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''My Brother, My Executioner''Kerkvliet, Benedict J. A book review for ''My Brother, My Executioner'' by F. Sionil Jose, The Journal of Asian Studies, volume 41, number 2, February 1982), pages 417-418, Association for Asian Studies, Jstor.org
/ref> is a novel by
Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...
author
Francisco Sionil José Francisco is the Spanish and Portuguese form of the masculine given name ''Franciscus''. Nicknames In Spanish, people with the name Francisco are sometimes nicknamed "Paco (name), Paco". Francis of Assisi, San Francisco de Asís was known as '' ...
written in
Philippine English Philippine English (similar and related to American English) is any variety of English native to the Philippines, including those used by the media and the vast majority of educated Filipinos and English learners in the Philippines from adj ...
. A part of the Rosales Saga - a
series Series may refer to: People with the name * Caroline Series (born 1951), English mathematician, daughter of George Series * George Series (1920–1995), English physicist Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Series, the ordered sets used i ...
of five interconnected fiction novels - ''My Brother, My Executioner'' ranks third in terms of chronology, after Po-on (original title: "Dusk") and
Tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are ...
and before
The Pretenders Pretenders are an English–American rock band formed in March 1978. The original band consisted of founder and main songwriter Chrissie Hynde (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), James Honeyman-Scott (lead guitar, backing vocals, keyboards), Pete Fa ...
and
Mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different element ...
. In the United States, ''My Brother, My Executioner'' was published as a second part of the book, ''Don Vicente'', together with ''Tree'', another novel which is also a part of José’s ''Rosales Saga''. ''Tree'' is the second novel of the historical saga, before ''My Brother, My Executioner''.Walton, David. Don Vicente: Two Novels, book review of ''Tree'' and ''My Brother, My Executioner'' by F. Sionil José, published by Modern Library, Books in Brief: Fiction & Poetry, The New York Times, NYTimes.com , February 6, 2000
/ref> This novel was first published in the
Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...
in the early 1970s.Don Vicente: Two Novels (''Tree'' and ''My Brother, My Executioner''), book review by Publishers Weekly, Reed Business Information, Inc. and Amazon.com, July 1999
/ref>Don Vicente - Two Novels, ''Tree'' and ''My Brother, My Executioner'', book review by Library Journal, Reed Business Information, Inc. and Amazon.com, 1999
/ref>


Principal characters

*''Luis Asperri'' - Victor's half-brother, illegitimate son of Don Vicente Asperri *''Don Vicente Asperri'' - feudal landlord, father of Luis Asperri *''Victor'' - Luis Asperri's half-brother *''Trining'' - Luis Asperri's female cousin, becomes wife of Luis


Plot summary and description

''My Brother, My Executioner'', tackles the narrative about two half brothers – ''Luis Asperri'' and ''Victor''. ''Luis'' is the biological, yet illegitimate, son of ''Don Vicente Asperri'', a rich feudal landowner. At a young age, Luis was taken by Don Vicente from his underprivileged mother and half-brother, Victor, who were both living in Sipnget,
Rosales Rosales () is an order of flowering plants.Peter F. Stevens (2001 onwards). "Rosales". At: Trees At: Angiosperm Phylogeny Website. At: Missouri Botanical Garden Website. (see ''External links'' below) It is sister to a clade consisting of Faga ...
in
Pangasinan Pangasinan, officially the Province of Pangasinan ( pag, Luyag/Probinsia na Pangasinan, ; ilo, Probinsia ti Pangasinan; tl, Lalawigan ng Pangasinan), is a coastal province in the Philippines located in the Ilocos Region of Luzon. Its c ...
, a province in the
Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...
. After studying in Manila, Luis became a writer and editor for a radical left-wing magazine. When Luis was finally able to return to Rosales, he found out that his half-brother, ''Vic'' – the nickname of Victor - became a full-pledged leader of rebels who were against the existence of rich landowners. Thus, the brothers meet again both “as allies and as adversaries” because of their opposing social beliefs, views, status and principles. These conflicts are their mutual misfortunes in life as brothers. Luis identifies with the luxury offered by city life, while Vic detests these materialistic privileges. Furthermore, although Luis considers himself as a liberal, he is more like his father, Don Vicente. He followed the will of Don Vicente by marrying ''Trining'', his cousin – instead of a girlfriend in
Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital city, capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is Cities of the Philippines#Independent cities, highly urbanize ...
– in order to preserve the wealth of the family. Luis Asperri is against putting down his status as a wealthy landowner for the benefit of the peasantry. He is against the goals of the uprising of the ''
Hukbalahap The Hukbong Bayan Laban sa Hapon (), better known by the acronym Hukbalahap, was a communist guerrilla movement formed by the farmers of Central Luzon. They were originally formed to fight the Japanese, but extended their fight into a rebellio ...
'' or ''
Hukbong Bayan Laban sa mga Hapon The Hukbong Bayan Laban sa Hapon (), better known by the acronym Hukbalahap, was a Communism, communist Guerrilla warfare, guerrilla movement formed by the farmers of Central Luzon. They were originally formed to Philippine resistance against Ja ...
'' – a “people’s army against the Japanese occupiers” represented by the leadership of his half-brother, Vic. The event occurred in
Philippine history Earliest hominin activity in the Philippine archipelago is dated back to at least 709,000 years ago. '' Homo luzonensis'', a species of archaic humans, was present on the island of Luzon at least 67,000 years ago. The earliest known anatomically ...
during the 1950s. The Hukbalahap remained active even after
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
.Don Vicente - Two Novels, ''Tree'' and ''My Brother, My Executioner'', Synopses and Reviews, Powells.com
/ref>


See also

*
Literature of the Philippines Philippine literature is literature associated with the Philippines from prehistory, through its colonial legacies, and on to the present. Pre-Hispanic Philippine literature was actually epics passed on from generation to generation, o ...
*
Philippine English Philippine English (similar and related to American English) is any variety of English native to the Philippines, including those used by the media and the vast majority of educated Filipinos and English learners in the Philippines from adj ...
*
Philippine literature in English The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...
* Without Seeing the Dawn by Stevan Javellana *
Cry Slaughter! ''Cry Slaughter!'' is a 1957 novel by Filipino author Edilberto K. Tiempo. Before the novel’s revision for publication in the United States, it was first published in the Philippines as ''Watch in the Night'' in 1953. In the United States, ...
by E.K. Tiempo *
The Man Who (Thought He) Looked Like Robert Taylor ''The Man Who (Thought He) Looked Like Robert Taylor'' (1983) is a book written by Philippine-American novelist and short story author, Bienvenido Santos. The title basically imparts that the protagonist of the novel lived believing that he has ...
by
Bienvenido Santos Bienvenido N. Santos (March 22, 1911 – January 7, 1996) was a Filipino-American fiction, poetry and nonfiction writer. He was born and raised in Tondo, Manila. His family roots are originally from Lubao, Pampanga, Philippines. He lived in the ...


References


External links

*
comprehensive book review
about F. Sionil José’s ''My Brother, My Executioner'' at Multiply.com {{FSionilJose-RosalesSaga Novels by F. Sionil José 1973 novels Philippine English-language novels Novels set in the Philippines