What is the role and importance of traditional Mexican culture in the Mexican community in New Mexico?

The role of traditional Mexican culture is largely illustrated through conflict between old and new. This is emphasized through the tensions between Antonio’s life at home and life at school. At home, Antonio speaks only Spanish and follows the cultural expectations with which he has grown up. When Antonio goes to school, he is forced to experience the English-speaking academic world of the rest of the United States. He must learn to speak English and interact with children who are not from the same culture as he is. Although Antonio’s mother is extremely proud of his opportunity to learn English, Antonio finds that his schoolmates are less accepting of his own culture.

Antonio ultimately learns that he is able to accept elements of every culture when he creates his own identity and follows his own path to adulthood. Ultima assures him that not every type of faith is mutually exclusive, and Antonio is able to use the same lesson in dealing with the conflicting cultures in his life. As well, Ultima symbolizes the very real sense of myth that their traditional values hold in an inceasingly pragmatic world. Please see the GradeSaver site for much of this excerpt.

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