Objectives

• Analyse how Anaya uses Antonio's first-person narrative voice in Chapters 1–3 to establish the Márez/Luna binary as a structural principle of the novel.
• Explain how the golden carp (Chapters 6, 11, 19) functions as a symbol that challenges the Catholic framework Antonio has been given, using embedded quotation.
• Write an evidenced analytical paragraph that tracks how Ultima's curandera practice (Chapters 2, 10, 15) is presented as a third way between the two faiths.
• Evaluate how the deaths of Lupito (Chapter 3), Narciso (Chapter 13/18) and Florence (Chapter 22) progressively deepen Antonio's crisis of faith, selecting and interpreting quotations independently.
• Construct a sustained, structured analytical essay arguing how Anaya dramatises the theme of identity formation across the novel as a whole.

The sequence

1. Lesson 1: Two Bloods, One Boy: the Márez/Luna Binary in Chapters 1–3

   55 min · ch. 1, 2, 3

   Do now

   Write two columns on a blank page, titled MÁREZ and LUNA. Without looking at the novel, quickly write down every word or image that comes to mind for each name based on the title and cover. After that, when you start Chapter 1, add any new words you discover in the first two pages to the appropriate column. You have five minutes.

   Teacher input

   Model a close reading of the passage in Chapter 1 where Antonio's parents argue in the pre-dawn darkness about Ultima's arrival. Focus on the lines where Gabriel describes the llano, stating, "We are the Márez … we must move," while María responds with her vision of Antonio becoming a priest of the Luna blood. Highlight how Anaya encodes the binary in the nouns and verbs each parent uses: Gabriel's language is spatial and kinetic, featuring terms like "plains," "move," and "free," whereas María's language is institutional and vertical, using words such as "church," "priest," and "God." Show how to embed a short quotation and unpack the connotations of one specific word before transitioning to the next.

   Independent task

   Using the same close-reading technique demonstrated in Chapter 1, students should choose one additional moment from Chapters 2 or 3. They can focus on either Ultima's arrival at the house in Chapter 2 or Antonio's pre-dawn walk with Ultima and the owl in Chapter 3. From there, they will write one complete analytical paragraph of at least 150 words that explores how Anaya's language places Ultima within the context of the Márez/Luna binary. The paragraph must include at least two quotations, analyze the connotations of at least one specific word, and conclude with a sentence that reflects on what this positioning implies about Antonio's future growth. Students should submit their paragraphs on a half-sheet of paper for teacher feedback.

   Exit ticket

   In one sentence, state which side of the Márez/Luna binary — if either — Ultima belongs to at the end of Chapter 3, and give the single word from the text that most supports your answer.

2. Lesson 2: Curandera as Third Way: Ultima's Healing Power in Chapters 2, 10 and 15

   55 min · ch. 2, 10, 15

   Do now

   Read the paragraph in Chapter 2 that starts with Ultima hanging her herbs in the attic. List all the nouns Anaya uses to describe what she gathers or stores, then write a sentence explaining what these items have in common and what they indicate about her connection to the natural world. You have five minutes and should keep your response to no more than three lines.

   Teacher input

   Model a reading of the central scene in Chapter 10 where Ultima lifts the curse on Antonio's uncle Lucas. Highlight the moment she tells Antonio to hold the candles, and he feels "the power of the llano, the river, the hills" flowing through him. Guide students on how to write about narrative perspective—emphasizing that Antonio is both a participant and a witness. This dual role allows Anaya to portray curanderismo as both a deeply felt experience and an enigmatic practice. Show how to transition from a quote about Antonio's physical sensation to a statement about Anaya's perspective on the contrast between indigenous folk knowledge and institutional religion.

   Independent task

   Students are tasked with writing two interconnected analytical paragraphs, totaling at least 200 words, that compare Ultima's healing of Lucas in Chapter 10 with her exorcism of the Trementina curse at Téllez's farm in Chapter 15. Each paragraph should clearly identify the specific scene and chapter, include at least one quotation, and discuss how Anaya's language illustrates Ultima's power as being grounded in the natural world rather than the supernatural. Additionally, the paragraphs should connect to the novel's overarching theme of curanderismo as a form of cultural knowledge. Finally, both paragraphs must conclude with a connecting sentence that describes any changes—if there are any—between the two events. Students should submit their paragraphs stapled together.

