This introductory year in English has resulted in various mindsets; some may interpret the curriculum as demanding and highly unpleasant while others relished this year as optimal. Based on my experiences in Mrs. Cefalu’s class, this has been the crème de la crème of the entire English curriculum. Essentially, my freshman year has vastly outcompeted all my former English classes by interminable miles. I would foremost endeavor to greatly thank Mrs. Cefalu for innovating an unorthodox, amusing experience for me and every soul fortunate to experience this class. For the last two years, my teachers rather performed one, sole task: assert their English syllabus rather than express it. They strangely lacked a key fragment that enhanced learning …show more content…
The book portrayed the life of Antonio; a boy who was amidst a controversy whether he should integrate himself with the holy church and become a priest or join his father and become a cowboy. Furthermore, a curandera, named Ultima, guided Antonio throughout his childhood and development. Surprisingly, this book contained an outlandish aspect, which completely overshadowed the gloomy tone. This novel prominently consisted of fluctuation; instead of remaining stagnant with a monotonous, somber mood, the book would create a conglomerate of various elements throughout the novel. Personally, I truly appreciated the connection to nature and its natural products to the development of the story. Prominently, I remembered Ultima instructing Antonio of the various plants and flowers that withheld abilities that could either harm or heal a willing individual. This evident aspect would especially make me connect to my mother and her gardening abilities. Of course, she is not an individual with a green thumb; nonetheless, I could easily detect the moments when my mother taught me the essential skills to garden flowers and fruits a couple years back. This moment of nostalgia would be incredibly enlightening as the other novels we read only made me remember one horror: the suffering my families endured when trying to survive the consequences of war and survival of the fittest. Despite a unique perspective, this novel also divulged in the Catholic religion; an entity where ignorance can
Ultima goes to stay with Antonio Marez, a young boy who lives in the llano with his parents, two sister, and three brothers. This is because Ultima is too old to live on her own. Antonio and Ultima grow very close. Antonio helps Ultima cure his uncle Lucas and lift the curse on the Tellez home. Ultima collects herbs from the mountains and uses these to make remedies and medicines. She used remedies and medicines to cure Antonio’s uncle, Lucas.
Only a few books dare to discuss the confusion surrounded by a religious awakening. In Bless Me, Ultima, Rudolfo Anaya, challenges standard religion and brings in differnet ideas through the perspective of a young and confused boy. At the end of his struggle to understand, the boy reaches the peace of mind he was seeking.
However, the child in “Bless Me, Ultima” by Anaya, Antonio, has a different idea of what he wants to learn. Instead, like a normal child, who wants to learn why the sky is blue, Antonio’s decides that he wants to learn the meaning of life, the meaning of spirits, why everything happens and because of that Antonio finds himself questioning God himself. Because Antonio questions the unknown, it leads to him having epiphanies that not only impact his knowledge but his perspective about everything else. He has the power of God, the Virgin, and all the saints of the Holy Mother Church behind him.”
In Bless Me Ultima, many cultures dovetail to paint the picture of Antonio’s childhood. Ultima comes to stay with Antonio and his family in the summer time and teaches him about the beauty of nature, particularly the llano. “Ultima came to stay with us the summer I was almost seven. When she came the beauty of the llano unfolded before my eyes…” (1). Christian, Mexican folklore, Paganism and although not clearly stated some Aztec mythology, are all a huge part of Antonio’s combining religious beliefs. Christianity and Paganism are the main religions Antonio most identifies with. Ultima plays a large part of introducing Antonio to Paganism. Before she came, Antonio was largely a Catholic because of his devout Catholic mother, Maria, who wants
Wisdom can only be gained through experience and clarified by speaking with others. In the novel, "Bless Me, Ultima," by Rodolfo Anaya, the main character, Antonio Luna Marez, is on a quest to understand all of the issues present in his life, and gain the wisdom necessary to make important decisions regarding his future. It described the hardships of a young child and how these lessons helped him to begin to understand life. There were many characters within the novel I felt aided in the spiritual development of Antonio, but the one that stands out the most is Ultima, who came to stay with the Marez family because of her old age. Ultima was an essential part of the story, because she provided Antonio with the guidance he needed and yearned for as a growing adolescent. Though she was an central component throughout the novel, the character that I feel who assisted Antonio with discovering spirituality and finding himself, but played a minuet role was Maria Luna Marez, his mother.
