Student Question
How do characters in Dance Hall of the Dead handle prejudice, and what message does the novel convey about discrimination?
Quick answer:
Characters in "Dance Hall of the Dead" navigate prejudice through internal conflicts and cultural clashes among the Navajo, Zuñi, and Anglo communities. Detective Leaphorn faces biases and learns to appreciate Zuñi traditions, highlighting the novel's message of the destructive nature of discrimination and the value of cultural preservation. The story critiques societal prejudice, with characters like George Bowlegs and Ernesto Cata embodying the struggles of identity and acceptance within and between their communities.
In Dance Hall of the Dead, Tony Hillerman depicts the differences and tensions among the Navajo, Zuñi, and Anglo communities in New Mexico. Navajo detective Joseph Leaphorn investigates the death of Ernesto Cata, a young Zuñi boy, and the disappearance of George Bowlegs, Ernesto's friend—as the Zuñi prepare for the upcoming Shalako ceremony.
A Navajo, George feels his tribe's belief system is lacking something his mystical nature needs. He wants to become a Zuñi and learns about traditions of the tribe from Ernesto. George deals with his dislike of his own tribe by trying to become someone else. Yet his decisions and actions lead to the breaking of a taboo regarding the sharing of Zuñi beliefs and customs, a deed that worries both Ernesto and George.
The events of the novel reveal that the Zuñis have a cherished and protected spirituality and a certain continuity in their history. At...
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one point during his quest, George even approached a Zuñi elder about learning sorcery but only angered the old man. This dedication to their traditions and cohesiveness of their community seems to impart the Zuñis with a spiritual knowledge and power that the other communities fear and secretly admire.
During his investigation, Leaphorn encounters prejudice and mistrust directed against the Zuñi and the Navajo and between the tribes. He admits to his lack of knowledge about Zuñi beliefs and his own misgivings against the tribe, due to his clashes with his Zuñi roommate at Arizona State University. The Zuñi police chief, Ed Pasquaanti, expresses a dismissive attitude toward George, leaving Leaphorn with regrets about raising the topic of George's school experience:
Pasquaanti would simply remind them all that Bowlegs was a Navajo—thereby explaining the gap in academic performance.
Leaphorn feels a reluctance to learn and engage with the Zuñis and admits to himself, "It was because he felt that Zuñis felt superior to Navajos." Yet later on, he thinks the Zuñis have done a better job than the Navajos of surviving and preserving their customs.
Leaphorn's interviews with the community members reveal their attitudes as well as provide insight into the Navajo, Zuñi, and Catholic religions. Archaeologists Ted Isaacs and Dr. Reynolds have their own agendas about interacting with the tribes. Cecil Bowlegs, George's younger brother, declares to Leaphorn, "I do'’t think Ernesto was a friend. Not really a friend . . . He was a goddamn Zuñi," thus blaming Ernesto for leading George astray. In contrast, Susanne, a young Anglo woman living at the hippie commune, mourns the death of Ernesto, expresses admiration for the Zuñi way (along with compassion for George Bowlegs), and later teams up with Leaphorn in the search for George.
Leaphorn describes to Isaacs the prejudice against Native cultures in general during his time at a Bureau of Indian Affairs high school, which displayed a banner stating "tradition is the enemy of progress,"—a not so subtle attempt to get Native students to disengage with their tribes. During the conversation, Leaphorn inadvertently reveals his anger:
He didn't mean it to sound bitter, but Isaacs gave him a quizzical look.
Other examples of unease and ambivalence about Native identity include the Anglo names of the Navajo boys and Ernesto's dual role as Little Fire God and altar boy the Catholic church.
The events of the novel build up to the climax at the Shalako ceremony: revealing why George was interested in finding Kothluwalawa (the dance hall of the dead), the motivations of the archaeologists, and the price paid for violating the Zuñi way.
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