Dakota Philosopher

by Martinez, David

• ISBN13: 9780873516297
• ISBN10: 087351629X
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2009-01-15
• Publisher: Minnesota Historical Society Pr

Summary

Charles Eastman straddled two worlds in his life and writing. The author ofIndian Boyhoodwas raised in the traditional way after the 1862 U.S.-Dakota War. His father later persuaded him to study Christianity and attend medical school. But when Eastman served as a government doctor during the Wounded Knee massacre, he became disillusioned about Americans' capacity to live up to their own ideals. While Eastman's contemporaries viewed him as "a great American and a true philosopher," Indian scholars have long dismissed Eastman's work as assimilationist. Now, for the first time, his philosophy as manifested in his writing is examined in detail. David Martinez explores Eastman's views on the U.S.-Dakota War, Dakota and Ojibwe relations, Dakota sacred history, and citizenship in the Progressive Era, claiming for him a long overdue place in America's intellectual pantheon.

Table of Contents

Preface: Stranger in America: Eastman as Role Model
"The Greatest Sioux of the Century": Eastman and the Pursuit of an Indigenous Philosophy	p. 3
The Traditions of Their Fathers: Eastman and Dakota Sacred History	p. 25
From Enemies to Pan-Indian Allies: Eastman on Dakota-Ojibwe Relations	p. 55
"For the Honor of the Race and the Good of the Country": Eastman and the Progressive Indian Agenda	p. 83
Exile From Mnisota Makoce: Eastman and the 7862 U.S.-Dakota War	p. 123
Epilogue: Return to Minnesota: Eastman's Legacy	p. 153
Notes	p. 167
Index	p. 179
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