Abstract
The paper describes how "Bless Me, Ultima" is a tale of one boy's journey from boy to man, as Antonio "Tony" learns about life and the world around him through his mother's good friend and curandera, Ultima. The paper relates that although Rudolfo Anaya's story is unique and fascinating, many critics believe the central theme of initiation and growth was influenced by earlier literary works that centered on this common subject. The paper asserts that though this may be the case, Anaya's work should not be discounted as imitation or a rehashing of older works; instead "Bless Me, Ultima" is a fascinating look at the life of a boy and his awakening into maturity.

From the Paper
"Similar to other great literary works, "Bless Me, Ultima" is a story of the universal human experience of initiation, self-reflection, and growth. It is a tale of one boy's journey from boy to man, as Antonio "Tony" learns about life and the world around him through his mother's good friend and curandera, Ultima. Although Rudolfo Anaya's story is unique and..."

Tags:bless, me, ultima

Abstract
The paper interprets Philip Levine's poem, "Every Blessed Day" and provides a reader response to it.

From the Paper
"Philip Levine in "Every Blessed Day" presents a paradoxical portrait of how a working class man copes with the realities of his life. In the course of what is ultimately a fairly brief excursus on the meaning of work, of life and of manhood, the overarching theme addressed by the poet is that after a certain point in one's maturation, there is very little to truly differentiate one day of life from one another. Levine's protagonist awakens to a hard edged..."

Tags:Every Blessed Day, Philip Levine

Abstract
This paper is an analysis of "Bless me, Ultima," by author Rudolfo Anaya. It examines the quest for identity of a young boy named Tony, in order to demonstrate to the reader that true knowledge and understanding takes a lifetime, or longer, to achieve.

From the Paper
"In Tony s search for understanding, he comes along several dead ends, but as he begins the next chapter of his life he finally realizes that the understanding he was searching for may take a lifetime or more to gain. In the key passage Tony s dad explicitly shares with Tony the revelation he had. Understanding comes with life sometimes it takes a lifetime to acquire understanding. (Pg. 248) Although Tony had started to realize the quest for knowledge was an unending one before his father told him, his father s words only confirmed those beliefs."

Tags:anaya, bless, key, me, passage, rudolfo, ultima, identity, church, teachings

Abstract
This paper discusses why Rudolfo A. Anaya's book, "Bless Me, Ultima", should not be banned, as it simply reflects the views and lifestyles of the Mexican-American heritage. It looks at how, although detractors have argued that the book promotes witchcraft and devil worship, the book is actually a more complex look at the conflicts between indigenous culture and spirituality and Western culture and the Catholic religion. It also explores how the banning of "Bless Me, Ultima" raises serious issues about banning books because they contain controversial themes or issues. Such bans challenge the very nature of democracy and the tradition of respecting diversity of religious and political thought in the United States of America.

From the Paper
"Bless Me, Ultima, tells the story of six-year-old Antonio Marez, who grows up in New Mexico in the 1940s. The story begins as Antonio's family takes the elderly Ultima into their home. Writes Anaya, "Ultima was a curandera, a woman who knew the herbs and remedies of the ancients, a miracle-worker who could heal the sick. And I had heard that Ultima could lift the curses laid by brujas, that she could exorcise the evil the witches planted in people to make them sick. And because a curandera had this power she was misunderstood and often suspected of practicing witchcraft herself" (p. 5). Throughout the story, Ultima acts as a spiritual guide to Antonio, who is torn between his mother Maria's a devout Catholicism and the spirituality that Ultima represents."

Tags:mexico, witchcraft, devil, worship

Abstract
This paper discusses some of the themes in the novel "Bless Me, Ultima," by Rudolfo Anaya. The writer describes several of the important symbols in the novel such as the owl, which symbolizes the power of magic and Antonio's connection with the world of magic and spirituality. The symbolism of the carp and the river are also explained. In addition, the writer describes the inner conflict in Antonio between Catholicism, the religion of his mother, and the polytheistic Llano religion of his father, and explains how his relationship with Ultima, the healer, leads to the resolution of this conflict.

