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15 - Marginally Mainstream: Momaday, Silko, Erdrich, and Alexie

from Part III - Native American Renaissance (Post-1960s)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 September 2020

Melanie Benson Taylor
Affiliation:
Dartmouth College, New Hampshire
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Summary

This chapter explains how particular Native writers in the US have come to serve as reference points and to receive widespread recognition, while others, equally worthy, have not. In particular, I focus on N. Scott Momaday (Kiowa), Leslie Marmon Silko (Laguna Pueblo), Louise Erdrich (Turtle Mountain Ojibwe), and Sherman Alexie (Spokane-Coeur d'Alene) as the four Native authors who have been most frequently singled out for attention and "canonized" within mainstream American culture. I identify factors that created a favorable reception for their works, and most importantly, I explore what it means for these authors to be "marginally mainstream." On the one hand, to be "marginally mainstream" is to be deemed worthy of recognition by the critical establishment, which often entails overemphasizing "universal" literary qualities to the detriment of tribally specific elements. At the same time, however, to be "marginally mainstream" suggests that these texts continue to speak eloquently to Native audiences in meaningful ways.

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Chapter
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Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2020

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References

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