   Exit ticket

   Write one sentence explaining why Anaya has Antonio, not an adult, hold the candles during the healing in Chapter 10, and what this choice reveals about the novel's argument regarding inherited knowledge.

3. Lesson 3: The Golden Carp and the Limits of Catholicism: Chapters 6, 11 and 19

   55 min · ch. 6, 11, 19, 22

   Do now

   Open to Chapter 11 and locate the part where Antonio attends catechism with Father Byrnes. Read from the moment Father Byrnes asks about the fate of unbaptized children until the end of that discussion. Note the question Antonio wishes to ask but holds back on, and then provide one sentence explaining why you believe he chooses to remain silent.

   Teacher input

   Model a close reading of the passage in Chapter 6 where Cico introduces Antonio to the golden carp in the river. Pay special attention to the line that describes the carp as moving "like a ray of gold" beneath the water and the verb Anaya uses when Antonio first sees it: "I could not speak." Guide students in analyzing the stark difference between this moment of profound silence and the catechism scenes in Chapter 11, where Father Byrnes insists on verbal, doctrinal responses. Show them how to craft a topic sentence that presents this contrast as Anaya's structural argument about how institutional language falls short in expressing spiritual experiences.

   Independent task

   Students are tasked with crafting a structured analytical paragraph of at least 180 words that argues how the golden carp serves as a critique of the Catholic Church's hold on spiritual authority in the novel. This paragraph should reference all three chapters (6, 11, and 19) and include at least two quotations—one from the river scene in Chapter 6 and another from either Chapter 11 or 19. The focus should be on analysis rather than merely retelling events. Conclude the paragraph with a sentence that ties the golden carp to Antonio's identity crisis, going beyond just the theme of religion. Students will submit the paragraph on a named sheet.

   Exit ticket

   In no more than two sentences, explain what Florence's drowning in Chapter 22 does to the symbolic meaning of the golden carp, and whether you think Anaya intends this to be hopeful or despairing.

4. Lesson 4: Three Deaths, One Crisis: Violence, Dreams and Faith in Chapters 3, 13 and 22

   55 min · ch. 3, 13, 18, 22

   Do now

   Without looking at the novel, rank the three deaths — Lupito's in Chapter 3, Narciso's in Chapter 13, Florence's in Chapter 22 — in order of the one you believe has the most significant impact on Antonio's faith. Write one sentence justifying your top choice. Maintain this ranking, as you will compare it with the text during the lesson.

   Teacher input

   Model a close reading of the dream sequence that follows Narciso's murder in Chapter 13. Focus on the moment when Antonio sees Narciso's blood staining the snow and hears the competing voices of the Márez and Luna families arguing over his soul. Show students how to analyze the dream as a narrative device: Anaya employs it to express Antonio's internal conflict, while the clashing voices embody the binary established in Chapter 1. Illustrate how to discuss form—the dream acts as a frame—and connect this choice to the theme of identity. Use the phrase "By presenting this as a dream, Anaya…" as a starting point for students to reshape or expand upon.

   Independent task

   Students will write three brief analytical responses—one for each death—comprising exactly two sentences each: the first sentence should include a quotation from the corresponding chapter and analyze a particular language choice; the second should clarify how that death contributes to Antonio's spiritual crisis in a way that the previous death did not. After completing the three responses, students will write a concluding evaluative sentence (at least 30 words) arguing which single death serves as the structural turning point of the novel and why. All four items should be submitted on one titled page.

   Exit ticket

   Explain in one or two full sentences why Anaya chooses to show Antonio hiding and watching Narciso die in Chapter 13 rather than intervening, and what this passivity reveals about the limits of childhood moral agency in the novel.

5. Lesson 5: Bury the Owl: Ultima's Death and Antonio's Achieved Identity in Chapter 22

   60 min · ch. 1, 2, 3, 6, 10, 11, 13, 15, 18, 19, 22

   Do now

   Open to the final pages of Chapter 22 and read from when Tenorio shoots Ultima's owl to Ultima's last instruction to Antonio. List every verb Ultima uses when she speaks to Antonio for the last time, then write a sentence explaining what these verbs collectively ask Antonio to do with his life.

