How my Brother Leon brought Home a Wife

source
Title: How my Brother Leon brought Home a Wife
Author: Manuel Estabilla Arguilla
Author's Background:
  • Manuel Estabilla Arguilla (Nagrebcan, June 17, 1911 – beheaded, Manila Chinese Cemetery, August 30, 1944) was an Ilokano writer in English, patriot, and martyr.
  • He is known for his widely anthologized short story "How My Brother Leon Brought Home a Wife," the main story in the collection How My Brother Leon Brought Home a Wife and Other Short Stories, which won first prize in the Commonwealth Literary Contest in 1940. source
Vocabulary:
  • Carretela - a carriage pulled by a horse.
  • Camino Real - a main highway.
  • Waig - stream, a body of water (in ilocano).
  • Yonder - the far distance.
  • Bole - trunk of a tree.
  • Rein - keep under control.
Characters:
  • Baldo - Narrator of the story, and Leon's brother.
  • Leon - The brother of Baldo, who brought home a wife. 
  • Maria - The wife of Leon, who grew in the City and not in the Province.
  • Father - told Baldo to take the waig, instead of the camino real.
  • Labang - The hardworking Cow that transported Baldo, Leon and Maria.
Setting: 
  • Nagrebcan, a province in Ilocos Sur
  • Home of Baldo and Leon in Nagrebcan
Exposition:
  • The story starts when Maria and Leon arrives in Nagrebcan.
  • Baldo fetches the couple and rides on a carriage, hitched on a cow, named Labang.
Rising Action:
  • Baldo leads Labang to the dry waig, instead of the carmino real.
  • Leon laid his hand on Baldo's shoulder heavily and asked why he took the waig instead of the carmino real.
  • Leon bit his fingers onto Baldo's shoulder and asked again.
Climax:
  • Baldo answers that their Father asked him to take the waig to go home, and Leon removed his hand on Baldo's shoulder and laughed on Baldo's answer.
  • Maria tells Leon that she worries that their Father might not like her.
Falling Action:
  • Leon reassures Maria that his father is the mildest tempered, gentlest man he has ever known.
Ending:
  • They arrived at their home in Nagrebcan and their Father calls Baldo. his father talks to Baldo in private and asks about Maria, Baldo answers positively about Maria.
  • Baldo's Father asks him to water Labang and talks to Leon and Maria.
Symbolisims:
  • "Father, he told me to follow the Waig tonight". is what Baldo said when Leon asks him why he took that route. it is said in the story that the waig was dry, meaning, it will be a rough ride going home. and that means that their father wants to test Maria with the rough ride that is not present in the City.
  • Maria was laughing with Leon but became silent after hearing that they close to going home. it means that she suddenly got nervous when she heard that they're close into meeting the family of Leon, especially his Father.
Theme: Taking on the challenges of life with confidence and without fear.
Lesson: Be prepared to face the hardships and challenges that you will experience in the near future, because hardwork pays off.

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