Examples Of Bildungsroman In Bless Me Ultima

While there are many examples of bildungsroman in today's literature, many people do not know what they are. A bildungsroman is a novel concerning the former years of a person or spiritual education of that person. A bildungsroman often shows the evolvement of a character over a span of time. Bless Me, Ultima does meet the criteria of a bildungsroman. The reader can tell that Bless Me, Ultima is a bildungsroman from the first page. “Ultima came to stay with us the summer I was almost seven. When she came the beauty of the llano unfolded before my eyes, and the gurgling waters of the river sang to the hum of the turning earth”(1). From this passage, the reader is firstly given the age of the main character. The reader is also shown that the

In the passage, “Another thing I did that summer was to confirm Cico’s story. I followed the line of water Cico said was drawn around the town, and it was true, the entire town was surrounded by water! Of course I did not go to the Hidden Lakes but I could see the obvious truth nevertheless”(124)., it tells how Tony goes and seeks truth for himself. Tony wants to confirm things with his own eyes. This shows that he is maturing because he wants to find the truth for himself rather than blindly accepting what someone else is telling him. A lot of young children are programmed to just accept what their parents tell them because they are their parents so they must know best. By not just accepting what Cico told him, and by actually taking the initiative to check for himself, it is apparent that Tony is growing

This novel discusses the development of a young boy over a span of years. In this time, he grows into the man that his father always wanted him to be. He begins to question things, such as his religion. Tony wants to understand the world and how it works, rather than just maintaining his childlike ignorance. Readers can really see how Tony not just physically develops, but even the way that he thinks about things changes. Tony evolves a more realistic view of the world and a greater appreciation for it. This novel is extremely relatable for this reason because everyone has to suffer the loss of their childlike ignorance to become more aware of the world around them. Everyone has to grow up. It is simply a part of life. While it isn’t the most fun thing in the world, there is also an understanding that comes with it, and we can see Tony developing this understanding that people have had to suffer themselves. The very prominent development in this novel clearly shows how Bless Me, Ultima is a