Auntie's mysterious personality

“Auntie” seems like the most mysterious and the most intriguing character in Ceremony. She is a person with a complex personality. Confused, she never accepted Tayo for who he was, at the same time she never denied him as someone who doesn’t belong to their milieu. Auntie was a main element in the developing and the progress of the book, as her character contributed in the problems that Tayo had to deal with since the day his mother left him with her. The anger that auntie felt towards her little sister started to shift towards Tayo, as Tayo was a constant reminder of the shame and the embarrassment caused by her sister when she slept with a white man and got pregnant with Tayo. When Tayo came back home from the war, it was Auntie who took care of him along with the help of Old grandma. However, Auntie never stopped her usual story about how the betrayal of her little sister was the cause of every misery that the family is enduring. But I believe that Auntie herself was confused. Her being Christian further complicated her personality and her behavior towards Tayo and towards life in general. Being involved in her church and listening to preaching about love and forgiveness did not seem to make her change her attitude towards her nephew. The embarrassment of the behavior of her sister was persistently haunting her. Auntie seemed willing to accommodate and please her church more than accommodating her own nephew who was in need for comfort and care. There is a clear conduct of hypocrisy when she was constantly correcting anyone who thought that Rocky and Tayo were brothers. She always seemed repulsed and disgusted of the idea of associating her son with Tayo. The word “half-breed” accompanied every sentence and any subject that concerned Tayo. Obviously Auntie from time to time, let an indication of love and concern slip from her. The author did not want the readers to paint this evil image of Auntie, but rather wanted to link Auntie’s behavior and conduct to Tayo’s, so the readers can understand that both of them are somehow the victims of their traditions and heritage as Native Americans. Auntie was very careful in disassociating herself from what her sister put her family through, but only in public. In her home, she was trying to do her best in treating Tayo, not as nephew but as a mistake of nature that she felt compelled to care for. Auntie seemed very aware of the awkward situation with Tayo, but deep down, she was trying to convince herself that treating Tayo as one of them is the same as denouncing her roots and her Christian beliefs. She had to bring up her little sister every time there is a problem with Tayo, especially at that time when Old Grandma decided to look for an alternative way to heal Tayo by suggesting medicine man instead of white people medicine. Throughout the book, I never suspected for a minute that Auntie was this heartless and insensitive person. I felt that she was carrying a burden for a long time that she could not take it anymore. She was a very vulnerable woman when it comes to gossip. All the gossip was about how Tayo; a half-breed is the main cause that ruined the reputation of Auntie’s family.