Chapter one, ‘Beginnings at Assisi,’ offers a vivid description of the social, political, economic, cultural, demographic description of Assisi and its inhabitants. Here, the author describes the life of Francis and the situations and circumstances prompting his journey to spread the ideal gospel life to the world. This chapter is relevant in determining the circumstances that instigated a need for reforms in the Catholic Church. This chapter is applicable in my life because it offers insight on the fundamental Christian I can rely on in my daily life.
The themes explored in the novel illustrate a life of a peasant in Mexico during the post-revolution, important themes in the story are: lack of a father’s role model, death and revenge. Additionally, the author Juan Rulfo became an orphan after he lost
Student's Book of College English: Rhetoric, Reader, Research Guide and Handbook. Boston: Pearson Learning Solutions, 2012. 402-405.
Blood becomes the river. The human race dies and only the “she-goats and the he-goats” (109) remain. The lake “cracked with laughter of madness” and the “ghosts stood and walked upon the shore”.(109) Who dares dream such gruesome images? Antonio Marez. He questions God, he communicates with the dead, the dead ask him for blessings. Just who is this Tony? Tony is only a seven year boy who lives in small town of El Puerto. But he is no ordinary boy, he is the hero of Rudolfo Anaya’s Bless Me Ultima. The novel guides you through Tony’s life. From childhood to adulthood. It tells you about the experiences Tony has in life. The difficult tasks he has to overcome. Tony being only seven years old has to go through a lot.
...ment in which the story takes place. His ellaborate description of the llano shows you the beauty of Spanish America and helps you to understand the restless culture of the vaqueros who wander across it. Also, Anaya gives you a detailed description of El Puerto. The village in which the Lunas reside. The imagery in this description also helps you to understand the culture of the farmers, the calm and quiet people who plant their crops by the light of the moon and live in peace. Imagery plays and important role in this novel because without it, certain aspects such as the point of views of both the Lunas and the Marez faimy, would never be understood .
Hoping for the best but expecting the worst, I walked in to English not knowing what to expect. English 111 was boring at times but in many ways helpful. College Composition I main objective is to teach students the fundamentals of academic writing and critical thinking. Aside from learning how to academically write, recognizing grammatical errors, tone, and different styles such as MLA, APA, and CMS, are some other things learned in the course. This essay will be evaluating the book as a whole, self-reflections, essays, my strengths and weaknesses and my professor.
Over the past semester I have learned many things in my English class, educationally and through life lessons. Ms. Henry took the tedious, standard, subject of English and turned it into moral and intellectual lessons we can use in our daily lives. I latched onto the secret life of bees, serial, and the debate, out of the topics we went over this semester.
This course has provided me with the insight and knowledge to know that English Language Learners are really valuable to our classrooms and that they may become discouraged because they feel discriminated or unaccepted. Through the stories of our classmates I have learned that my role as teacher is very important for these students and that I must work hard to make them part of my classroom and set them up with the tools to succeed in their education. As my classmates mentioned during our discussions, it can be very frustrating and often times discouraging.
This novel seems to have multiple themes. One important theme is that every action causes a reaction, and one person’s doing can result in something unpredicted. Similarly, it also seems to say that fate is bound to happen, no matter what is done to try to change it. In this novel, when Jose Arcadio Buendia marries his cousin Ursula, they are cursed to have a child with the tail of a pig. I believe that this is just a way of saying that they are destined for downfall and failure. They are afraid and tired of people whispering and pointing, so after Jose kills a townsman, they decide to retreat into the jungles of South America. With the help of other settlers, they found their own little town, named Macondo, in hope of escaping the wrath of fate. Their family lives through one hundred years in this manner, before their destiny is fulfilled.
As my English 101 class comes to an end, I have realized how much I have transformed as a writer. In this essay, I am going to explain what I realized my strengths and weaknesses are as a writer and how they have manifested themselves throughout the quarter. I was skeptical at first coming into this class knowing that English takes formidable work and dedication, but I am very proud of the progress I have made. We completed a great deal of work throughout the quarter; from grammar exercises, summary reviews, and two challenging essays. Throughout the quarter I found myself improving in each category. As a writer, my skills and confidence have developed into more clarity and thought, something I have always wanted to be, as a result of a well constructed class that led to a superb educational experience.