In the novel Bless Me Ultima, Antonio faces rite of passage issues. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, a rite of passage is "a ceremony or event marking an important stage in a person's life, especially birth, puberty, marriage and death." Throughout the book, Antonio experiences moments that mark a rite of passage, but there are times when things don't go as planned, causing complications for him. Although Antonio was very young, he witnessed the deaths of four people, had problems with his first confession and first communion, and lost his innocence. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay. Antonio had witnessed the deaths of Lupito, Narciso, Florence and Ultima. Lupito was the first death Antonio witnessed when he was only six years old. It wasn't just a death he witnessed, but rather the fact that he witnessed everything that happened that night. On page 22, Antonio mentions: "Many shots found their target... He made a strange gurgling sound in his throat, then he stopped." Six-year-old Antonio had just experienced the death of a man. Narciso was the second death he witnessed. Antonio had also seen everything that happened with Narciso. Tenorio had shot him and Narciso was slowly dying. Antonio held Narciso in his arms, Narciso made his last confession and was there for his last breath. This is a problem because Antonio was there when they were shot, he was there for their last words and he was there for their last breath. Florence was the third death he witnessed, then Ultima. Florence had drowned in the river after diving and getting stuck in barbed wire. When the boys took him out, he was already dead. Antonio had witnessed the death of a friend. Now for Ultima, Tenorio shot his pet owl. The owl is Ultima's spirit, so if this owl dies, she dies too. Antonio saw when Tenorio shot the owl and how Ultima was slowly dying. He was there for his last breath and his last words. On page 261, Ultima blessed Antonio in her final words, saying, “I bless you in the name of all that is good and strong and beautiful, Antonio. Always have the strength to live. Love life, and if despair enters your heart, seek me in the evening when the wind is gentle and the owls sing in the hills. I will be with you.” These events caused complications for Antonio because no one, at such a young age, should have to witness the death of their friends. In addition, Antonio had experienced some complications during his first confession and his first communion. On the day of his first confession, his friends had him act as a priest so they could practice confessing their confessions to him. Moments before his confession, he was beaten because he did not want to inflict greater punishment on Florence. On page 214, Antonio says, "I kicked and squirmed and struggled to free myself from the incessant blows, but they held me tight and I couldn't push them away." ". Before each event marking a stage in one's life, there is always an accompanying complication. The day of his first communion, he had been excited because he thought that communion was going to give him all the knowledge, all the answers to his questions, but when he took communion, he received nothing. Something that was supposed to mark a great event, to mark something important was ruined by his disappointment and his curiosity. On page 221, Antonio says: “A thousand questions rushed.