Exploring Syncretism in Bless Me Ultima and The House on Mango Street Syncretism is the fine line between Christianity and Native American Religions because it is the ambivalent, simultaneous attraction of choice and identification to the influences of two or more religious belief systems. Syncretism is most common among minority groups such as Hispanics. The definition applied to their unique position of culture is brought about by the Native American and Spanish ancestry. Ambivalence
and the environment. Mora and Anaya portray the curandera in different and similar ways. The literary works consist of common characteristics and qualities that the curanderos possess irrespective of the different genders. In both poems, the curanderos are knowledgeable. Besides, they have a close connection with nature, and the people from their towns respect them greatly. Bless Me, Ultima is Anaya’s first novel in which he describes the curandera,
novel Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya, one of the main characters, Ultima is accused many times of being a witch. Ultima is a curandera who uses herbs and medicines to cure people. She goes to live with Antonio Marez, a young boy who lives in the llano with his parents and two sisters due to the fact that she cannot live by herself and had nowhere to stay. Although many people think she is a witch, her use of herbs, medicines, and scapulars show that she is merely just a curandera. With her use of
and the environment. In the poem, “Curandera”, by Pat Mora and the novel, “Bless Me, Ultima”, by Rudolfo Anaya portray the curandera in different and similar ways. The literary works consist of common characteristics and qualities that the curanderos possess irrespective of the different genders. In both poems, the curanderos are knowledgeable. Besides, they have a close connection with nature, and the people from their towns respect them greatly. Bless Me, Ultima is Anaya’s first
Supernatural The practice of witchcraft throughout history has had an everlasting impact on how witches are portrayed in our modernistic era. In the novel, Bless Me, Ultima, Rudolfo Anaya depicts the development of Ultima, an old curandera, to symbolize a recurrent theme of how being different is looked down upon. Although being accused of witchcraft has had a negative connotation all throughout history, there is a fine line between using witchcraft for good rather than evil. Witchcraft can have two connotations
Icons of Ambivalence in Bless Me Ultima The portrait of Mexican Americans is layered in shades of ambivalence. Aside from the fact there is evidence that they can not really be classified as a migratory culture in that the land where they tend to migrate once belonged to Mexico, they can also lay an earlier claim to the land as Native Americans. The Spanish Europeans who settled in the area that became Mexico evolved as the dominant culture over the oral culture of the Native Americans
“Bless Me Ultima, is a critically acclaimed novel of all time”(NEA); however, it is also one of the most banned books in American literature. People enjoy the book a lot, but there are also some people who want the book to be banned for good. For example, in 1992 Bless Me Ultima, was banned at Porterville high school for “many profane and obscene references, vulgar Spanish words, and glorifies witchcraft and death"(banned library). Bless Me Ultima, is a story of a boy named Antonio who lives in a
Rudolfo Anaya, author of “Bless Me, Ultima”, uses countless examples of folk-lore all throughout his novel. In doing so, he gives his readers great insight to the Mexican-American culture of the 1940’s during World War II, and how different the culture is than how most people are raised. The folk-lore Anaya used most effectively throughout “Bless Me, Ultima” is; the whole idea of growing up and becoming a man, beliefs of witchcraft, children losing their innocence and the characters religious beliefs
In the story Bless Me, Ultima, Antonio faced several cultural conflicts that influenced his moral compass and cultural identity. First, he faced a cultural conflict between his mother and father’s aspirations regarding his destiny. His mother wanted Antonio to pursue a future life as a priest, while his father wanted Antonio to be a cowboy. Similarly, I grappled with the same battle as a child. My mother wanted me to pursue medicine, while my father wanted me to become an engineer and follow
In the book “Bless Me Ultima,” by Rodolfo Anaya, the role of duality goes very into depth with its many controversial topics. Some of these topics include the contrast between Catholicism and indigenous mysticism, good witchcraft and evil witchcraft, and men and women. Since Antonio must struggle to find his own identity and place he must battle between his family, beliefs, and self. This can be seen between his parents, who’s frequently conflicting views make it difficult for Antonio to accept either