Antonio's Transformation How do we make the leap from child to adult? What obstacles must we overcome to finally reach the summit of all that we can be? Who can reform and influence our decisions, the very decisions that will shape who we become? In Bless Me Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya, Antonio Márez must progress towards his own moral independence and choose his destiny. Tony is forced to endure difficult experiences too early in life, causing a premature loss of innocence. He is overwhelmed with a multitude of spiritual questions. To find the answers he seeks, Antonio must undertake a metamorphosis. To reach maturity requires a loss of innocence. For example, when a child finds out there is no Santa Claus, he is caught between a magical belief and a reality that he is unwilling to accept. It's a coming-of-age experience that changes his outlook on life forever. The child has lost some of his previous innocence and must face life's harsh realities. This process can be confusing and painful. In some ways, a loss of innocence forces us to become more mature by gathering wisdom and knowledge from a metamorphic experience. Metamorphosis is as much a spiritual change as it is a physical one. It is a natural process that helps a person grow and develop. In Bless Me Ultima, Tony embarks on a rocky journey to discover who he is and what he believes. Tony must make the transition from a naïve six year old boy to a mature man. His experiences continually call his basic beliefs into question, and chip away at his innocence. For example, when he witnesses the brutal death of Lupito, he starts to question many ideas; sin, good and evil, punishment, and his faith. He begins to see the world of man as violent and sometimes ruthless, not the friendly, loving world where he had previously resided. He even becomes concerned about his own father's salvation because of Gabrielle's involvement in Lupito's death and begins to see his father as less than perfect. Death continues to haunt him when Narciso, a good man, is killed defending Ultima, while Tenorio, an apparently evil man, is spared. These outcomes are not what he believes should have occurred and yet again, a piece of his innocence is stripped away as he sees life is not always fair. He is beginning to realize that he must define his own beliefs.
“Growing up” is a very broad term that is used without a true, consistent definition. In essence, it describes and encompasses themes of coming of age and the loss of innocence as a person moves from child to adult. In many respects, people view this change as a specific, pivotal moment in a person’s life, such as an eighteenth birthday, or the day a person leaves their parents’ house. This idea of having a crucial moment in life, which provides the open door into adulthood, is portrayed in many novels. It is easy to find a death that occurs, or a specific event that causes a character to “grow up” prematurely, but many times, contrary to most beliefs, that exact event is not the turn of the key leading through the doors to maturity. It is rather just a small push which starts a domino effect. This is the same scenario in the novel All the Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy. This novel proves that loss of innocence is a learning process rather than the result of a
Ultima displays the connection she has with Tony as soon as she arrives, by letting him call her Ultima instead of Grande because Ultima believes that Antonio and she have a connection since Antonio was the last child Ultima pulled out of Marias Antonio’s mother womb. After that moment, both Tony and Ultima grow closer and closer. She and Tony spend much time together either getting herbs for medicines or telling stories to each other. When Tony has dreams Ultima teaches him to read between the lines in his dreams and guides him as he tries to figure out his right place in his family, whether to be a Marez or Luna. Wanting to please both his mother and father at the same time. Ultima also teaches Tony the practices of how to dig up a plant correctly, they must tell the plant what they are doing before taking it away from its home. Teaching Tony to show compassion for the things you take for your own use. Ultima shows sympathy through the people she cured, displaying to Tony that her magic is not evil at all. "If my uncle would of come earlier, he would of saved Ultima, but it is better not to think that way. Ultima said to take life’s experiences and build strength from them and not weaknesses.(Anaya 245)” Tony explains everything that Ult...
Maria had no authority over her restless family. The source of the conflict between Antonio and Maria originates from her oldest sons taking to going where they please and not caring about their parent’s wishes. The burden of pleasing their parents passes from the eldest sons to the youngest one. With the sole duty of pleasing his parents, Tony internally rebels against their wishes instead seeking to set to rest his churning mind by seeking his own beliefs. His brothers console themselves about abandoning their family by saying that “Tony will be her priest” (Anaya 36) and not knowing that the “dreams of their father and mother [haunt] them” (Anaya 36) also haunted Antonio. Having the responsibilities of his brothers and his family shape the way he grows and thinks. He isn’t just thinking about himself he also has the problems of redeeming his family on his head. Through the story and through Ultima Tony realizes that he is not bound by obligations and can instead shape his own
“Look! He pointed to the church where the priest desecrated the altar by pouring the blood of dead pigeons into the holy chalice…When the golden carp appeared Cico struck with his spear and the water ran blood red. What is left? I asked in horror… The magic of Ultima! I insisted. Look! He pointed to the hills where Tenorio captured the night-spirit of Ultima and murdered it, and Ultima died in agony”(244).The passage is one of Tony’s dreams, where all the things he believed in were crushed. This loss makes him feel lost, not knowing what to believe in anymore. Tony also shares his feelings with the reader through the questions he asks Florence in his
Why does He allow evil to triumph the good in the world? Why does He let good people die? Tony pondered these thoughts following the witness of Narciso’s death, an unforeseen event. Narciso was the town’s drunk, but not necessarily a bad person. He acquired distinctive characteristics that was blind to the captiously critical. He was a man of the Earth, cultivating organic and virtuous substances from authentic soil. In doing so, Narciso was building his own treasure in a world filled with suffering. The night of Narciso’s death painted his true colors. He was selfless, a man with good intentions. He was willingly putting his life at risk, while protecting the flesh and blood of an esteemed elder, Ultima. “I wanted to cry out into the storm that it was not fair that Narciso die for doing good, that it was not fair for a mere boy to be at the dying of a man,” (Anaya 170). One must not disregard the fact that Tony was a child, enraged with curiosity and confusion. He questioned the level of fairness within God’s disposition. However, everything happens for
Another example of the evolution of Tony's sense of good and evil through the utilisation of setting is Tony's own home. To him, his home provided him with warmth and safety. This was due to the people who lived in the house. Antonio's father creates a sense of protection in the home. When Tenorio and his men come to he house to take Ultima away, Tony's father "would let no man invade his home" (pg 123). This gave Tony faith that as long as his father was around, he would be protected. Antonio's mother made home a loving and caring place to be. She would always baby Antonio and give him the affection he needed whenever he needed it. The morning after Tony had seen Lupito killed, Ultima tells Tony's mother not to be too hard on Antonio; he had a hard night last night. His mother puts her arms around Tony and holds him saying he "is only a boy, a baby yet" (Pg.28). The Virgin also makes the atmosphere of Antonio's home peaceful and protected. Tony loves the Virgin Mary because "she always forgave" (Pg. 42). Tony thought she was "full of a quiet, peaceful love" (Pg.42) which she filled the home with. The most important person who contributed to the goodness of Antonio's home was Ultima. She made Antonio feel as though her presence filled the home with safety, love, and a sense of security. When Tony saw Lupito get killed, it was Ultima who calmed him. Whenever he had a nightmare, Ultima was there to comfort Antonio and "[he] could sleep again" (Pg.
