Summary
The plot of Act 2 of Ti-Jean and His Brothers mirrors that of Act 1. This time, it is Mi-Jean, the intelligent brother, who leaves the home in order to make his fortune. The stage opens to a forest where the creatures from the prologue are foraging. Gros Jean’s grave is in the background. When the scene begins, Mi-Jean has already left home and is walking through the forest while reading a book. He briefly talks with the animals, who tell him that Gros Jean is dead. Mi-Jean responds that his brother was overconfident, and rushes past the animals to speak to the old man—the same disguised Devil who Gros Jean spoke with in Act 1.
The old man flatters Mi-Jean, saying that he has already heard of his great intelligence and cunning. He favorably contrasts Mi-Jean with Gros Jean, praising the younger brother not only for his learning, but for his capacity to feel fear. Mi-Jean tells the old man that he plans to go to the sea to become a captain, because he knows that working the land is too difficult.
While talking with the old man, Mi-Jean notices the old man’s cloven foot, and tries to look up its significance in the book he is reading. As he flips through the book, the old man tells Mi-Jean that he will learn nothing from the book. Indeed, the book has nothing to say about the old man’s cloven foot, and Mi-Jean is quickly distracted. He tells the old man that he knows to look for the Devil in hidden places. During this conversation, Mi-Jean also states that he believes in the Devil because he wants to believe in God, and one cannot exist without the other.
Mi-Jean reveals that his plan is simply to remain silent, no matter what. He recognizes that wisdom is his only vice, and as such he can remain perfectly safe if he only keeps his mouth shut. Ironically, right after he says this he begins singing a song that further emphasizes that the wisest man is the man who stays silent. As he sings, time passes and the old man takes off his mask, revealing the face of the Devil, and then puts on the planter mask.
The planter tries to get a rise out of Mi-Jean in the same way he succeeded in vexing Gros Jean, by talking to him until the frustration overwhelms him. However, Mi-Jean remains silent, and the Devil cannot get him to respond to his provocations. He comes close when he condescendingly gives Mi-Jean advice on how to tie up a goat that keeps escaping, but although Mi-Jean breaks his silence to assert that he knows what he is doing, he keeps his cool.
However, as the goat continues to escape Mi-Jean’s attempts to tie it up, the Devil succeeds in getting him invovled in a conversation about the difference between men and animals. Mi-Jean asserts that men have souls, while animals do not, but the Devil argues that men and animals are not essentially different, and even suggests that the goat might be doing philosophy in its bleats. As he does so, he continually interrupts Mi-Jean, who finally screams for the Devil to be quiet so he can finish articulating his own argument. Immediately, there is another explosion and the Devil eats Mi-Jean. Once again, the day ends with the song, “Bai Diable-là manger un 'ti mamaille (Give the Devil a child for dinner) Un! (One!) Deux! (Two! . . .)”
Analysis
One of the most obvious characteristics of Act 2 of Ti-Jean and His Brothers is that it is extremely similar to Act 1. This all ties back to the play's roots in folk storytelling. Many folk tales across cultures use repetitive structures. For example, Goldie Locks and the Three Bears follows a similar structure to Ti-Jean and His Brothers, with Goldie Locks repeatedly trying items corresponding to Mama Bear, and then to Papa Bear, before finally succeeding with Baby Bear. Similarly, in this play, Gros Jean and Mi-Jean both fail in similar ways, before Ti-Jean finally succeeds in Act 3. This repetitive structure makes a story more memorable, so that it can be passed down orally. In a play, that practical purpose is less relevant, but Walcott’s choice to borrow from the structure of folktale emphasizes his commitment to drawing from the genre in his theater.
In the context of Ti-Jean and His Brothers, the parallel between Mi-Jean and Gros Jean’s stories draws attention to their similarities. On a superficial level, the two brothers are as different as could be: one is strong, while the other is intellectual. However, their approaches to the Devil end up being very similar; both brothers decide to rely on their own patience, trusting in their ability to outlast the machinations of the Devil. Furthermore, both brothers have similar values: each is only interested in accumulating wealth and power. In the end, they both reach the same fate because of these shared values, despite their different personal characteristics. In the world of money, white men like the planter have all the power. No matter how patient the two brothers are, they cannot outlast him because he can compel them to impossible tasks, while they can’t make him do anything.
The debate between Mi-Jean and the Devil ultimately hinges on these issues of wealth and power, even if it isn’t work that directly drives him to frustration. The impossible task of tying up the rowdy goat forms the background to this conversation, but what ultimately makes Mi-Jean lose his cool is the planter’s insistence that there is no difference between himself and the goat. It is a little surprising to see this opinion in the mouth of the Devil, given that the play so far has not only emphasized the importance of treating animals with respect, but has questioned the differentiation between humans and animals.
However, the context of anti-Blackness helps make sense of why the Devil’s argument is so insidious. When the planter says to Mi-Jean, “And yet, poor shaving monkey, the animal in you is still in evidence” he calls the middle brother a monkey and an animal. This comparison draws on a long, racist history of white supremacy comparing Black people to apes. Importantly, the planter says “the animal in you” rather than “the animal in us.” His statement doesn’t question the difference between human beings and animals in general, but instead suggests that Black people are animals, while white people are elevated. For Mi-Jean, this assertion is especially threatening, because it removes his intelligence, the attribute which allows him to understand himself as more than the menial labor he does every day.
As in Act 1, the messaging of this scene is thus two-fold, and even somewhat internally contradictory. On the one hand, we are once again encouraged not to be like Mi-Jean, who clings so tightly to the difference between humans and animals, and who is suckered in by the pull of money and the trickery of the old man. Yet, on the other, we recognize that he is also operating within an impossible situation. As a Black man, it is difficult for him to question the difference between humans and animals, because his own value as a person is constantly under threat. Rather than a purely individualistic message on how to confront evil, Walcott also suggests that broader oppressive contexts determine what we can do.
