at the house, Aisha sees an opportunity to improve Ruth's mental health by having her acknowledge Francis's existence and bask in memories of when he was alive. While the book's climax sees Ruth land in the hospital as a consequence of her absent-minded wandering, Chariandy leaves the reader with the sense that her thinking is becoming less clouded as she confronts the facts that she has been avoiding.
Protectiveness
Protectiveness—a tendency to want to keep someone or something safe from harm—is a crucial theme in Brother. Chariandy explores the theme largely through Michael and Francis's relationship. As a child with an absent father and a mother who works long hours, Francis becomes like a parent to his little brother, Michael. Whether it's the way to climb a hydro pole without getting electrocuted or how to carry oneself in a way that others won't dismiss as uncool, Francis imparts life lessons that reveal his concern for his brother's wellbeing. The theme of protectiveness arises most explicitly when Francis grasps a bare blade that a local tough threatens his brother with. Later in the novel, this protective instinct precipitates Francis's death: as he reaches out to stop the police from harming Jelly, Francis appears as if he is trying to take an officer's weapon, leading the other police to open fire. Following Francis's death, Michael takes on his brother's protectiveness and is overly cautious around their mother. However, just as Francis's protective instinct led to trouble, Michael's protectiveness over Ruth prolongs the grieving process for both of them.
Discrimination
Another key theme in understanding Brother is discrimination—the prejudicial treatment of people on the grounds of class, age, race, or gender. As young Black boys growing up in an impoverished neighborhood, Michael and Francis learn early in life that many people in society may look upon them as no different than the criminals of color so often featured in sensationalized news stories. The pervasiveness of discrimination is evident in the scene in which Ruth slaps Francis when she learns he associates with people at Desirea's, who she angrily accuses of being criminals, unaware that a passion for hip-hop and a desire to define their own identities is what unites them. During the book's climax, Chariandy shows how discrimination can bring about tragedies such as Francis's death. Although Francis perceives his own behavior as justified, the police are primed to distrust his motives for reaching out to "still" the hand of an officer. Were Francis not a young Black man, it is unlikely the discriminatory police would have reacted to his refusal to obey their commands with lethal force as they did.
Community
Community—a feeling of fellowship with others because of shared interests and attitudes—is an important theme in the novel. Chariandy explores the theme most prominently through Desirea's, the barbershop where Francis takes refuge when tension with his mother becomes so great that he leaves home. More than a place to get a haircut, Desirea's is a place where young people congregate over a shared love of hip-hop and the street fashion associated with hip-hop. Michael, who also begins hanging out at Desirea's after Francis welcomes him into the fold, comments that Desirea's is a place where children of immigrants in Scarborough can define identities distinct from those of their parents. Tragically, Francis's killing precipitates the end of Desirea's, which Dru closes soon after. However, with her effort to bring together at Ruth's apartment the people who used to hang out together at Desirea's, Aisha shows Michael that the community they once had can still exist among the people who created it.
Acceptance
Considered one of the stages of grief, acceptance is a major theme in Brother. While Michael and Ruth spend most of the novel in such deep denial that they cannot speak of Francis's death, through remembering and acknowledging the tragedy, they finally achieve some measure of acceptance by the story's end. As difficult as it is for him to confront the fact that Francis was killed in what the police deemed a "lawful" shooting, Michael spends the book running back through his memory to retrace what led to the fateful day. Meanwhile, Aisha helps Ruth process her grief and attain acceptance by encouraging her to actively remember her son and what he meant to her, even if it brings up difficult emotions. With Ruth's declaration following her hospital stay that a new day is upon them, Michael and Ruth end the book on a bittersweet but optimistic note. With their newfound acceptance of what happened in the past, Michael and Ruth are free to embrace their present and future.
