Rudolfo Anaya

In the second half of the 20th century, numerous minority groups began to see greater representation in the arts; from visual arts to performing arts to literary arts, individuals of every color and creed began to have their unique voices heard. For Chicanos - people of Mexican-American descent - and other Latinx groups, one of the earliest and strongest voices in the literary arts was that of Rudolfo Anaya, author of Bless Me, Ultima, in 1972.

In his various writings, Anaya incorporates elements of his childhood in New Mexico, from the rural environment of his early years to his experiences in Albuquerque as a teenager. In 1963, he earned a Bachelor of Arts in English and American Literature from the University of New Mexico; he followed this with a Master of Arts in English from the same institution in 1968. Though he began his first novel shortly after completing his undergraduate work, it was not published until 1972; while the book was difficult to get published, it was well worth the effort. Bless Me, Ultima, would impact generations of Chicano and Latinx writers, and would open the door for Anaya to join the faculty of his alma mater in 1975.

Bless Me, Ultima was Anaya's first of a trilogy of books that would come to be described as indicative of the new voice of American literature; the remaining two were Heart of Aztlan, published in 1976, and Tortuga, from 1979. Because of the caliber of his work, his incorporation of cultural, social, and religious traditions among Chicanos, his description of the landscapes of the American Southwest, and his usage of a multilingual approach in his writing, Anaya has given the American literary tradition a new perspective, one that diverts from the mainstream and offers a full and complete picture of the lives and experiences of an often marginalized group. As such, his literary contributions have expanded the worldview of countless readers throughout the nation and around the globe, leaving an indelible mark even after Anaya's passing.