Colonialism on the Prairies Blackfoot Settlement and Cultural Transformation, 1870–1920
In the series:
First Nations and the Colonial Encounter
Blanca Tovías
Author text to follow
This book spans a century in the history of the Blackfoot
First Nations of present-day Montana and Alberta. It maps out specific
ways in which Blackfoot culture persisted amid the drastic transformations
of colonization, with its concomitant forced assimilation in both
Canada and the United States. It portrays the strategies and tactics
adopted by the Blackfoot in order to navigate political, cultural
and social change during the hard transition from traditional lifeways
to life on reserves and reservations. … Cultural
continuity is the thread that binds the four case studies presented,
encompassing Blackfoot sacred beliefs and ritual; dress practices;
the transmission of knowledge; and the relationship between oral
stories and contemporary fiction. Blackfoot voices emerge forcefully
from the extensive array of primary and secondary sources consulted,
resulting in an inclusive history wherein Blackfoot and non-Blackfoot
scholarship enter into dialogue. Blanca Tovías combines historical
research with literary criticism, a strategy that is justified by
the interrelationship between Blackfoot history and the stories
from their oral tradition. Chapters devoted to examining cultural
continuity discuss the ways in which oral stories continue to inspire
contemporary Native American fiction. … This
interdisciplinary study is a celebration of Blackfoot culture and
knowledge that seeks to revalorize the past by documenting Blackfoot
resistance and persistence across a wide spectrum of cultural practice.
The volume is essential reading for all scholars working in the
fields of Native American studies, colonial and postcolonial history,
ethnology and literature.
