Anthropology 336L (30185) and American Studies 321 (29580)
Native American Cultures North of Mexico
T/TH 9:30-11:00 AM, Calhoun Hall 100
Professor Circe Sturm
Office: EPS 2.112D (232-1561), circe@austin.utexas.edu
Office Hours: Tuesdays 2:30-4:30 PM
Teaching Assistants:
Czarina Thelen
Monique Ribeiro
Office: EPS 4.110
Office: EPS 4.110
cza6@mail.utexas.edu
mho.ribeiro@gmail.com
Office Hours: Thursdays 11-12:30
Office Hours Tuesdays 12:30-2:00
Course Description
This course provides an introduction to the historical and contemporary experiences of
the Native American peoples of North America. Though our primary focus will be on
tribal communities in the United States, some attention will be paid to First Nations of
Canada and Mexico as well. Students will be exposed to a range of “voices,” including
Native American artists, scholars and activists, Native and non-Indian social scientists
that specialize in the culture, history, and anthropology of Native North America. The
readings will range from primary historical documents and ethnographies, to creative
and autobiographical accounts. Course content will cover key issues and topics critical to
Native communities, with an in depth focus on several specific tribes as they are
represented in the required texts.
One organizing theme of the course will be the ongoing relationship between tribal
nations and the US government, a relationship that has been characterized by equal
parts continuity and change. We will explore the tension between Native American
autonomy and dependence that is reflected in the complex legal status and identity that
Native Americans continue to face—as US citizens, as racial “others,” as federal “wards,”
and as proud members of sovereign nations. Understanding how Native Americans have
been able to successfully negotiate this difficult terrain provides an important focus for
the lectures and readings of this course.
By its very nature, a semester long course cannot pretend to cover all of the important
events and topics in Native American social, cultural and political history, and this
course is only intended to serve as an introduction to the field. By the end of the
semester, however, students should have a firm understanding of the great diversity and
complexity of Native North American cultures.
Requirements
Because the course relies upon a blend of lecture and discussion, reading in advance is
required. Students should arrive with questions and ideas, and be prepared to discuss
1
readings in class. Students are also required to keep up with the key points presented in
each class meeting. If you are having difficulty with any of the ideas presented in class,
then it is your responsibility to meet with other students or to attend my office hours to
clarify course materials. Please use these opportunities to your advantage!
Assignments will be due at the beginning of class and there will be no make-up exams,
incompletes, or time extensions, except in the case of documented emergencies. The
scale for final grades is such that 90 to 100% = A; 80 to 89% = B; 70 to 79% = C; 60 to
69% = D; 59% and below = F.
You will be evaluated on the following basis:
mid-term
final exam
research paper
attendance
reading quizzes
25%
25%
30%
10%
10%
100%
Readings
Books
1. Alexie, Sherman (Spokane/Couer D’Alene). 1995. Reservation Blues. New York:
Atlantic Monthly Press.
2. Basso, Keith H. 1996. Wisdom Sits in Places: Landscape and Language among
the Western Apache. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press.
3. Crow Dog, Mary (Lakota) and Richard Erdoes. 1991. Lakota Woman. New York:
Harpers Perennial.
4. Deloria, Philip J. (Dakota) 2004. Indians in Unexpected Places. Lawrence:
University Press of Kansas.
5. Garroutte, Eva Marie (Cherokee). 2003. Real Indians: Identity and the Survival
of Native America. Berkeley: University of California Press.
6. Nabokov, Peter. 1991. Native American Testimony: A Chronicle of Indian-White
Relations from Prophecy to the Present, 1492-1992. New York: Viking Press.
7. Starn, Orin. 2005. Ishi’s Brain: In Search of America’s Last “Wild” Indian. New
York: W. W. Norton & Co.
Additional required readings will be posted on Blackboard. These will consist of short
scholarly articles and a few popular culture pieces. You can download copies at your
convenience.
Documented Disability Statement
2
Any student with a documented disability who requires academic accommodations
should contact Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) at (512) 471-6259 (voice) or
1-866-329-3986 (video phone), http://www.utexas.edu/diversity/ddce/ssd/. Faculty are
not required to provide accommodations without an official accommodation letter from
SSD. Please notify me as early in the semester as possible if disability-related
accommodations are required to ensure your full participation in the course.
University of Texas Honor Code
The core values of The University of Texas at Austin are learning, discovery, freedom,
leadership, individual opportunity, and responsibility. Each member of the university is
expected to uphold these values through integrity, honesty, trust, fairness, and respect
toward peers and community. Each student in this course is expected to abide by the
University of Texas Honor Code. Any work submitted by a student in this course for
academic credit will be the student's own work. You are encouraged to study together
and to discuss information and concepts covered in lecture and the sections with other
students. You can give "consulting" help to or receive "consulting" help from such
students. However, this permissible cooperation should never involve one student
having possession of a copy of all or part of work done by someone else, in the form of an
email, an email attachment file, a diskette, or a hard copy. Should copying occur, both
the student who copied work from another student and the student who gave material to
be copied will both automatically receive a zero for the assignment. Penalty for violation
of this Code can also be extended to include failure of the course and University
disciplinary action. During examinations, you must do your own work. Talking or
discussion is not permitted during the examinations, nor may you compare papers, copy
from others, or collaborate in any way. Any collaborative behavior during the
examinations will result in failure of the exam, and may lead to failure of the course and
University disciplinary action.