   Teacher input

   Model a close reading of the passage in Chapter 22 where Ultima asks Antonio to bury the owl beneath the juniper tree. Pay attention to the significance of the juniper, which has been present at significant moments throughout the novel, and consider the verb 'bury' as an action that represents both an ending and a new beginning. Teach students how to craft a concluding analytical move: they can take a single image from the final chapter and use it to reflect on the entire novel, showing that Ultima's death doesn't erase what she has imparted to Antonio but rather makes it a part of him. Use the phrase 'The instruction to bury the owl enacts...' as a tool for transitioning from the image to the argument.

   Independent task

   Write a complete analytical essay of 600–800 words that responds to the following question: "How does Anaya use the character of Ultima to illustrate that identity is achieved rather than inherited?" Your essay should: begin with a clear argument in the first paragraph, rather than starting with a general introduction; explore at least three significant moments from different chapters of the novel, incorporating a quotation in each discussion; analyze specific language choices—such as nouns, verbs, and imagery—instead of merely summarizing events; address the Márez/Luna binary presented in Chapter 1 as the dilemma that Ultima helps Antonio navigate; and conclude with a paragraph that references Ultima's final instruction in Chapter 22—"bury the owl"—as support for your central argument. You may refer to your annotated paragraphs from Lessons 1–4. Avoid writing a plot summary. Submit the essay by the end of the period.

   Exit ticket

   Write one full sentence explaining what Antonio understands at the end of Chapter 22 that he did not understand at the start of Chapter 1, and identify the single moment in the novel — naming the chapter — that you believe is the hinge on which that understanding turns.

Activities

Assessment

• Lesson 1 exit ticket: checks whether students can locate Ultima outside the Márez/Luna binary using a single word of textual evidence.
• Lesson 1 paragraph: checks whether students can embed quotation and unpack connotation rather than paraphrase.
• Lesson 2 double paragraph: checks whether students can sustain a comparative argument across two chapters without plot summary.
• Lesson 3 exit ticket: checks whether students can interpret a symbolic event — Florence's drowning — as thematically ambiguous rather than simply tragic.
• Lesson 4 three-plus-one response: checks whether students can differentiate between three similar events and construct a hierarchy of significance with textual justification.
• Lesson 5 essay plan (first paragraph written in class before the full essay): checks whether students open with an argument rather than a biographical or contextual statement.

Standards covered

Common Core 11 12

• RL.11-12.1 — Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
• RL.11-12.2 — Determine two or more themes of a text and analyse their development over the course of the text.
• RL.11-12.3 — Analyse the impact of the author's choices regarding how to develop and relate elements of a story.
• RL.11-12.4 — Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyse the impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone.
• RL.11-12.6 — Analyse a case in which grasping a point of view or cultural experience requires distinguishing what is directly stated from what is really meant.

AP Literature

• Literary Argumentation (LAN-1) — Develop a thesis that makes a defensible claim about the literary work as a whole.
• Textual Evidence (STL-1) — Select and deploy relevant evidence from the text to support an interpretation.
• Figurative Language (FIG-1) — Explain the function of specific images, symbols and figurative language in the text.
• Narration (NAR-1) — Explain how a narrator's perspective shapes the presentation of a story and its meaning.
• Character (CHR-1) — Explain how an author's choices about character development contribute to an interpretation of the text as a whole.

AQA

• AO1 — Read, understand and respond to texts; maintain a critical style and develop an informed personal response; use textual references, including quotations, to support and illustrate interpretations.
• AO2 — Analyse the language, form and structure used by a writer to create meanings and effects, using relevant subject terminology where appropriate.
• AO3 — Show understanding of the relationships between texts and the contexts in which they were written and received.
• AO4 — Use a range of vocabulary and sentence structures for clarity, purpose and effect, with accurate spelling and punctuation.

IB Lit

• Criterion A — Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the work, including its cultural and historical context.
• Criterion B — Analyse the ways in which the author's choices of language, structure, technique and style shape meaning.
• Criterion C — Develop and sustain a focused and convincing line of argument in response to the text.

Leaving Cert

• Higher Level Single Text — Engage in close, critical reading of the chosen text, demonstrating understanding of theme, character and narrative technique.
• Higher Level Single Text — Respond to the text's cultural and social contexts, including the significance of the Chicano literary tradition, in a structured written argument.