Death Comes for the Archbishop is an uplifting title.
Just bear with us for a second here, Shmoopers. We have a really good reason for saying this; we're not just being morbid.
Check out the plot: we first meet Latour when he thinks he's facing certain death. He's thirsty and lost in the desert and the future doesn't look bright. But then what happens? He gets saved, goes on to do a bunch of great things, and dies satisfied at a pretty ripe old age.
That's a good way to go out, for reals. There's nothing super-sad about that. It's death, but it's not tragic.
And guess what else? Latour is based on the real life Jean-Baptiste Lamy, the first Archbishop of New Mexico. Lamy lived every bit as rockin' a life as Latour did. Then, decades after his death, a brilliant woman named Willa Cather came along and was mesmerized by Lamy's legacy and decided to write a historical novel based on his life.
That novel is still kicking around today, even though it was written in 1927. You, Shmooper, are aware of the life of Jean-Baptiste Lamy and his fictional counterpart Latour. Which means that, in a pretty big way, Lamy/Latour has gained immortality (at least thus far in history).
So what we're saying is that death both does and doesn't come for the Archbishop. His body dies (after an awesomesauce ride on the mortal carousel), but his name and life story live on.
Pretty cheerful, eh?