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Wikipedia Article Final Drafts

Censorship:

After its publication in 1972, Bless Me, Ultima emerged as one of the “top ten most frequently challenged books” in the years 2013 and 2008. (ALA) According to the American Library association, a challenge is an attempt to restrict access of a book through the removal of the text in curriculum and libraries. Specific reasons for the challenges in 2013 were "occult/Satanism, offensive language, religious viewpoint, sexually explicit" and similarly in 2008 of "occult/satanism, offensive language, religious viewpoint, sexually explicit, violence". (ALA)

Round Rock Independent School District (Texas)

In 1996, after appearing on advanced placement and local high school reading lists in Round Rock Independent school district, the novel came to parents attention, which according to Foerstel led to “seven hours of boisterous debate over a proposal to remove a dozen books”, one of which was Bless Me, Ultima. One of the worries of the parents was excessive violence. (Foerstel)  However a local paper, The Austin American Statesman, claimed “ Refusing to allow credit for those celebrated literary works would have been an unnecessary intrusion by the school board.” After multiple hearing and proposals, the board came to a 4-2 vote against the banning of the book. (Book Ban Laid to Rest)

Newman-Crows Landing Unified School District (California)

After a parent filed a complaint regarding Bless Me, Ultima, the novel was withdrawn from the classroom, which affected the 200 students of whom were expected to read it over the course of the year. The parent who made the original complaint argued that the text used explicit wording and anti-Catholic views “that undermine the conservative family values in our homes” (Hatfield 1) However, one attendee of the special meeting noted in favor of the book that  "I can't think of a book, I can't think of a newspaper article that's not offensive to some people." (Hatfield 1) Ultimately, the board trustees voted 4-1 to remove Bless Me, Ultima from the curriculum however the novel will continue to remain in the library. (Hatfield 2)

Plot Summary: *includes holes because summary is based off of holes in the previous

The novel opens as the protagonist, Antonio, approaches the age of seven when his family decides to house Ultima, an elderly curandera[hyperlink]. Ultima, known as “La Grande” in the Márez household, embodies the wisdom of her ancestors and carries the powers to heal, to confront evil, knowledge of how to use the power of nature and the ability to understand the relationship between the living and spirits. Tony's parents both hold conflicting views about Tony's destiny and battle over his future path. While Gabriel, Tony’s father, represents the roaming life of a vaquero and hopes for Tony to follow this path of life, Maria, Tony’s mother, represents the settled life of hard-working farmers and aspires for her son to become a priest. During a flashback to Antonio’s birth, the two families argue over Antonio’s destiny and Ultima, serving as the midwife, declares “Only I will know his destiny”(Anaya 6)

Following an immediate bond with Ultima, Antonio learns of the many herbs and barks, which she uses in her ceremonies. However, one night Antonio witnesses the death of a man, which makes him question his religion and identity, and sparks his journey towards manhood.

Antonio begins school in the fall, where he is portrayed as an excelling student, which greatly pleases his mother. One day, while socializing with his friends they tell him the story of the Golden Carp. Antonio also continues to be an example for the children, who praise his religious savant as they dress him as a priest while preparing for first communion. Antonio’s Uncle Lacos is cursed by Tenorio’s three evil daughters and Ultima, despite lacking priestly recognition, emerges as the only one who can cure him from death. Antonio’s admiration for Ultima strengthens as he continues to question his faith, hoping to understand once he takes communion for the first time. (Anaya 199)

In another traumatic death, Antonio witnesses the murder of Narciso, known as the town drunk, by Tenorio, a malicious saloon-keeper and barber in El Puerto. As a result, Antonio becomes ill and enters a dream-like state. Tenorio blames Ultima for the death of one of his daughters, claiming that his daughter passed because Ultima cursed her. Tenorio plots his revenge on Ultima throughout the duration of the novel.

The determined Tenorio emerges in the final scenes as he chases Antonio back to the Màrez house, where Tenorio shoots Ultima’s owl. Following the death of the owl, Ultima quickly follows and is accompanied by Antonio at her bedside as she dies. Before her death, she instructs Antonio to collect her medicines and herbs before destroying them by the river (Anaya 260).

Wikipedia article drafts (1)

Censorship:

According to the American Library association, “A challenge is an attempt to remove or restrict materials, based upon the objections of a person or group. A banning is the removal of those materials. Challenges do not simply involve a person expressing a point of view; rather, they are an attempt to remove material from the curriculum or library, thereby restricting the access of others.” (ALA) After its publication in 1972, Bless Me, Ultima emerged as one of the “top ten most frequently challenged books” in the years 2013 and 2008.” (ALA) Specific reasons for the challenges in 2013 were "occult/Satanism, offensive language, religious viewpoint, sexually explicit" and similarly in 2008 of "occult/satanism, offensive language, religious viewpoint, sexually explicit, violence". (ALA)

Round Rock Independent School District (Texas)

