Bless Me Ultima By Rudolfo Anaya

One consistent theme throughout Bless Me, Ultima is the influence of others’ expectations on identity. Antonio is under constant pressure from both his parents to conform to their respective family’s philosophies and beliefs—even Ultima, who appears to try to be impartial, does clearly contribute to this pressure. The Luna and Márez families clearly have different beliefs and hold different things to be important in their lives, as evidenced by the tensions between the two families in Antonio’s dream (6). The Luna are farmers, religious, and believe firmly in education, while the Márez are people of “unbounded freedom” (25) and explorers. Antonio’s mother desires that her son become a priest and receive a good education, and is diligently religious

What questions is Tony asking about Lupito's death? - the questions that Antonio is asking in regard to Lupito’s death is about where he is ending up. Is he going to hell since he had committed a mortal sin. He is also wondering that since Lupito died in the river if the water of the river will carry Lupito’s soul away. 3.

Narciso and Antonio do not have many direct encounters in the novel, yet Narciso has a profound effect on Antonio’s religious maturation. Narciso, who is considered the town drunk, is present in many important conflicts as a mediator figure. He goes to great lengths to help his friends, which is shown when he attempts to convince the townsmen not to rashly kill Lupito after he had shot the sheriff. Once Lupito is killed Antonio worries about the fate of the men on the bridge who shot him, including his own father. Antonio wonders "Did God listen? Would he hear? Had he seen my father on the bridge? And where was Lupito 's soul winging to, or was it washing down the

Lupito has just killed the town sheriff, and all the men are out for his blood. They are searching the bridge and the bushes looking for him when Narciso comes down and tries to calm everyone down. He shouts at the the group of men: “Let us act like men! That is not an animal down there, that is a man. Lupito. You all know Lupito. You know that the war has made him sick-,”

In the very beginning of the book Lupito, a war veteran, returns to New Mexico from WWII. He, like many other soldiers, has serious mental issues caused by the firsthand experience of the war. While it may have appeared that he was alright, the lucidity was only surface deep. He had a severe case of PTSD and had delusions. One night, he had an delusional episode and killed the town sheriff. When the townspeople learned of the murder, they set out for vengeance. Soon after, the townspeople and Antonio’s father Gabriel, had set out to kill Lupito. Antonio was nearby the riot, and sees the slaughter firsthand. Lupito is shot several times and dies right in front of Antonio, a young boy at the time.

what life is really like. Ultima is a good witch who tries to guide Tony by

The tragic death of Lupito sparked the fire of religious ambivalence that will burn bright in the conflicted mind of Antonio. His innocent mind was now engraved with the dying man’s last wish to be blessed causing him to question if God had also witnessed Lupito’s demise and if so why did would he let him have front row seats. With his innocence now ripped from the

Antonio is a little seven year old boy from New Mexico who has all sorts of influences in his life. It all starts when a witch doctor comes to stay with him and his family. The witch doctor, Ultima, has been a part of the community for a long time, in fact, she helped give birth to Antonio. She was responsible for burying his afterbirth. In this culture, the one who buries the afterbirth is said to contain the secret of the childs destiny. This becomes a main part of the book, since the father and mother are always trying to get Ultima to tell them the secret. Antonios mom, a catholic, has always dreamt of him becoming a priest. Throughout the book she always considers Catholicism to be the way to knowledge of good and evil. Gabriel, Antonios dad, wants him to become a cowboy like he is. Antonio is influenced by a multitude of people throughout the book. He spends a lot of time with Ultima, learning about plants, trees and nature in general. One of Antonio’s friends, Samuel, tells him that there is a golden carp in the river that has powers to save the whole world. Antonio is confused because this goes against what his mother always told him through his catholic teachings. Antonio is also influenced by one of his dads friends, Narciso, who is drunk for most of the book. Narciso also tells Antonio about the golden carp. Through a few other influences, Antonio is lead to believe that if the town doesn’t stop sinning, the carp will flood the lands and destroy

Pudolfo Anaya is the author of Bless Me, Ultima ; a story about a boy and magical realism. People of different cultures have different backgrounds and their ways of living is built off of how the individual grew up. The story focuses on a young mexican boy who is heavily influenced by the world around him. Anaya complicates Antonio’s characterization in Bless Me, Ultima using three contrasting characters: Maria, Gabriel, and Ultima.

Only a few books dare to discuss the confusion surrounded by a religious awakening. In Bless Me Ultima, Rudolfo Anaya, Premio Quinto Sol national Chicano literary award recipient, challenges standard religion and brings in different ideas through the perspective of a young and confused boy. Due to the new ideas that he is introduced to, the events that occurs especially deaths, and his eagerness for knowledge all leads Antonio to question his religious beliefs. At the end of his struggle to understand, the boy reaches the peace of mind he was seeking.

I asked. That is not for us to say, Antonio. The war sickness was not taken out of him, he did not know what he was doing.”. Since Ultima apprehends that what Lupito did isn’t his fault, but what the war did to him, to lose sanity and become someone he didn’t want to ripen as. Even though he wonders for Lupito’s forgiveness, the fundamentals of his religion contradicts his thoughts which increases his religious ambivalence.

why the men killed Lupito and why Lupito wasn 't saved. Even though she had dismissed his

What do you want to be when you grow up? This is the ultimate question that you get asked throughout your life. Some people go throughout their entire life and never figure out what the answer to that question is. If you are like me, however, you stress until you figure out what you want to do with your life. The decision becomes a whole lot easier when you find something that you are truly passionate about. Sometimes it comes to you in the most unlikely of ways. My passion just so happens to be something that has a lot of significance to me and my family.

A question that is often asked of growing children, adolescents, and ever increasingly, adults, is “what do you want to be when you grow up?” A more poignant question that carries a tremendous amount more weight is “who do you want to be when you grow up?” There are so many different factors that make up the “who” in all of us, and there certainly isn’t a shortage in myself. Much of my life has been spent extremely confused about that very question “who do I want to be?” If one was to create a map of the course I took during my lifetime, it would be littered with forks on each road; at every fork, something dramatic occurred, like a sinkhole, or a fallen tree, which diverted me down an alternate

"So... what do you want to be when you grow up?" It's a question we've all been asked. Since I could talk I remember people asking me what I want to be. The answer for a long time was something to the effect of "veterinarian", "ballerina", or "writer". Every time someone asked me, the answer was something different. I got older, I changed, I had new viewpoints and different ideas. I could always see myself doing so many different things. I didn't know what I really wanted. I was figuring it out. What is it that I like? What makes me happy? What motivates me? The answers to these questions are not easy. They take time, development, and reflection.