On The Theme Of Initiation In Scott Momaday’s House Made Of Dawn

N.Scott Momady is the first Native American novelist to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction,who is also known as a pioneer of the Native American Renaissance.His award-winning novel House Made of Dawn tells a story of how an Indian teenager started to think about himself,society,and culture step by step in the initiation process full of difficulties and frustrations,and finally chose to return to his tribe.It is a representative American initiation story that explores the survival predicament of Native American youths in their process of initiation.This thesis mainly analyzes the initiation theme in House Made of Dawn by identifying it as an American initiation story.The first thing is to survey the complex initiation inclemency faced by a Native American teenager,Abel.Secondly,the emphasis of the thesis goes to his initiation process,from the awakening in self-consciousness,his efforts in trying to be integrated into both societies,his choice of compromise,to his final return to the tribe by truly understanding the Native American culture and establishing ethnic awareness with the help of mentors.Although the protagonist himself has finished his initiation journey,the contradictions between Native American youths and mainstream society still exist.By paying attention to the initiation theme of Indian teenagers,Momaday analyzes the general initiation inclemency they might encounter and suggests a different choice for their future development.This suggestion is full of Momaday’s confidence in Native American culture and hope in the future development of the tribes.At the same time,the novel provides readers with enlightenment that they should constantly adjust and understand themselves to obtain maturity and development through accurate self-positioning in the process of their initiation journey.