Transcript Myths and Legends in Bless Me, Ultima

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Oral storytellers…
La Virgen de
Guadalupe
La Llorona
The Golden
Carp
Quetzalcoatl
Interview
with Anaya
Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses, yearning to breath free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore,
Send these, the homeless, tempest tossed,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door.
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"Icon -- loosely, a picture, a sculpture, or even a
building when regarded as an object of veneration.
Examples--a flag, religious symbols .
Also, an icon can be a person who is the object of
great attention and devotion, an idol. And, in
computer jargon, an icon is a picture on the screen
that represents a specific command or a piece of
software."
From icon, we have other words such an
iconoclast, iconic, and iconography, the study of a
subject matter and symbolism in the visual arts.
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From Chicano Art: Resistance and Affirmation
(page 363):
"Icons of Chicano art are images or objects
that embody symbolic meaning particular to
the cultural and political identity of Chicanos.
Their emblematic qualities serve as effective
symbols of the Chicano experience."
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What are Antonio's thoughts/feelings about
Christianity/Catholicism?
How do La Virgen de Guadalupe and the
Golden Carp show his confusion?
Despite the differences between the two
symbols, how does Anaya use them in crucial
moments of the plot to probe Antonio’s
anxieties, doubts, and fears, and therefore
develop his character?
Evaluate if Antonio subscribes more to his Catholic faith or to the Native
American traditional religious beliefs.
1. TEXT SAYS: From the bottom up, categorize Antonio’s experiences
(briefly summarize). Write the summaries on the appropriate side of the
scale.
2. I SAY: Off to the side, write what you think this shows about his beliefs,
doubts, anxieties, fears.
3. At the bottom of the page, write several sentences to explain which you
think he will choose to identify with.
This reinforces
his belief in the
power of
Catholicism.
Although he
experimented
with not
believing, he
quickly came
back.
Antonio didn’t
make the sign of a
cross and wind hit
him powerfully
(55).