Tony also stands up against a mob for Florence; everyone wants to punish Florence for "not believing in God" (214) and Tony pushes the crowd away and refuses to give Florence the penance that Florence does not deserve. Although Tony knows that he will be given the "Indian torture" (214), he still speaks up for his friend. Anaya often presents Tony as a dependent character, never wanting to "be away from the protection of [his] mother" (51); in fact, he's so close to his mother that it seems that he's going through Oedipus's Complex. Anaya actually does this to increase the impact of Tony's bravery. One might expect Tony to stay in his undercover bushes when Tenorio is standing so close; however, when Tony hears that Tenorio knows the way to kill Ultima, the thought to warn Ultima supercedes his fear and encourages his legs to pick up and run home (255).
From our first breath to our last, every person on Earth is in a perpetual state of change. Some of this change is physical, some of it is mental, and all of it is important. One of the most obvious instances of human change is seen throughout adolescence. During this time, both our bodies and our minds change very rapidly, nearly transforming us into completely different versions of ourselves. While it is true that this period of the human life does contains the largest amount of both physical and mental change, it should not be thought of as the only time in our life where change is acceptable. At any other time, though, change is usually looked at as negative. In many texts, when an adult changes, they are usually viewed as fickle or even
Maturity is a coming of age when a person is growing emotionally and mentally. Maturity is gained by experiences and decision-making, thus learning from mistakes. This is evident in the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Through characterization and symbolism Lee displays maturity.
In “Bless Me Ultima” by Rudolfo Anaya, Antonio went against what other people believed and questioned God. He went with his heart that was telling him to question why God does this. Tony went through so much at such a young age he saw his loved ones die right in front of him which made him feel helpless. He started to question why a God would do this to someone and have no punished. He wanted a God that would
A child’s upbringing can severely affect who they are later in life. In particular, their transition into adulthood and the way they are initiated into this new stage of their lives is essential to their adult personalities. In “The Demoness Kali”, Shyam Selvadurai writes a story in which formal features of initiation are placed upon its main character, Shivan to demonstrate his coming of age. Through separation, mentors, and tests, Shivan is able to initiate into adulthood.
Maturation is the emergence of personal and behavioral characteristics through growth process. In the novel Beyond the Burning Time, by Kathryn Lasky, Mary Chase goes through these growth processes. In the end Mary goes through many changes and becomes a very mature person. Mary will change in the concept that she will become more aggressive and motivated in making her own decisions. She also becomes more vigorous as well as courageous in a sense that she takes the initiative to save her mother when everyone loses faith. Plus she becomes bolder in addition to more demanding due to having to sneak around and do things she never would have thought of before. She is no longer the quiet little girl that she was. When her mother is taken Mary makes it her obligation to save Mrs. Chase.
Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya is a coming of age story about a young boy named Antonio Marez. The novel takes place in New Mexico where Antonio tries to fulfill his parent’s expectations while struggling with religion. Through Antonio, Anaya defies the some of the principles in religion and expresses her interpretation on the system of beliefs. Antonio’s religious confusion suggests that man should be able to choose his own religion and destiny. In the Bless me, Ultima, Antonio experiences conflict in his religious beliefs because of the deaths he witnesses, the new ideas that he learns, and his open-minded mentality.
Antonio lives in a magical world that is full deaths and sadness in his life. His dreams represented his inner interpretations of those experiences. The story of the child in Bless Me, Ultima is much more than just an ordinary child living at the time in Santa Rosa. He sees parts of the future, but doesn’t want it to happen. This boy has a grown soul that lives in a child’s body.
...through 8 different psychosocial stages of life. Each step has to be completed in order to have gained knowledge and to be able to be successful in the next stage of development. Researching this topic has taught me that we can’t skip over skills and expect to have success or live happily ever after. I now realize how important learning from my mistakes can be. Childhood becomes the remembered past and adulthood the anticipated future (McAdams, 2001).