Bless me, Ultima Throughout the book Bless me, Ultima your understanding of her character progresses and changes according to her actions. Ultima is constantly displaying three universal traits throughout the book loving, kindness, and wisdom. She uses these traits to help others throughout the book, particularly Antonio. Ultima’s wish is to make Antonio her spiritual heir, by that I mean that she wants him to carry on what she did on earth. That does not mean however that she limits her talents and gifts to Antonio, she helps anyone who asks.
Ultima’s owl is a mysterious character that is talked about throughout Bless Me, Ultima. Often it is referred to by the antagonist Tenorio as a brujas tool. However it is a symbol of Ultima and her kindness, which is interesting since the owl is a symbol of witchcraft in Native American culture. This is probably where Tenorio founded his accusations. The owl is her “bond to the time and harmony of the universe” because here mentor, who was a wise and kind man, told here it was. The owl is a gateway of sorts for Ultima to connect to the spirit world.
If the owl dies, so does Ultima. Ultima knows a good number of things that the others do not. Some of these are Ultima’s understanding of the spirit world, understanding of herbs, and her open-mindedness. Ultima’s understanding of the spirit world is probably the factor that separates her the most from the rest. She has powers that let her see into the future which let her know things that others could not. You can tell this when Ultima says “It is the presence of the river” that she hears on page 41.
Ultima’s understanding of herbs is greater than any other character in the book. This is due to her expansive amount of time spent in the field. Finally and the most important thing that she possesses that others do not is her open-mindedness. This means that she makes decisions from her own experience and opinion rather than following someone blindly. What Ultima wants for Antonio is pretty clear even if she never says it directly. Ultima ultimately wants Antonio to be her spiritual heir, by this I mean that Ultima wants Antonio to keep doing what she did.
Like her mentor did to her when she was a young girl. Ultima also wants Antonio to become a man who is open minded, she wants him to be able to make his own decisions based on his own experience and opinions. This is much different than his family which is strictly on one side or another side of the argument. Ultima helps Antonio deal with his problems by telling him to make his own decisions. When others tell Antonio what to do, Ultima just tells him to make his own decision and not to worry about the rest.
Yet she still teaches him to respect his elders. In the end, when you analyze and discuss the character of Ultima you come up with very similar traits. Ultima is loving, kind, and wise. Loving when she helps people with diseases, both mentally and physically. Kind when she listens and tries to help absolutely anyone who asks for her help. Wise with her open mind about any sort of situation, whether it religion or career path. Ultima is also wise with her understanding of so many different subjects, understanding superior to all others.
