Brother Man

                                      ROGER MAIS AUTOBIOGRAPHY

                                                        

 

 Roger Mais was born to a middle class family in Kingston Jamaica on the 11th Auguust1905 and was deceased on the 21st June 1955. In addition, Mais was a novelist, journalist, poet and playwright. In the year 1951, Roger had won ten first prizes in the West Indian Literacy Competion.

           Mais has published over a hundred short stories, where most can be found in Public Opinion and Focus. He also published several novels namely The Hill Were Joyful Together (1953) which is written in the style of a depiction of slum life, portraying the upset of poverty in these yards. Also, Brother Man  (London, Cape, 1954) stood as a statement of protest, and also a major contributor to a nativist aesthetic. The nove is situated in Kingston's slums. It portrays the daily condition to poverty of the society.

What does the critics say about the book Brother Man?

In West Indian literature there is little support for aesthetic ideals like ‘Art for Art’s Sake’. Not in Jamaica at any rate. The overshadow of slavery and colonisation, the ongoing status as a Third World country increasingly dependent on tourism—foreigners spending their shiny, shiny foreign cash—as the agricultural sector weakens, the tragically high crime rates, the political corruption closely tied to the criminal elements, the brain drain to the developed world, this reality is not conducive to vibrant discussions on whether art can and should be its only reason for being.
All Jamaican literature is studied in the New Historicism style (of which post-colonial/postcolonial is an extension in my eye, with the emphasis on studying the text within historical/political frames). This lead naturally, perhaps, from the fact that Jamaican literature of any prominence had engaged with Jamaica’s colonial past, the political culture and sociological problems. I do not find fault with this tactic as long as it is the art form primarily which compels the artist to create, whether it is in the literary, visual or performing arts. If her primary obligation is to any kind of activist aims which just happen to be packaged in a poem for example, the art must then suffer. It is dead before it arrives and only has the possibility of reaching the converted, the people who already support whatever agenda she is peddling.

Religious aspects that regards to Rastafarians

Jamaica is the home of Rastafarianism, a religious movement spurred by the beliefs of famous Jamaican Marcus Garvey and inspired by an Ethiopianist reading of the King James Bible. Rastafarian beliefs are Christian, with a Jamaican twist.

Ethiopian Prince (Ras) Tafari is at the center of the religion; Rastafarians believe him to be the messiah. In 1932 Tafari was crowned emperor Haile Selassie. Selassie himself claimed lineage from the biblical Solomon and the Queen of Sheba.

Literature Terms

Forms of Prose Fiction

A novel is a long narative in the literary prose.

Novella- is a written, fictional prose narative longer than a novellete, but shorter than a novel.

Short story- is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narative.

Elements of Prose Fiction

Narrative techniques- the method involved in the telling of a story.

Point of view- refers to the way in which the narrator approaches his or her material and the audience.
Characterisation- the way in the which a writer creates characters in the narrative so as to attract or repel our sympathy.

Setting- the time or place in which a play takes place.

Theme- the abstract subject of a work; its central idea or ideas which may or may not be explicit or obvious.

Plot- the plan of a literary work especially of dramas and novel.

Style- the characteristic manner in which a writer expresses his or her self or the particular manner of an individual literary work.

Literary Devices
Imagery- is used in literature to refer to the discriptive language that evokes sensory experiences.

Symbol- is something that represents something else by analogy or asssociation.

Irony- a manner of speaking or writing that is disperesed through all kinds of literature; irony consists of saying one thing, while youmean another.

Satire- literature which exhibits or examine's vice and folly and makes them appear ridicubus or contemptile.

Allusion- is a figure of speech that makes a reference to be representation of a place, event, literary work, myth, or work of art either directly or by implication.

Structural Devices

Stream of conciousness- is the attempt to convey all the contents of a characters mind, memory, sense perception, feelings, intuitions, thoughts- in relation to the stream of experience as it passes by often at random.

Interior manologue - an attempt to convey in the words the process of conciasness or thought.

Flashback-a sudden jump backwards in time to an earlier episode or scene in the story or a novel, play or film.

Foreshadowing- the technioque of suggestion or prefiguring a development in a literary work before it occurs.

Time Frame- ia given interval of time especially in relation to a particular event or process.

Motif- a recurrent thematic element .

Juxtaposition- to put side by side or close together.

Social - of having to do with human beings living together as a group in a situation which their dealings with one another affect their common well fare.

Political- a concern with government, the state or politics.

Historical- of or concerned with history as ascience.

Religious characterised by adherance to a religion devout, pius gladly.

Ethnic- designated or of a population subgroup having a common cultural heritage as distinguished by customs, characteristics, language, common history etc.

Moral- a practical lesson about life right and wrong conduct.

Intellectual- the ability to reason or understand.

Cultural- the training and the refinement of the intelect, interest, taste, skills and arts.

Types of Fiction

Realistic Fiction- fiction stories that take place in modern time.

Mystery/Suspence- fiction stories usually realistic, about a mysterios event which is not explined or a crime that is not solved until the end of the story to keep the reader in suspence.

Fantasy Fiction- fiction that contain elements that are not realistic; such as talking animals etc.

Science Fiction- stories which include futuristic technology; a blend of scientific fact and fictional elements.

Historic Fiction- stories which take place in a particular time period in the past.

Folktales/Tall Tales and Fairytales- are stories with no known creator and is passed down orally through cultures.