Eighteenth-Century Treaties
Amended Iroquois Condolence Rituals
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 4039829 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Michael M Pomedli, Michael Pomedli (corresponding author) |
| Year | 1995 |
| Volume | 19 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 319 |
| Publication date | 1995-01-01 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | The American Indian Quarterly (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0095-182X • E-ISSN: 1534-1828 |
| Publisher | JSTOR (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.2307/1185594 |
| OpenAlex | W2313512989 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
| References cited | 6 |
In the 18th century, Benjamin Franklin and other collectors had a fascination for Indian treaties. Franklin collected for publication thirteen treaties made from 1736 to 1762. The Julian Boyd edition of 1938 gives exact facsimiles of the printed versions.: A reading of these treaties reveals that they are more than legal documents. Since they are minutes of deliberations, they disclose a quasiformality, but their form is more narration than codification. The treaties also are noteworthy in that they are concerned with human relationshipsbroken, mending, strengthened, and celebrated. The treaties evoke a tension of differing approaches to life and relationships. While they are written in English and demonstrate a European style and cultural perspective, they resonate Iroquoian words and worlds, sometimes quite explicitly. While Europeans took minutes of the proceedings through interpreters, and perceived events through their own eyes, there is evidence of an overarching format and context not of European fashioning. In this article, I contend these thirteen treaties have a religious and spiritual celebratory character in which the Iroquois invite and even demand that fellow Aboriginals and the English move beyond mercenary concerns to that of human fellowship. The Iroquois are in the realm of the mysterious, transcending secular conceptions of the import of human affairs. They admit to resources beyond their own powers and to an idealized movement beyond human imaginings. That goal is typified in the Deganawidah Epic which sees the fruit of human endeavors as that of solidarity of brother with brother in the fellowship of peace.2 As I examine these treaties, I will point out the Iroquois influence on their form and content. I will then focus on the parallels between these treaties and the Iroquois Condolence rite, arguing that the treaties were amended forms of that rite. As such they are religious ritual.3 I will discuss the spiritual basis for the treaties, noting their use of symbols and language in ritual performances as different from stenographic and legal language. I will consider contemporary interpretations of these treaties, and allude to the application of the spiritual interpretation of these and other treaties
Ancient history · Archaeology · Canadian Identity and History · History · Indigenous Health, Education, and Rights · Philippine History and Culture
| Citations per year | 0.21 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2012 - 2021 (10) |
| Highly cited | No |