Publisher
The University of Arizona.Rights
Copyright © is held by the author. Digital access to this material is made possible by the University Libraries, University of Arizona. Further transmission, reproduction or presentation (such as public display or performance) of protected items is prohibited except with permission of the author.Abstract
The published works of Cherokee history, written from the Anglo-American cultural perspective, do not discuss how the culture and social structure disintegrated between the time of European contact and the "Trail of Tears." By reinterpreting the events of that period from a Cherokee perspective, the author hopes to explain the mechanisms involved in the collapse of traditional Cherokee social structures. The roles of the War Organization, and of women within that institution, are elaborated upon. The great tribal leader, Dragging Canoe, is discussed at length. The corruption of American-defined tribal leaders within the weakened Cherokee Nation during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries is considered as one of the principal factors in the downfall of the Cherokee people.Type
textThesis-Reproduction (electronic)
Degree Name
M.A.Degree Level
mastersDegree Program
Graduate CollegeAmerican Indian Studies