The Careless Me Ultima Exorcism Analysis

During the exorcism of Lucas, Tony was pampered and treated like Ultima’s own. Yet this was only because Ultima was using him. She tucks him into bed. She feeds him homemade meals. Only because Tony is necessary to the exorcism. Ultima doesn’t always think that Tony can be used as a tool (in fact, this is the only time she does this), but this is the exception. Everyone else around him, mainly his brothers, father, and mother use him. They believe him to be a means to an end. For the brothers, Tony isn’t an equal, he’s an inferior. He is segregated. The only purpose he serves to his brother is fulfill the expectations that were put in place on them. For both the mother and the father, Tony is there to be a tool to accomplish their dreams. For the mom, she wants Tony to be a strong Luna priest,
All these people imprint so many different ideologies onto Tony and he has no idea what to believe in. On the other hand, Tony feels at home with his peers, Cico and Samuel. Cico, however, has the focus in this book. He explains to Tony the idea of the Golden Carp. Cico regards Tony as an equal and a partner in learning. The Golden Carp that Cico talks about also represents something deep inside Tony. The Carp is a symbol of new knowledge and information about the world. With the Carp and Cico, it’s a new outlook on how the Universe works. Later that night, Tony dreams. Ultima appears in that dream, and she says ‘You have seen only parts’, Ultima in the dream is vocalizing her thoughts about Tony’s perspective, ‘and not looking beyond the great cycle that binds us all’(121). Keep in mind Tony is still incredibly young. La Grande is telling him that he needs to stop having this perspective of everything operating in black and white, and to see the bigger picture. Later in the next chapter, Ultima gives Tony a gift. She tells Tony, ‘You’re a good boy, now come here. I have something for you. The