Ti-Jean and His Brothers is a 1958 play by the Caribbean writer Derek Walcott. It tells the story of three brothers, Gros Jean, Mi Jean, and Ti-Jean, all of whom attempt to outwit the Devil. Its repetitive structure, in which each brother attempts the same quest, draws on folk storytelling traditions that are frequently repetitive. Walcott further draws on this framework by including talking animals, who frame the story and act as the narrators.
The play’s other major reference point is Christianity, especially as it was expressed in medieval morality plays. These plays staged conflict between humanity and the Devil in order to convey a message about how to achieve salvation. In Ti-Jean and His Brothers, Walcott also brings the Devil on stage, and puts him in conflict with Ti-Jean, who comes to represent all of humanity. However, rather than a Christian message about life after death, Walcott emphasizes the value of life itself, despite all the suffering it entails.
Ti-Jean and His Brothers is one of many plays by Derek Walcott, who is best known for his poetry, especially his book-length epic poem Omeros. Across genres, his work often discusses the aftermath of colonization, the problem of the Western canon, and the artistic identity of the Caribbean, especially in relation to St. Lucia, his home island. In Ti-Jean, Walcott closely interweaves these topics with the play's Christian motifs. The Devil is often portrayed as a plantation owner, and his specific form of evil is depicted as the power of a white slaver over the Africans he enslaves.
This shifting between different registers is facilitated by the play’s surrealism. Throughout the play, the Devil changes masks depending on his role, muddying the difference between the Devil and the human characters he lurks behind. Other surreal elements include “the Bolom” (a giant talking fetus) and the speaking animals. Rather than aiming to replicate reality on stage, the play embraces the unreality of the theater in order to create a world distinctly different from our own.
