House Made of Dawn

# Essay Prompt: *House Made of Dawn* by N. Scott Momaday **Prompt:** In *House Made of Dawn*, N. Scott Momaday illustrates Abel's struggle to balance his Native American heritage with the disconnection brought by post-World War II American society. Write a well-organized essay that explores how Momaday employs **language, ritual, and landscape** as interwoven elements that either fragment or restore Abel's sense of identity. Your essay should present a clear argument about what the novel ultimately conveys regarding the connection between cultural belonging and personal wholeness. **Suggested length:** 4–6 paragraphs (or as directed by your teacher) **Pre-writing considerations:** - How does Momaday's lyrical, cyclical prose style reflect Abel's psychological and spiritual journey? - What significance do specific ceremonies or rituals (e.g., the dawn running) hold in Abel's healing process? - How does the Jemez Pueblo landscape serve as more than just a backdrop — as a vibrant presence linked to identity? - In what ways does Abel's experience in Los Angeles differ from his life on the reservation in terms of language and community?

ap_lit · common_core_ela · ib_lang_lit

# Essay Prompt: *House Made of Dawn* by N. Scott Momaday **Prompt:** In *House Made of Dawn*, N. Scott Momaday explores Abel's journey to reconcile his Native American identity with the isolating pressures of post-World War II American society. **Argue that Momaday employs the motifs of language, land, and ritual to convey that cultural identity is not entirely lost but rather fragmented and can be reclaimed through a reconnection with one's ancestral roots.** In your essay, be sure to: - Develop a clear, defensible thesis that explains how at least **two** of the three motifs (language, land, ritual) work together to support Momaday's main argument about identity. - Use **specific textual evidence** (scenes, imagery, dialogue, or narrative structure) to back up your claims. - Analyze how Momaday's writing style — including his incorporation of oral storytelling traditions, lyrical descriptions, and shifting perspectives — strengthens your argument. - Address a **counterclaim**: consider how Abel's ongoing failures and silences might imply that cultural recovery is incomplete or unattainable, then refute or complicate this interpretation. - Conclude by linking your argument to a broader theme concerning the relationship between **place, memory, and selfhood**. **Suggested Length:** 4–6 pages (approximately 1,000–1,500 words) **Evaluation Criteria:** Clarity of thesis, quality of textual evidence and analysis, engagement with complexity and counterargument, and proficiency in academic writing.

ap_lit · common_core_ela · ib_lang_lit

# Essay Prompt: *House Made of Dawn* by N. Scott Momaday **Prompt:** In *House Made of Dawn*, N. Scott Momaday explores Abel's struggle to come to terms with his Native American identity amid the alienating pressures of post-World War II American society. **Argue that Momaday uses Abel's fragmented journey — shifting between the Pueblo world of Walatowa and the urban setting of Los Angeles — as both a structural and thematic tool to illustrate that cultural displacement, not personal weakness, is the true source of Abel's pain and self-destruction.** In your essay, make sure to: - Analyze at least **two specific scenes or passages** that highlight the conflict between Abel's indigenous background and the prevailing white culture. - Examine how Momaday's **non-linear narrative structure** reflects Abel's psychological and cultural fragmentation. - Discuss the role of **language, ritual, and the land** as vital sources of identity and potential healing. - Consider how the novel's conclusion — Abel's return to running — serves as either a reclaiming of identity or an ambiguous act of resistance that remains unresolved. **Support your argument with textual evidence and engage with the novel's themes of trauma, memory, and belonging.**

ap_lit · common_core_ela · ib_lang_lit