Death and Rebirth of the Seneca - Softcover

Anthony F.C. Wallace

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0394415086 ISBN 13: 9780394415086

Publisher: Random House, 1972

Synopsis

his book can be read several ways-- as a chronicle of the American Revolution from the Native American point of view, as escapist literature glorifying the Iroquois in their heyday, as a rather challenging alternative perspective on serial monogamy, torture, and social norms, as the transformation of a branch of Native American spirituality into a movement for sobriety, right-to-life, and the renunciation of witchcraft, as analysis of an early Quaker effort in Third World development work ... And naturally, the overall reading is as the tale of how a proud culture pulled itself back together after being overrun and almost destroyed as a consequence of European settlement. Our local Heinz Regional History Museum somehow manages to overlook the story about the origins of the Handsome Lake spiritual movement. It so happened that there was a bend in the river, where now stands the Kinzua Dam, a flat spot surrounded by steep hills and cliffs, where the Cornplanter band, the largest remaining band of free living Senecas, took refuge after the Revolutionary War. The Senecas had served as winning warriors for the losing side, and as a result, refugee camps up near Fort Niagara filled up with thousands of Indians in need of British relief, mourning their burned-out towns and villages. In the ensuing atmosphere of despair, Handsome Lake and some of his Cornplanter band buddies decided to bring a raft with plenty of liquor up the river from Pittsburgh. The party that followed was-- well, let's just say that the repentance occurring in the wake of that rave gone awry launched a spiritual movement which continues to this day. (Amazon customer)

About this title

From the Back Cover:

This book tells the story of the late colonial and early reservation history of the Seneca Indians, and of the prophet Handsome Lake, his visions, and the moral and religious revitalization of an American Indian society that he and his followers achieved in the years around 1800.

Review:

"Until this volume, there has been no single book written that relates the history and life style of one of the Iroquois peoples with the encompassing depth and breadth of knowledge, clarity, and interest that the subject deserves. Finally, this book does it for the Seneca. It is enthralling history, told in a knowledgeable, highly readable way."

-- Alvin M. Joseph, Jr., author of The Indian Heritage of America

"This book is at once troubling and richly textured; for it draws skillfully and impartially on the resources of history, ethnology and psychology to chronicle the agony and decline of one of the proudest of American Indian peoples."

-- Morris Opler Book World

"Here is a carefully crafted masterpiece of anthropological and historical investigation. It is about both the specific renaissance of the Seneca and the possible renaissance of any people. On its specific subject matter, it will probably remain the definitive study for a long time."

-- Christian Science Monitor

About this edition

• Publisher: Random House
• Publication date: 1972
• ISBN 10: 0394415086
• ISBN 13: 9780394415086
• Binding: Paperback