A Little Life

by

Hanya Yanagihara

Brother Luke Character Analysis

Brother Luke is a monk at the monastery in South Dakota where Jude grew up. He’s also one of the novel’s antagonists and one of Jude’s many childhood abusers. Whereas the other monks beat, sexually assault, and belittle Jude, Luke is initially kind. On Jude’s eighth birthday, Luke gives him a muffin with a candle in it, as well as a toy set of logs Jude can build houses with, including replicas of the cabin that Luke claims he and Jude will live in as father and son once they escape the monastery. Luke claims to love Jude, and Jude is too young to recognize that Luke’s supposed “love” is really a pedophile’s manipulative grooming. When Jude is nine, Brother Luke and Jude run away from the monastery to begin their supposedly happy life together. In reality, they spend most of their time hiding out in motel rooms. Luke forces Jude into sex work, eventually sexually assaulting Jude himself—all while insisting that he and Jude are “in love.” After years of abuse, the police finally rescue Jude, who is then 12 years old; Brother Luke hangs himself in the motel bathroom to avoid imprisonment. Though on one level Jude can recognize that Luke exploited and abused him, Luke educated Jude well and instilled in him a passion for books and music. And Luke was also the first person who ever really “loved” Jude, even if that love was predatory. For these reasons, Jude can’t bring himself to fully vilify Luke—even as the enduring psychological effects of Luke’s abuse leave Jude incapable of experiencing sexual intimacy in adulthood. As a result, Jude redirects blame and hatred he might otherwise have aimed at Luke toward himself, and he spends the rest of his life believing that he is defective, shameful, and deserving of all the suffering he’s endured.

Brother Luke Quotes in A Little Life

The A Little Life quotes below are all either spoken by Brother Luke or refer to Brother Luke. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Trauma Theme Icon
).
Part 4: The Axiom of Equality: Chapter 1 Quotes

But now he knows for certain how true the axiom is, because he himself—his very life—has proven it. The person I was will always be the person I am, he realizes. The context may have changed […]. But fundamentally, he is the same person, a person who inspires disgust, a person meant to be hated. And in that microsecond that he finds himself suspended in the air, […] he knows that x will always equal x, no matter what he does, or how many years he moves away from the monastery, from Brother Luke, no matter how much he earns or how hard he tries to forget. It is the last thing he thinks as his shoulder cracks down upon the concrete, and the world, for an instant, jerks blessedly away from beneath him: x = x, he thinks. x = x, x = x.

Related Characters: Jude St. Francis, Brother Luke
Related Symbols: Houses, Apartments, and Cabins
Page Number: 386
Explanation and Analysis:
Part 4: The Axiom of Equality: Chapter 3 Quotes

He was careful never to say his name aloud, but sometimes he thought it, and no matter how old he got, no matter how many years had passed, there would appear Luke’s face, smiling, conjured in an instant. He thought of Luke when the two of them were falling in love, when he was being seduced and had been too much of a child, too naïve, too lonely and desperate for affection to know it. He was running to the greenhouse, he was opening the door, the heat and smell of flowers were surrounding him like a cape. It was the last time he had been so simply happy, the last time he had known such uncomplicated joy. “And here’s my beautiful boy!” Luke would cry. “Oh, Jude—I’m so happy to see you.”

Related Characters: Brother Luke (speaker), Jude St. Francis, Willem Ragnarsson, Harold Stein, Dr. Traylor
Page Number: 480
Explanation and Analysis:
Part 5: The Happy Years: Chapter 2 Quotes

Eventually, he made some rules for himself. First, he would never refuse Willem, ever. If this was what Willem wanted, he could have it, and he would never turn him away. Willem had sacrificed so much to be with him, and had brought him such peace, that he was determined to try to thank him however he could. Second, he would try—as Brother Luke had once asked him—to show a little life, a little enthusiasm.

Related Characters: Jude St. Francis, Willem Ragnarsson, Brother Luke
Page Number: 546-547
Explanation and Analysis:
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A Little Life PDF

Brother Luke Quotes in A Little Life

The A Little Life quotes below are all either spoken by Brother Luke or refer to Brother Luke. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Trauma Theme Icon
).
Part 4: The Axiom of Equality: Chapter 1 Quotes

But now he knows for certain how true the axiom is, because he himself—his very life—has proven it. The person I was will always be the person I am, he realizes. The context may have changed […]. But fundamentally, he is the same person, a person who inspires disgust, a person meant to be hated. And in that microsecond that he finds himself suspended in the air, […] he knows that x will always equal x, no matter what he does, or how many years he moves away from the monastery, from Brother Luke, no matter how much he earns or how hard he tries to forget. It is the last thing he thinks as his shoulder cracks down upon the concrete, and the world, for an instant, jerks blessedly away from beneath him: x = x, he thinks. x = x, x = x.

Related Characters: Jude St. Francis, Brother Luke
Related Symbols: Houses, Apartments, and Cabins
Page Number: 386
Explanation and Analysis:
Part 4: The Axiom of Equality: Chapter 3 Quotes

He was careful never to say his name aloud, but sometimes he thought it, and no matter how old he got, no matter how many years had passed, there would appear Luke’s face, smiling, conjured in an instant. He thought of Luke when the two of them were falling in love, when he was being seduced and had been too much of a child, too naïve, too lonely and desperate for affection to know it. He was running to the greenhouse, he was opening the door, the heat and smell of flowers were surrounding him like a cape. It was the last time he had been so simply happy, the last time he had known such uncomplicated joy. “And here’s my beautiful boy!” Luke would cry. “Oh, Jude—I’m so happy to see you.”

Related Characters: Brother Luke (speaker), Jude St. Francis, Willem Ragnarsson, Harold Stein, Dr. Traylor
Page Number: 480
Explanation and Analysis:
Part 5: The Happy Years: Chapter 2 Quotes

Eventually, he made some rules for himself. First, he would never refuse Willem, ever. If this was what Willem wanted, he could have it, and he would never turn him away. Willem had sacrificed so much to be with him, and had brought him such peace, that he was determined to try to thank him however he could. Second, he would try—as Brother Luke had once asked him—to show a little life, a little enthusiasm.

Related Characters: Jude St. Francis, Willem Ragnarsson, Brother Luke
Page Number: 546-547
Explanation and Analysis: