When it comes to understanding one's identity, it is important to acknowledge your heritage, - the beliefs, traditions and cultures passed down from preceding generations. These aspects play salient roles in shaping our identity today. In N. Scott Momaday - a famous Kiowa writer’s memoir “The Way to Rainy Mountain”, myth, history and individual experiences are combined to construct an understanding of his identity as a Kiowa Indian. Through the journey of pilgrimage, Momaday not only personally witnessed her grandmother Aho’s life as part of the Kiowa, but also drew a collective memory on the Kiowa people, exploring the roots of his own identity.

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One perfect example of combining myth, history and individual experience to understand cultural heritage and identity in the memoir is Tai-me, a two-feet tall small doll. It is known as the central figure of the Kiowa Sun Dance - a ritual that was the centerpiece of Kiowa spiritual life before the late nineteenth century. Kiowas make offerings to Tai-me for good luck, considering it foundational to Kiowa culture and life. “They acquired a sense of destiny, therefore courage and pride,” describes Momaday in the novel. Momaday uses the story of Tai-me's journey to explore the Kiowa people's past, present, and future. Since the Tai-me doll has been passed down through generations of Kiowa Indians, representing the Kiowa people’s journey through time and space, Momaday is able to feel a sense of deep connection. It seems as if Momaday is also part of “the journey”, allowing him to situate his personal experiences within a larger cultural narrative and historical experiences of the Kiowa people.

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Apart from addressing the Tai-me doll, its impact towards Kiowa culture and how it connects with Momaday’s personal experiences to explore his identity, Momaday provides snapshots of Kiowa history in his memoir, showing that his identity is part of the complex history. He gives an overview of Kiowa culture from the 17th to 20th century, mostly based on the information that has been passed down to him both in a written and oral tradition. When Momaday’s grandmother Aho was born, Kiowas had been taking great control for over a hundred years, ruling “the whole southern plains in alliance with the Comanches”. However, as warfare for the Kiowas was “more about disposition and bravery rather than survival”, the tribe got into a long conflict with the U.S. Cavalry. As a result of the unrelenting advance of the cavalry, they were

forced to flee onto the Staked Plains, where many warriors at battle surrendered to the soldiers and were imprisoned. Momaday’s brief narration of the Kiowas history that was filled with hardship and loss presents how his identity is a product of this traumatic past and shaped today.

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The powerful use of language throughout the memoir and the way it is introduced plays an important role in diving into the roots of Momaday’s identity. This is evident in the first paragraph of the memoir, where Momaday gives a detailed sensory description of Rainy Mountain. “Winter brings blizzards...in the summer the prairie is an anvil’s edge...loneliness is an aspect of the land”. Not only does Momaday give a background of the physical characteristics of Rainy Mountain, but also highlights the fact that the landscape is the only geographical remnant of the Kiowa culture, therefore starting off the memoir with the home of Kiowa, appealing to the five senses. From the first few lines we can already note that the language used to describe the location contrasts from being objective and scientific, reaching the author’s purpose of letting readers feel as if Rainy Mountain is infused with a tint of mythicality. Through the foreboding sense of mystery Momaday aims to immerse himself into the landscape, pushing him closer to the Kiowa mythology and bringing him one step closer to understanding his identity.

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In the memoir “The Way to River Mountain”, I believe that Momaday embarked on a fruitful pilgrimage journey, effectively combining both his initial and new understandings of Kiowa history, myth and personal experiences to understand his true identity. Through the myth and cultural symbol of the Tai-me doll, the historical background of the Kiowa culture and the powerful use of language, Momaday is able to paint a comprehensive picture of his cultural roots. From the exploration of his identity Momaday realizes that he is not only made of his personal experiences and events in modern society but also the heritage of his ancestors and the wider world he is part of. By digging deep into one’s identity, one can understand a new side of themselves, making better, informed decisions in the future whilst helping others to do so, too.