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

Ernie's upbringing has trained him to be prejudiced against and afraid of difference. If Ernie cultivated independent thought he might have reached different conclusions about what Anthony and Cico represent, and how their challenging traditional beliefs may be ultimately a healthy act. It is only because most of the other adults in the town feel threatened by people like Ultima that Ernie and the school children find it easy

" (Anaya: 244). His doubts do not mean he rejects Catholicism. He does not reject the religion of the Lunas either; he merely understands that maturity brings about the need to construct his own identity based on his own beliefs. He accepts God throughout the novel, and looks for Him in everything except in himself. Towards the end, his experiences along with Ultima's teachings guide him towards a religious discovery

Important in attempts to ban Bless Me, Ultima, are arguments that the book promotes witchcraft and worship of the devil. The book focuses on Ultima, a curandera, who works with herbs and can heal the sick and exorcise evil. However, it is clear throughout Bless Me, Ultima that the character of Ultima is a force of good, but that she is sometimes mislabeled as a witch. Thus, while witchcraft is

Gilgamesh, Beowulf, And Young Goodman Brown The relationship between male figures in stories such as The Epic of Gilgamesh, Beowulf, both by anonymous writers, and "Young Goodman Brown" by Nathaniel Hawthorne not only highlight the importance of male bonds in literature and across cultures, but also help to provide balance and guidance to titular figures. Each of these stories depicts a journey, enlightenment, and transformation, which help to drive the story

Readers know that Maria is very religious, and that she prays often and cooks for the family. On page 7 readers learn that in her haste to keep the Catholic ritual of crossing herself, she mixes cooking and religion. "She breathed a prayer and crossed her forehead. The flour left white stains on her, the four points of the cross." Her life is not at all about her, but