Summary of Bless Me, Ultima Essay

Many people in the town love Ultima. They praise her and can’t thank her enough when she cures one of their loved ones. While many love and praise her, a select few in the town believe that Ultima is a witch and of ten accuse Ultima of it. One of these is Tenorio Trementina, the father of the three Trementina sisters who put a curse on Lucas, Antonio’s uncle. Even Antonio, who loves Ultima very much, once doubted if Ultima was really a witch or just a curandera. Some of Antonio’s classmates have also called Ultima a witch. Tenorio often besieges Ultima. Despite all this, Ultima is still very strong and remains strong until the day of her death. Ultima is also very brave strong. She is not threatened when Tenorio threatens to kill Ultima or when people make the sign of the cross to see if she really is a witch.

In “Bless me, Ultima” Rudolfo Anaya created pathos throughout the story with different techniques. Pathos is a form of convincing the readers of an argument and forming an emotional response. Rudolfo Anaya uses three techniques to create pathos, he uses a pathetic situation, actual life, and goth and grotesque. A pathetic situation creates emotional response with a well-developed character. Actual life is created by the writer making the reader feel as if there in the position of the character or see it happening around in real life.

In the book “Bless Me Ultima” Ultima has many big influences on antonio, the main character. He is stuck deciding with three choices he can either become a priest like his mother wants him to be, choose what his father wants him to be a vaquero, and lastly choose his own path for him to take. These choices put a lot pressure on Antonio, and Ultima is there to help him choose by influencing him. Three of her biggest influences are being a mentor towards Antonio by helping him with his anxieties and uncertainties. Giving Antonio the respect and understanding he needs even though he is a small child. Lastly, Ultima lets Antonio make his own decisions and doesn’t force him to do things even if he’s a child.

Through Rudolfo Anaya's Bless Me, Ultima, the reader notices many themes. One central, and very important theme is the repetition of the number three. For example, there are three sources of understand for Antonio, three deaths that Antonio witnesses, and Antonio's three prophetic dreams. These all play crucial roles in both Antonio's life and serving to further the plot.

Death is abstruse but can make one savvy. The way one thinks may be shifted by an incident, bringing them to a point where they feel uncertain about what they believe in. All the purity and sin that comes with this life is what brings them to become equivocal and controversial as to what is right and wrong. Thoughts of doubt may not be cleared up, but it will allow one to find a path they pertain to. A novel, Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya relates to this concept in the sense that the main character Antonio Márez is conflicted due to the deaths he encounters which alters his beliefs.

Revenge is often a prominent element present in numerous plots. Characters like Heathcliff or Chillingworth have sought retribution in the strongest ways against those who have wronged them. In Rudolfo Anaya’s novel Bless Me Ultima the concept of revenge also plays a hefty role. Through the eyes of Antonio, a young boy who starts making inquiries about the world, the audience can make a connection between the forces of good and evil. In order to show that life is more complicated than the two categories, Anaya uses the contrasts of the characters Ultima and Tenorio in a battle of revenge to show that the line between good and evil does not always exist.

Ultima helped guide young Antonio with her wisdom. As Antonio feels the loss of his

The geography of rivers is important to their symbolism in this story. Antonio’s river starts from a lake, a place of no morals; studies prove that infants are selfish beyond belief, and so is water at its birth. His river carries the water to the ocean, the place where all water lands, carrying the blood and salt and debris that it picks up on its long journey. All high rivers go to the ocean, no matter how many lakes they go through. The ocean is where water goes to die, until its spirit, in clean water, is carried through the clouds back into the frigid mountain lakes, where it is born again. This is the cycle of water, and the cycle of life.

Another example of Antonio's sense of development in good and evil is his home. It is means a lot to Antonio, because the people living in it makes him feel protected and provide warmth to him. When Tenorio and his men came to his house to take Ultima away, Antonio’s father "You walk on my land! That is my business" (Anaya 130). This make Antonio feel that he would be protected by the presence of his father., Gabriel. However, Antonio's mother made home very fond and ardent for him. She had always been affectionate towards him and would show him care. Most importantly, Ultima was the one who contributed to the goodness of Antonio's home. She made Antonio feel as though her presence filled the home with love and safety. It was Ultima who calmed Antonio down after he had seen Lupito die. Whenever he had a nightmare, Ultima would always be right beside to comfort Antonio and " could sleep again" (Anaya 34). Ultima's fearlessness against Tenorio and his three daughters made Antonio feel that he would be safe wherever Ultima was. Overall, the

To start off, Antonio is always under pressure from certain people that want him to do specific things in hopes of him securing the future of his people. This ties into conflicting cultures, which plays an important role when it comes to Antonio’s early life since his actions are defined by the conflicts between the Luna and the Marez. The Luna are the devoted farmers who worship the earth and the moon, while the Marez are very free-spirited vaqueros who are extremely devoted to their lifestyle and horses. Being a Marez is what causes Antonio’s three older brothers to go into the world and leave there family behind. “It was true, I thought, it is the Marez blood in us that touches us with this urge to wonder. Like the restless, seeking sea” (40). His brothers chose a path that Antonio is struggling to pick and cannot seem to identify with. This is a big deal because Antonio is only in the first grade and he is being pressured into growing up faster than he should be.

Ultima's Christ like nature is displayed through her abilities, or powers as a curandera to perform miracles. Ultima's powers are shown in the text as being good; although, it is confusing to say whether her powers are coming from Christianity, or witchcraft? To illustrate the issue of this comparison to Christ, Antonio's mother recalls Ultima's powers saying, "I have seen her work miracles. She learned from the flying man from Las Pasturas"(Anaya 85). The incongruity of this statement to that of Christianity is clear cut. According to the Dictionary of Hispanic Biography, Anaya acquired the myth and superstitions from his family who lived in Pastura about a women like Ultima, who could heal (42). From Anaya's experience, syncretism of miracles and elements of superstition in folk Catholicism is apparently true. However, the only one to perform miracles in Christianity is Christ.

An important motif in “Bless Me, Ultima” are Antonio’s dreams. His dreams foreshadow major events and make him question his beliefs, especially revolving around

He kills Narciso in cold blood. He is a true coward and he hides behind others instead of facing those who he seeks to fight.

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.

Bless Me, Ultima is a Chicano novel written by Rudolfo Anaya in 1972, which includes a magical realism plot. Chicano literature is especially significant in this novel because it helps create a cultural identity for the main character and his community. The novel talks about a petite boy named Antonio; throughout the book Antonio makes his best efforts to try and find the path to which he belongs, he wants to find answers about who he is and wants to learn a lot more about his religion which included getting his questions answered about god. The novel talks about the importance in Chicano literature and what impacts it has on the characters. Although Bless Me, Ultima focuses on Chicano literature and the magical