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Essay On Bless Me Ultima

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The main driving point is Bless Me Ultima is Antonio’s coming of age. In the novel, Bless Me Ultima, by Rudolfo Anaya, Antonio is spiritually and religiously tested which leads him to a bildungsroman. Throughout the novel, Antonio encounters religious doubts like the golden carp and spiritual events like the deaths of others. Although Antonio’s purpose in the story is to fulfill his prophecy, along the way he experiences life changing grows more as a spiritual and religious person. Antonio spiritually grows when he experiences the deaths of Lupito and other dear friends. In the beginning of the story, Antonio is quickly introduced into the world of violence and death. Lupito was being hunted down by the men of the llano, including his father. …show more content…

Antonio’s first encounter with the golden carp tests his Catholic faith in which he learns from this experience. “I could not have been more entranced if I had seen the Virgin, or God himself. The golden carp had seen me.”(pg 114) Antonio’s Catholic faith is being tested for the first time. He has encountered another god, a pagan god, other than his Catholic God. He learns that there are other gods other than God himself but he learns from this and later becomes a more devout Catholic when he takes catechism classes which starts to solidify his faith in God. Antonio accepts that there are other gods, but he still continues to strengthen his Catholic faith. Another example of religious coming-of-age is his when Antonio has his First Communion. Antonio has his First Communion and believes that when he has taken it he knows the answers to his questions about God. “I flooded the sticky piece of bread with hot saliva and swallowed it. Now I would know the answers! I bowed my head and waited for him to speak to me.” (pg 220) Antonio believes that all his questions about God and life are answered after he takes communion, which is not the case. Soon after he takes his communion, he waits for the answers from God to enter his mind but nothing happens. Antonio matures religiously by accepting that God cannot answer all his questions about life all at once. Antonio felt he had given his hopes up in

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