From the Paper
"The golden carp is another symbol of spirituality representing wisdom, comfort and moral guidance. Nonetheless, it reinforces the idea that moral percepts are equally valid irrespective of the religion they operate in. In fact, the carp is the symbol of the core of all religions, i.e., the morality of faith. At first, Antonio rejects the carp because he thinks its calling means betraying his own God, i.e. the God of the Catholic faith. In time, Antonio learns hat the carp can actually help him build his own identity, and find answers to his personal questions. In this sense, the carp is much more than a magical fish. It represents moral authority which is capable of providing answers, very much like the power of any religion to comfort and help its followers."

Tags:precept, destiny, self-discovery, witch, Virgin, indigenous, colonial, metaphor, wisdom

Abstract
In this article, the writer provides an overview of the opium poppy, Papaver somniferum. The writer discusses the benefits and problems connected with the opium poppy and analyses whether this is a blessing or a curse.

From the Paper
"The opium poppy, Papaver somniferum, is a member of the poppy family, Papaveraceae. It is an annual herb and is widely cultivated in many temperate and subtropical regions (Merlin, 1984). It has a complex history, in that it has brought great benefits to the human race, as well as great problems. It is probably the earliest medicinal plant discovered by humans, and is mentioned by Hippocrates as a cathartic, hypnotic and styptic (Kapoor, 1995). Today, opium is cultivated in many countries in the world, notably Afghanistan, Iran, Turkey, Holland, Poland, Romania, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, India, Canada, and many Asian and Central and ..."

Tags:opium, poppy, herb

Abstract
The paper discusses how James Wright's poem "A Blessing" celebrates the wonders of nature and expresses the poet's strong desire to become one with that world. The paper relates that the poet wishes to leave the human world behind in order to become a flower, the most beautiful emblem of nature.

From the Paper
"The poem begins with a fairly straightforward description of a car ride: "Just off the highway to Rochester, Minnesota, / Twilight bounds softly forth on the grass." Right away, it becomes apparent that the poet has left the world of human civilization behind, as his immediate observations are taken up with nature; he is clearly more interested in the twilight on the grass than he is in the highway, and the rest of the poem will be taken up with evocations of nature, the "here and now," rather than the place from which the poem just came. This effectively gives the poem a feeling of placelessness, of being situated somewhere outside of time, where the only thing that truly matters is what happens in each line of the short poem."

Tags:nature, flower, blossom, animals

Abstract
This essay, using Rudolfo Anaya's Novel 'Bless Me Ultima,' explores the connection between loss of world awareness and maturity. The loss of innocence of a young boy and his exposure to evil force him to mature. By exploring each of
the characters experiences with evil, this essay explores how maturity is achieved.

Tags:anaya, innocence, loss, rudolfo

Abstract
This paper is on the author Anaya and the novel written by him "Bless me, Ultima". It includes the description of the novel, the author and a topic from his writings that's concern with immigration.

Abstract
This paper discusses the short story, "The Blessed House," written by Jhumpa Lahiri. The paper discusses the theme of the story which looks at how people can sometimes become so affected by something that they eventually come to cherish it, even though it has almost nothing to do with them. The paper describes the plot of the story and how this theme is portrayed.

From the Paper
"A new side of Sanjeev thus comes out when all these Christian artifacts are found in his house and his wife Twinkle wants to show them off. At first he gets mad easily over them, as is shown while the whole party is in the attic and he feels like throwing all of the Christian materials away; however he later comes to accept them because he realizes deep down inside how much they mean to his wife. Since he truly loves his wife he will not get rid of them because they make her happy. Happiness sometimes comes at a price which he becomes willing to pay for her. So as his true love comes out for her it is shown that although the artifacts made him mad or aggravated in the beginning, in the end they become responsible for making things work out for the better."

Tags:Christian, artifact, happiness