Bless me Ultima: themes and literary analysis

Bless Me, Ultima

Discuss the imagery that the author uses to bring the character Ultima to life.

The narrator's grandmother Ultima is described as a mysterious character, a little lady with a mysterious aura far larger than her physical persona. Ultima always dresses in black and is enveloped in shawls. The herbs she uses in her work perfume the air long after she has left the room. On one hand, she appears to be a typical, tiny Mexican grandmother who is capable of caring for everyone. On the other hand she also functions like a powerful mythic force. Her presence gives the character of the young Antonio a sense of weight and presence. "I felt Ultima's hand on my head and at the same time I felt a great force, like a whirlwind, swirl about me. I looked up in fright, thinking the wind would knock me off my knees. Ultima's hand held me still" (Anaya 55). Ultima both protects Antonio against the forces of nature and is a force of nature herself.

But not all of the imagery used to describe Ultima is positive in an uncomplicated fashion. Ultima is accused at one point of being a witch, and witches can be both forces for good and evil. Ultima is shown as engaged in actions, such as gathering herbs, that underline her potential as a healer but also have an ominous quality in some eyes. Ultima is a powerful woman who can marshal forces men cannot understand. Her knowledge is frightening to some people but Antonio feels her love for him like a powerful presence.

Q2. How does the author describe Ultima, how Ultima sees herself, how others see her.

Ultima is described as a curandera, a "woman who knew the herbs and remedies of the ancients, a miracle-worker who could heal the sick" (Anaya 2). She can lift curses as well as treat people with more conventional forms of folk medicine. She is suspected of practicing witchcraft, yet fundamentally the author presents her as misunderstood, like many women who have great powers. She is the ultimate grandmother -- a woman who oversees the coming into being of life as a midwife and sustains it. Ultima sees herself as a facilitator, a conduit of power rather than someone trying to use her power to exercise her individual will. She was there when Antonio came into the world and gives up her life for Antonio.

Yet in addition to her work as a healer, Ultima is also capable of performing mundane tasks well. Like any good grandmother, she excels at cooking and cleaning. "The first day she put on her apron and helped my mother with breakfast, later she swept the house and then helped my mother wash the clothes" (Anaya 5). She is both materially and spiritually gifted.

Q3. Describe Ultima's physical appearance and her actions. What kind of person is she? Use lots of descriptive language to paint a picture of the curandera with words

On the surface, Ultima appears to be a relatively typical Mexican grandmother, dressing in black and going to Mass. However, the intensity of her eyes, the mysterious smells she exudes, and other aspect of her persona gives her an otherworldly air at time. She is aware of the ambiguity of her art. "You must understand that when anyone...tampers with the fate of a man that sometimes a chain of events is set into motion over which no one will have the ultimate control" (Anaya 85). She teaches the narrator Antonio about himself in his quest for a spirituality that transcends the conventional religion of his mother. Ultima is comfortable in both worlds of native and Christian faiths -- she attends church but does not reject her knowledge of the healing arts.