Gloria Naylor’s The “Men of Brewster Place” is a profound work that
explores the other side of the gender issue. It is a continuation of
Naylor’s “The Women of Brewster Place’ and depicts the men who played
only minor roles in that book.
The men of Brewster Place are presented as rational Black men who
are able to think for themselves and who realize that they have
problems they must solve. Naylor’s positive depiction shows them as men
struggling to correct their faults, or as individuals trying to make
sense of their lives.
The book is divided into 10 chapters that start with “Dusk” and end
with “Dawn.” It discusses the lives of seven characters known as the
sons of Brewster Place — Ben, Brother Jerome, Basil, Eugene, Moreland
T. Woods, C.C. Baker, and Abshu.
Naylor’s methodology is quite clever. Although Ben died in “The
Women of Brewster Place,” the “Author’s Notes” in this sequel states
that Naylor “takes her poetic license to resurrect [Ben’s] spirit and
voice to narrate major portions of [the] novel.” Ben tells the story of
how he ended up in the place called Brewster. It is the story of a
caring father and a loving husband who had a wonderful daughter but was
plagued with a domineering wife. It is the story of a man who is unable
to cope and becomes a drunkard.
All of these men have unique situations that tie them to Brewster
Place. The gifted piano player, Brother Jerome, captures the plight of
all Black men of Brewster Place through his playing of the blues.
Although he is labeled a “retarded child,” he is the silent, brilliant
force that is able to put things together through his music.
Basil tries to recapture all that he has missed in life by
attempting to be a father to two boys whom he adopts. However, he is
left in a state of confusion when things do not turn out the way that
he had wished.
Eugene is upset and confused and has forsaken his family because he
has explored another side of himself that he still does not understand.
