Plot of story

The wife meets the brother for the first time

They journey home with conversation and a song
The husband asks the wife if she is afraid as they near home, bringing about
the main character's own reaction about how the family will welcome home
his brother and new wife
The brother sees to his father's request while the family talks
The brother resolves what it would be like to have his own wife
A plot in literary terms describes the events that happen in the story with a
pattern or sequence to provide a concrete theme. Plot is oftenconsidered as
the exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution.
In How My Brother Leon Brought Home a Wife, the story begins with a
curious mixture of descriptions as the main character, the brother, meets his
brother and new wife. The wife is someone no one at home knows and
was quite unexpected.
For a part of the journey they talk about the wife being able to see starsin
order to show us that the wife is different from the country region she
now lives in providing the rising action.
At the climax, the wife admits to being afraid now that they are nearer to
home, unaware that the father has asked the main character to test her.
The wife and family meet discussing many things in a 'get to know' each
other manner.
All the while the brother, the main character, considers what he has been
asked to do in order to test the new wife and finds her worthy, perhaps as an
example of what he will someday find in a wife. The main character has
resolved to accept the new wife based on the tests he provided her.
Summary
The theme of 'How My Brother Leon Brought Home a Wife' is that one must
preserve, even through certain sacrifices, in order to reach one's goal. In
particular:
- One may have to surrender a small part of one's life in order to be happy.
In the story, Leon arrived with his wife in the country meeting Leon's brother
for the first time. They took a surprising route home for Leon, but it was meant
as a test for the wife to see if she could endure the sacrifices she made and
meet her new family.
The entire story serves as a test for the wife. Each test was to show whether
the woman could indeed live with strangers all for love. This can be

asecondary theme, but more importantly, it is a theme in which

the maincharacter learns that though there are sacrifices it is worth it in the
end.
He even begins to think about getting himself a wife eventually. This helps to
show the theme and how it developed. He notices through all the teststhe
woman though afraid will preserve through the trials in order to be happy
with Leon at his home.
The fact that the country is different from the city can be somewhat daunting
the closer they get to the home, but she still manages to overcome and under
come any trials.
The wife admits to having some fear, but also shows clearly it did not stop
her. This is why the theme is related to how one may have to give up some
things in order to find happiness in life or at least the best happiness that
can be found in that particular life. The trials just add to the picture being
offered by the author.
CONFLICT
Written by Manuel E. Arguilla, the short story, "How my brother Leon brought
home a wife", features a conflict that deals with two opposing cultures
and how they affect relationships. In this story, the differencesbetween
people in the cities of the Philippines and people who live in the country's
rural areas are explored, and these differences add gravity and resonance to
the storyline.
Budding relationships
This story is meant to illustrate the ways in which we are all influenced by
our unique upbringings, cultural mores, and even our financial situations and
status levels in the community. The impact that "class" has on budding
relationships is explored in a unique and meaningful way. This story features
lots of colorful characters, and a realistic depiction of family relationships and
the changes that occur to these when a new person is brought into a family.
Powerful words
This type of literature uses everyday situations to inspire emotions in the
reader; there is also an element of spirituality which is evoked by the power
of the narrator's prose speech. In general, the people of the Philippines are
known for their Christian (usually Catholic) faith, and this sense of faith and
spirituality tends to come out very strongly in their traditional folk literature.
People who share this sense of fatalism and Christianity may relate more

strongly to the story and its underlying meaning.

To learn more about Manual E. Arguilla's story, try to find a copy online, or
buy the anthology where it is published. If you enjoy reading this particular
story, you may also enjoy reading other examples of this Filipino author's
work.
People from the Philippines may relate most strongly to this type of
literature, but it does have a universal appeal, and anyone who is part of a
family will understand many of the morals and situations found in the story.