Bless Me, Ultima written by Rudolpho Anaya is a bildungsroman. A bildungsroman is a "novel of education", in which the main character of a story learns something about him or herself. Tony Marez, the main character in Bless Me, Ultima learns many things about himself, his family and his future.
Tony experiences a conflict early in the novel. For example, inTony's forst dream the two sides of his family fight over his future when the farmers rub dirt on his forehead and the vaqueros rub it off (page.6). This shows that one side of Tony's family wants him to become a vaquero and the other half wants him to be a farmer. This is because both sides of the family are claiming his future. In addition, Maria, Tony's mother wants him to become a priest but he doesn't want to. This shows that his mom wants him to listen to her. This because she is trying to be in control of him. In Tony's situation everyone is trying to make him be something he doesn't want to be.
Three important people in Tony's life are his mother, father and Ultima and each of them play a role in Tony's struggle. For example his mom is always telling him what to do(page.90). This shows that decisions were going to be hard to make. This is because she is always on his case about what she wants for him. In addition Tony's dad wants him to become a vaquero. This demonstrates that Tony has a decision to make between two desperate choices. This is because if Tony decides to become a vaquero he will live with wild, loud and active people. Another example is Ultima who is a curandera, wants Tony to be whatever he wants to be(page. 246). This shows that Ultima thinks everyone has the right to be whatever they desire. This is because Ultima is trying to teach Tony on how to make his own decisions.
The outcome in Tony's struggleis that he needs to worry about himself and not depend on his mother or other people. For example, Tony didnt want his mom to worry for him anymore. This shows that he wants him to grow up as a responsible little boy. This is because he probably doesn't want to be told what to do. In addition Tiny's mom replied that it would be too hard for him to work in the fields with his uncles. This shows that she was worried for him once more. This is because she can't let him leave the house without her worrying. Another example is when Tony said," it is something I must learn about myself". This shows that he wants to grow up and find out things onhis own. This is because he thinks he can take care of himself. As Tony grows up he learns more about himself and tries to be an independent person.
In the story, Tony was living a hard life and he was still a little boy. Tony would end up being a Marez Luna. Tony didn't want to be like his mother or his father, he wanted to be like Ultima,