A recurring theme in Bless me Ultima is about knowledge, and more specifically about who possesses the knowledge and how that knowledge is central to the maturation process.

First of all, several sources of knowledge are presented throughout the book and are embodied by different characters. The parents represent the knowledge that comes from tradition, namely a past linked to the land on the Luna side and the tradition of the Llano on the Marez family side. Each of the parents embodies a form of ancestral knowledge about traditional ways of life that are passed on from one generation to the next to be reproduced and perpetuated. The priest represents God’s knowledge, that is to say, knowledge beyond the reach of men that allows God to judge the sins of people. Ultima represents another form of ancestral knowledge, of an indigenous type, originating from a culture whose aim is to preserve earthly harmony. Finally, these ancestral forms of knowledge are counterbalanced by two new sources of knowledge. Firstly, the school is represented by the two teachers who guide Antonio during his first and third grades. Secondly, science plays a minimal role through the evocation of the doctor and the atomic bomb.

Curiously, one notices when reading that traditional knowledge is much more important than the knowledge acquired through school and science. While Antonio laconically describes his experience at school, showing at the same time that in reality it had only a limited influence on his childhood, he insists on his experience in the church and all the knowledge it brings him. Thereby, while his passage to the fourth grade is not even mentioned, a great moment in antonio’s life corresponds to his first confession and his communion. Moreover, while traditional medicine did nothing to improve his uncle’s condition, the traditional medicine of Ultima seems to work miraculously. This pervasiveness of traditional knowledge in contrast to modern knowledge is one of the central aspects of this book. It allows us to understand the traditional structuring of villages in New Mexico in the 1940s and the importance of the nuclear family in this organization.

Finally, the acquisition of new knowledge is key to Antonio’s growing process. Indeed, each new piece of knowledge allows him to question the structuring of the world, the importance of inequalities, the legitimacy of religion. In reality, this book describes a process by which the child loses his innocence. Each new piece of knowledge brings new questions due to the paradoxes that Antonio tries to solve. Through this process, he ends up developing a form of autonomy as well as a capacity for taking decisions. This ability is exemplified at the end of the book when he courageously decides to run 10 miles in a desperate attempt to save Ultima.