House Made of Dawn Character Analysis

Abel

Abel is the protagonist of the story, but he remains an enigma for most of the narrative. The reader gets only sparse glimpses into his background and motivations, mirroring the confusion and lack of understanding… read analysis of Abel

Francisco

Francisco is Abel’s grandfather. After the deaths of Abel’s mother and brother Vidal, Francisco is Abel’s only living relative, and he becomes Abel’s guardian. Before Vidal’s death, Francisco endeavors to teach his grandsons… read analysis of Francisco

Reverend John Big Buff Tosamah

Reverend Tosamah, also known as the Priest of the Sun, is a Kiowa priest in Los Angeles who holds Pan-Indigenous sermons for Native Americans in the city. He is educated and lives away from his… read analysis of Reverend John Big Buff Tosamah

Ben Benally

Ben Benally is Abel’s friend and roommate in Los Angeles, as well as the narrator of “The Night Chanter.” Ben is a religious man who believes strongly in the power of prayer through song… read analysis of Ben Benally

Angela St. John

Angela St. John is a wealthy white woman who moves into the Benevides House near Walatowa. She and Abel have a brief sexual affair. Despite her privilege, Angela is troubled, afraid of her secret pregnancy… read analysis of Angela St. John

Father Olguin

Father Olguin is the Catholic priest in Walatowa. Most of the townspeople prefer the traditional Jemez religion to Catholicism, leaving Father Olguin an outsider in the community. He attempts different strategies to cope with this… read analysis of Father Olguin

Juan Reyes Fragua/The Albino Man

Juan Reyes Fragua, who is only referred to by name once in the novel, is the man whom Abel murders at the end of “The Longhair.” During a ceremonial ritual, the albino man beats Abel… read analysis of Juan Reyes Fragua/The Albino Man

Milly

Milly is Abel’s social worker with whom he starts a sexual relationship. Though Milly is more idealistic than Abel, believing in the American Dream and in Abel’s personal potential, the two of them bond… read analysis of Milly

Martinez

Martinez is a violent Los Angeles policeman who targets the city’s Native American population. He extorts money from Ben and physically attacks Abel when he has no funds to give him. When Abel later tries… read analysis of Martinez

Porcingula

Porcingula is a young woman with whom Francisco has a youthful dalliance. She shares a name with the Feast of Porcingula, a Jemez holiday in honor of Santa Maria de los Angeles. She is ostracized… read analysis of Porcingula

Minor Characters

Vidal

Vidal is Abel’s brother who dies in childhood. He dies shortly after his mother, leaving Francisco as Abel’s only remaining relative.

Aho

Aho is Tosamah’s grandmother and the subject of his sermon about the power of words. In her lifetime, Aho is a storyteller who honors the oral tradition. She also bears witness as a child to the last Kiowa sun dance, which is interrupted by U.S. soldiers.

Fray Nicolás

Fray Nicolás is Father Olguin’s predecessor as Walatowa’s Catholic priest. His perspective is revealed through a journal that Father Olguin reads. Nicolás believes Indigenous religions are evil, equating them to devil-worship, and he grows increasingly unstable and paranoid in his later years in Walatowa.

Fat Josie

Fat Josie is a woman in Walatowa who tries to comfort Abel after the death of his mother and heals his back after he falls off a horse.

Cruz

Cruz is a disciple of Tosamah who lives with him and attends social gatherings with Tosamah, Ben Benally, and Abel.