Montana 1948

Consider the relationship between Law and Law Enforcement and Family Loyalty in the novella. How does each member of the Hayden family respond when the two ideas collide? Ultimately, what point is Watson trying to make about the perpetuation of racism and crime?

Teaching Suggestion: This question invites students to consider their responses to the Personal Connection Prompt in the context of Watson’s novella. Wesley feels conflicted about arresting his brother for sexual assault and possibly murder, but Wesley’s father believes in the importance of Family Loyalty and urges Wesley to release his brother, claiming that the charge is not serious since it is related to a female Indigenous American, and that Frank’s status as both a Hayden and Wesley’s brother is more important than the law. Wesley’s wife implores her husband to uphold the sanctity of Law and Law Enforcement and protect Indigenous women by arresting his brother, and though she later asks her husband to release him so that she can feel safe again, Wesley ultimately sides with the law. Although Watson’s novella departs from the traditional mid-20th century narratives on racism since the character chooses to take the side of the traditionally marginalized person (i.e., an Indigenous woman), the silence at the end of the novella implies that Racism will be perpetuated in future Bentrock generations.