Literary Critical Analysis

We know for the fact that short stories and one-act plays were the fully
developed forms of Literature during the Colonial Period (American Occupation). The
short story was to be the showcase for the skill and art of Filipino writers using English.
One of the finest short story writers during this period was Manuel E. Arguilla, the author
of a short story entitled “How My Brother Leon Brought Home a Wife”.

Moreover, I want to discuss for this literary analysis with the help of the literary
theories Formalism which serves as the starting point for the analysis and discussion as
well as Marxism to further discuss the chosen topics.

The story “How My Brother Leon Brought Home a Wife” was set during the
1930s in Nagrebcan, Bauang La Union. The place is a province and we know that the
people who are living there would most likely be the farmers. The story is told in the 1st
person point of view and this narrator is Baldo, the younger brother of Leon.. As what
Baldo realized: “But it was only the name of my brother Leon said backward and it
sounded much better that way.” Another major character found in the story is Maria who
is the wife of Leon. For Baldo, her name is “sosyal” and it is obvious that she comes
from a city.

The conflict shown in the story is centered between Maria and herself, as well as
the society by which Baldo and Leon lived in. We know that Maria is from a city while
her husband Leon is from a province. Maria is concerned if she’s going to be accepted
or not by Leon’s family despite of her social status. She was even tested if she is worthy
to be the wife of Leon. This was seen when Baldo ignored his older brother’s question
about why did they have to go to Waig instead of Camino Real.

I like the story because it taught me about respect and acceptance of one's life.
In order to have a long-lasting relationship you must show respect to each other and the
family. And if you really love a person you should accept who he/she is, and what
he/she is and also don’t judge other people first without even knowing him/her in
person.
The writing style of the author was good because he used figurative languages which
made the story more interesting and beautiful. The message of the story was easy to
understand because it was clear.
Prepared by:
Melody Joyce T. Rubia