break a brother down

[csicska]

Hello. Could you please tell me what "to break a brother down" means? Thank you.


I have never seen a more angelic smile. Jasmine’s dimples were so deep that they looked like a set of parenthesis enclosing the kind of smile that can break a brother down, making him giver her the world without her even asking.

Giving My All to You By Nicole Cifax-Garner


“Damn, Pops!” Rio exclaimed, a mischievous grin forming on his lips. “You tryin’ to break a brother down or what? You acting like you got cancer or somethin’.” He wiped fake tears.

The Family Business, Volume 1 By Carl Weber, Eric Pete

 

[Barque]

Are the characters African-American? "Brother" is a term used by some African-Americans to refer to each other. Here, he's using it to refer to himself.

To break a brother down = To make an emotional impact on a brother.

 

[csicska]

Thank you. Would the result of the emotional impact be "stop resisting"? I mean would the whole meaning be "to cause someone to stop resisting by smiling at them or shedding fake/real tears"?

Yes, brother/sister would refer to a fellow African-American man/woman.

 

[Barque]

I mean would the whole meaning be "to cause someone to stop resisting by smiling at them or shedding fake/real tears"?

I don't know what exactly is going on in that situation, so I'm not sure what he might be resisting. Essentially he's saying: Are you using your smile/tears to influence me in some way?

 

[csicska]

Got it. Thank you.