Summary of Brother Man

Brother Man is the tragic story of an honest Rastafarian healer and visionary name John Power who is caught up in a web of conspiracy and betrayal in a Jamaican West Kingston slum area refferred to as 'The Lane'. The healer who everybody calls Brother Man, a.k.a. Bra Man, is a cobbler whose ability to cure the sick and injured through a mystic force elevates him to the status of a prophet. As a result, a crowd begins to follow him when he passes in the street. With each miracle performed, his reputation spreads.

Although Brother Man devotes his life to healing and caring for the inhabitants of his neighbourhood, they turn on him when things don't go their way or at the first sign of trouble, as they are not loyal to him. First, there is the deranged Cordelia, who Bra' Man healed when she was sick. She turns on him when he cannot heal her son Tad and consequently turns to Bra' Ambo, an obeah man, who considers Bra' Man as his adversary. As the obeah takes its toll on her in the disintegration of her mind, she considers it as Bra Man's fault that her son does not get better. She further joins up with Papacita to frame him by planting counterfeit coins in Bra Man's money Jar. The police was then informed that Bra Man had counterfeit coins in his possession.

Then there is the wicked, envious Papacita, an enforcer who is threatened by Brother Man's message of peace and love. Papacita's jealoust is stirred in many ways. The evil schemer also covets the attention of Minette and would go to any length to get Bra' Man out of the way as he feels that Minette would entertain his advances once Bra' Man was out of the picture. Girlie becomes aware of Papacita's interest in Minette and this is causing episodes of quarrelsome passion between them because of her jealousy and his lust. This erupts in some violent sexual struggles between them. Evidence of this is when Girlie savagely bites Papacita's bottom lip and cries out, "hurt me like that, hurt me, love me and hurt me! hurt me hard"! The fights between them become more violent as Papacita takes out Minette. He eventually followed through with his threats to leave Girlie, after he become so enraged that he wants to kill her. Girlie dares him to do it but he walks away. Girlie distraught by Papacita's leaving, tracks him down and fatally stabs him.

The rest of the neighbourhood turns their backs on Bra' Man after a young couple is savagely attacked. The girl is raped and they are both stabbed and left to die. She manages to drag herself from the scene where she is picked up and taken to hospital. Before she falls uncounscious again, she says that a black bearded man raped her.

The leading newspaper plays up the angle that a community of bearded men in their midst, formed together