House Made of Dawn

Winning the Pulitzer prize in 1969, House Made of Dawn is credited as a breakthrough piece for introducing the concept of Native American literature to mainstream audiences while also challenging a white-dominated literary status quo. In what ways do Momaday’s choices in House Made of Dawn both play with Western forms and subvert them to create a distinct literary style?    

• What expectations come with writing labeled as literature?
• What elements of Western style does Momaday use?
• What elements of the novel could be seen as Indigenous in style?
• How is the novel structured? Consider literary elements, such as plot, conflict, point of view, and theme.
• In what ways does the novel meet literary expectations?
• In what ways does the novel challenge literary expectations? How do these challenges support themes and messages within the novel? 
• How does Momaday use elements of style and structure to create unity in House Made of Dawn?

Teaching Suggestion: This discussion is intended to transition students into the Visualizing Unity Activity. Students may benefit from written copies of the questions to refer to while discussing. Allowing students to preview questions ahead of time may help them prepare more in-depth answers and refer more directly to the text. Group or personal notetaking may increase information retention and student engagement.