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Florence is one of Antonio’s good friends, the only member of the group who is an atheist. Florence plays an important role in helping Antonio discover his own moral independence by challenging Antonio’s understanding of what makes a person sinful. Florence became orphaned young, and his older sisters have turned to sex work to support the family. He refuses to believe in a God who would allow a child to experience such a life. Initially, Antonio is terrified of Florence’s atheism because he believes it will damn Florence to hell, but he soon respects Florence’s beliefs even if he doesn’t hold them. He acknowledges that Florence’s difficult life is an injustice and cannot answer why God would allow it. The book itself portrays Florence’s sincere atheism as having more dignity than the shallow Catholicism of the others who merely go through the motions of confirmation. Just as Antonio will ultimately stand up for Florence, Florence refuses to back down from his beliefs even when they get him in trouble. In contrast, Bones and Horse barely pay attention in catechism and do not appear to understand what they’re learning. Their antics are merely comic relief.
Defending Florence from the mob of children is an important moment in Antonio’s moral education because it demonstrates his rejection of rigid morality based in judgment instead of compassion. It is this compassion that makes Antonio want to introduce Florence to the golden carp, hoping it can provide an alternative belief system for him to find meaning in. Florence’s death also galvanizes Antonio’s beliefs. Antonio refuses to go to Florence’s funeral because he doesn’t think it’s right that the church believes Florence is doomed to hell. This horror is echoed in his dream about Florence, Lupito, and Narciso, who claim they only exist in Antonio’s dreams because they are sinners. The sheer horror of the dream proves to Antonio that rigid morality cannot account for the complexity of the world, and he does not want to believe in ways that preach such narrow definitions of goodness. He cannot know if Florence is condemned to hell, but he can decide that he thinks such a fate would be unjust and stand by it.
