Book

The eastern Cherokees

AMS Press (23) • Published In 1978 • Pages: 169-413

By: Gilbert, William Harlen.

Abstract
The purpose of this document is four-fold and it is organized in four corresponding parts: 1) a description of Eastern Cherokee society on the Qualla Indian Reservation as it is represented by the community of Big Cove in 1932; 2) a functional analysis of Eastern Cherokee society at Big Cove; 3) a description and functional analysis of Cherokee society in the 18th century; and 4) a discussion of the changes in Cherokee social organization during the 18th and 19th centuries. The description of Eastern Cherokee society at Big Cove in 1932, covering the environment, descriptive somatology, economic, social, and political organization, and life cycle, provide the most useful information in this source. For several reasons the author's treatment of Cherokee society in the 18th century and his discussion of change in Cherokee society is much less useful. First, he fails to adequately define the temporal dimension of his discussion of 'former' Cherokee society. Second, his method of analyzing social change consists of comparing 'former' (18th century) society with 'present' Cherokee society at Big Cove; he labels the difference between the two 'social change' and, moreover, this is grossly underanalyzed. Finally, by the author's own admission, Big Cove is the most conservative community on the Qualla Reservation; he provides no details as to why Big Cove was selected as a study site nor does he examine the implications of his choice for the analysis of change in Eastern Cherokee society. The appendices of this document consist of briefly annotated bibliographies of primary source materials on the Cherokee and should be of use to students familiarizing themselves with the literature on the historic Cherokee.
Subjects
Kinship terminology
Kin relationships
Regulation of marriage
Clans
Grandparents and grandchildren
Avuncular and nepotic relatives
Parents-in-law and children-in-law
Siblings-in-law
Family relationships
Mythology
Informal in-group justice
Execution of justice
Community structure
Magical and mental therapy
Mourning
Information sources listed in other works
culture
Cherokee
HRAF PubDate
2000
Region
North America
Sub Region
Eastern Woodlands
Document Type
Book
Evaluation
Creator Type
Ethnologist
Document Rating
4: Excellent Secondary Data
5: Excellent Primary Data
Analyst
Gerald Reid ; 1988
Field Date
1932
Coverage Date
1540-1932
Coverage Place
Town of Big Cove, Eastern Cherokee Indian Reservation, North Carolina, United States
Notes
by William Harlen Gilbert, Jr.
Originally presented as the author's thesis, University of Chicago, 1934
Reprint of the 1943 ed. published by the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, which was issued as no. 23 of Smithsonian Institution, Bureau of American Ethnology
Includes bibliographical references (p. 402-413)
LCCN
76043714
LCSH
Cherokee Indians