In 1996 After appearing on advanced placement and local high school reading lists in Round Rock Independent school district, the novel came to parents attention, which according to Foerstel led to “seven hours of boisterous debate over a proposal to remove a dozen books”, one of which was Bless Me, Ultima. Some of the worries of the parents included excessive violence. (Foerstel)  However a local paper, The Austin American Statesman, claims “ Refusing to allow credit for those celebrated literary works would have been an unnecessary intrusion by the school board.” After multiple hearing and proposals, the board came to a 4-2 vote against the banning of the book. (Book Ban Laid to Rest)

Newman-Crows Landing Unified School District (California)

After a parent filed a complaint regarding the novel, Bless Me, Ultima, the text was withdrawn from the classroom, which 200 students were expected to read over the course of the year. The parent who made the original complaint argued that the text used explicit wording and anti-Catholic views “that undermine the conservative family values in our homes” (Hatfield 1) However, one attendee of the special meeting noted in favor of the book that  "I can't think of a book, I can't think of a newspaper article that's not offensive to some people." (Hatfield 1) Ultimately, the board trustees voted 4-1 to remove Bless ME, Ultima from curriculum while the novel will continue to remain in the library. (Hatfield 2)

Plot Summary:

The novel opens as the protagonist, Antonio, approaches the age of seven when his family decides to house Ultima, an elderly curandera. Known as “La Grande” in the Márez household, is the embodiment of the wisdom of her ancestors and carries within her the powers to heal, to confront evil, to use the power of nature and to understand the relationship between the seen and unseen. Tony's parents both hold conflicting views about Tony's destiny and battle over his future path. While Gabriel represents the roaming life of a vaquero and hopes for Tony to follow this path of life, Maria represents the settled life of hard-working farmers and aspires for her son to become a priest. As a child, Ultima was Antonio’s midwife and reveals that she is the only one who will knows his future.

Following an immediate bond with Ultima, Antonio learns of the many herbs and barks, which are used in her ceremonies. However, one night Antonio witnesses the death of a man, which makes him question his religion and identity and sparks his journey towards manhood.

Antonio begins school in the fall, where he is portrayed as an excelling students, which greatly pleases his mother. One day, when with his friends he is told the myth of the Golden carpe. Antonio also continues to be an example for the children, who praise his religious savant as they dress him as a priest while preparing for first communion. Antonio’s Uncle Lacos is cursed by Tenorio’s three evil daughters, Ultima, not even the priest, emerges as the only one who can cure him from death. Antonio’s admiration for Ultima strengthens as he continues to question his identity.

In another traumatic death, Antonio witnesses the murder of Narciso, known as the town drunk, by Tenorio,a malicious saloon-keeper and barber in El Puerto. As a result, Antonio enters a state of dreams as he becomes ill after the traumatic event.   Tenorio blames Ultima for the death of one of his daughters, claiming she put a curse on her. Tenorio plots his revenge on Ultima during the duration of the novel.

The determined Tenoro emerges in the final scenes as Antonio is chased by him back to the Màrez house, where Tenorio shoots Ultima’s owl. Following the death of the owl, Ultima quickly follows and is accompanied by Antonio at her bedside as she dies.

Works Cited:

Anaya, Rudolfo. Bless Me, Ultima. New York: Grand Central Publishing, 1972. Print.

Black, Debra B. "Times of Conflict: "Bless Me, Ultima" as a Novel of Acculturation." Bilingual Review 25.2 (2000): 146-62. Web.

"Book Ban Laid to Rest." Austin American-Statesman (TX): A12. Jan 20 1996. Web.

"Challenges to Library Materials." Banned & Challenged Books. N.p., 2016. Web. 30 Nov. 2016.

Foerstel, Herbert N. Banned in the U.S.A. : A Reference Guide to Book Censorship in Schools and Public Libraries. Westport, US: Greenwood Press, 2002. Web.

HATFIELD, MICHELLE. "'ULTIMA' STIRS POT - MEETING ON BANNING BOOK SPURS LIVELY DISCUSSION." Modesto Bee, The (CA) 6 Jan. 2009, ALL, LOCAL NEWS: B1. NewsBank. Web. 20 Nov. 2016.

Hatfield, Michelle, The M. Bee and Calif. "Board Upholds Novel's Removal: 'Bless Me, Ultima' Won't be Taught at Orestimba High School by 4-1 Vote." The Modesto Bee ( California )February 3 2009. Web.

"School's Book Ban is Up for Debate: 'Ultima' Pulled Out of Orestimba High." The Modesto Bee ( California )January 5 2009. Web.

Varvel, Linda. "Censorship and Bless Me, Ultima: A Journey through Fear to Understanding." Censored Books II. Ed. Nicholas J. Karolides. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2002. 70-79. Literature Resource Center; Gale. Web.

Wiki Article Intent

For the article addressing Bless Me, Ultima, the three areas which I am primarily looking to address are the plot summary, censor ship of the article, overall organization.

The plot section currently lacks organization and does not retell the story in an accurate or chronological fashion, which is easy for readers to follow. I will look to make changes to this section to refer to key images and points such as the murders, flahbacks and imagery. A section of censorship has been recently been added, but I believe that we can still have more sections addressing it. In addition, the page is somewhat discombobulated and difficult for the reader to follow. Perhaps, it would be easier if we reorganized the article, beginning with Background (author, literary and historical) followed by plot summary, themes, reception and legacy (including censorsip and specific cases).

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