Icons of Ambivalence in Bless Me UltimaThe portrait of Mexican Americans is layered with shades of ambivalence. Besides the fact that there is evidence that they cannot really be classified as a migratory culture since the land they tend to migrate to once belonged to Mexico, they may also previously claim that land as a Native Americans. The Spanish Europeans who settled the area that became Mexico evolved as a dominant culture over the oral culture of the Native Americans. Nevertheless, there is evidence of ambivalence among Native Americans toward the dominant Spanish culture in what is arguably one of Mexico's foundational texts, the story of the miraculous appearance of the Virgin of Guadalupe in 1531. The Virgin of Guadalupe does not fit the usual model of the Virgin as she appears to believers, the biggest change being her native appearance. It belongs to the religion of the dominant culture, and yet it is not. His apparition is one of eight apparitions in the world that have been accepted by the Catholic Church (Apparition 48). Additionally, she is also a symbol of indigenous culture and enjoys a respect in the eyes of Mexicans and Mexican Americans that remains evident to this day. Also notably, Bless Me Ultima, a work of modern fiction set in New Mexico, depicts not only an ambivalence toward the dominant culture of the United States, but also vestiges of the same ambivalence toward of the Catholic Church found hundreds of years earlier in the indigenous culture of Mexico. Ultima, one of the main characters in the novel, practices the ancient art of Curanderismo, an approach to healing that encompasses the body, mind, and emotions as well as the soul and spirit (Curandera 1). Ultima practices all four...... middle of paper...... Robert C. Broderick, ed. New York: Thomas Nelson, Inc., 1987. 48. “Blessed Juan Diego: Model of Humility.” October 29, 2000. http://ng.netgate.net/~norberto/juandiego.html."Blessed or Evil. October 5, 2000. http://www2.cwrl.utexas.edu/sheila/314f95/projects/group5 / curan2.htm"Curandera Elena Avila. October 5, 2000. http://www.ph-webnet.com/ph_a/articles/duval-8.htmde Vega, Bechiller Luis Lazo. “History of the Miraculous Apparition of the Virgin of Guadalupe in 1531.” The Health Anthology of American Literature. Ed. Paul later. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1998. 475-82. “La Curandera: Blessed or Evil”. October 5, 2000. http://www2.cwrl.utexas.edu/sheila/314f95/projects/group5/curan.htm "Scapular". The Catholic Encyclopedia. Revised and updated. Robert C. Broderick, ed. New York: Thomas Nelson, Inc..., 1987. 543.