Laptop Use Policy
Classroom Laptop use for taking notes related to this course only. Please see me for an
agreement form if you are planning on using a laptop in class for “notetaking.” Laptop
activities unrelated to this course will lead to dismissal from class (and marked as an
absence for that day). Repeat offenders will result in a filing of a report of academic
problems. Other Electronic Devices (Cell phone, Blackberry, I-Phone, etc.) Use Policy –
All devices must be turned off during class. Any use of these devices, including texting,
websurfing, etc. will lead to dismissal from class (and marked as an absence for that
day). Repeat offenders will result in a filing of a report of academic problems.
Use of E-mail for Official Correspondence to Students
Please do not use the class email for selling football tickets or other activities unrelated
to our course. All students should become familiar with the University's official e-mail
student notification policy. It is the student's responsibility to keep the University
informed as to changes in his or her e-mail address. Students are expected to check email on a frequent and regular basis in order to stay current with University-related
communications, recognizing that certain communications may be time-critical. It is
recommended that e-mail be checked daily, but at a minimum, twice per week. The
3
complete text of this policy and instructions for updating your e-mail address are
available at http://www.utexas.edu/its/policies/emailnotify.html
<http://www.utexas.edu/its/policies/emailnotify.html>.
Accommodations for Religious Holidays
By UT Austin policy, you must notify me of your pending absence at least fourteen days
prior to the date of observance of a religious holy day. If you must miss a class, an
examination, a work assignment, or a project in order to observe a religious holy day,
you will be given an opportunity to complete the missed work within a reasonable time
after the absence.
Changes to Course Syllabus
I reserve the right to change or amend the course syllabus as necessary, primarily due to
any unforeseen circumstances that may arise during the course of the semester.
4
Course Schedule
Aug. 26
Introduction and Aims of the Course
READ: Start reading Deloria, Introduction
PART ONE: SOCIAL AND HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
Aug. 31
Who are American Indians and Where Did They Come From? Origin
Stories and the Peopling of the Americas
READ: Testimony, Chapter 1; Deloria, Chapter 1
Sep. 2
European Contact and “The Colombian Exchange”
READ: Testimony, Chapter 2; Deloria Chapter 2
Sep. 7
Race, Manifest Destiny and Colonialism
READ: Deloria, Chapters 3 and 4
Sep. 9
Treaty Making and Diplomacy and Early Pan-Indian Resistance
READ: Testimony, Chapters 6 and 7
Sep. 14
Reading Quiz and Classroom Discussion of Deloria
READ: Deloria, Chapter 5 and Conclusion
Sep. 16
Early Policies of Assimilation: Missionization and Education
READ: Testimony, Chapters 4 and 5; Begin Basso, Preface
Sep. 21
Native American Boarding School Experiences: “Kill the Indian, Save the
Child.”
READ: Testimony, Chapter 11; Basso, Chapters 1 and 2
Sep. 23
Removal Policy: Andrew Jackson and the Five “Civilized” Tribes
Assign Research Paper Topics
READ: Testimony, Chapter 8, 9 and 10
Sep. 28
Allotment: The Dawes Act and Its Implications
READ: Testimony, Chapters 12 and 13; Basso Ch. 3
Sep. 30
Reading Quiz and Classroom Discussion of Basso
READ: Basso, Chapter 4 and Epilogue
Oct. 5
The Indian Reorganization Act: Class Exercise
READ: Testimony, Chapter 15; Begin Crow Dog, Chapters 1-4
Oct. 7
Termination and Relocation
READ: Testimony, Chapter 16; Crow Dog Chapters 5-7
Oct. 12
Urban Indians, Native American Civil Rights Activism
Read: Testimony Chapters 14 and 17; Crow Dog Chapters 8-10
Oct. 14
***Midterm Examination***
5
READ: Crow Dog, Chapters 11-13
PART TWO: CONTEMPORARY ISSUES
Oct. 19
Reading Quiz and Classroom Discussion of Crow Dog and Film
READ: Finish Crow Dog, 14-16 and Epilogue
Oct. 21
Film: “Ishi: The Last Yahi”
READ: Begin Starn, Prologue and Chapters 1-3
Oct. 26
Tribal Sovereignty
READ: Testimony, Chapter 18; Starn, Chapters 4-6
Oct. 28
NAGPRA
READ: Starn, Chapters 7-10
Nov. 2
Stereotypes and Discrimination
The Great Mascot Debate
Film “In Whose Honor?”
READ: Starn Chapters 11-14
Nov. 4
Land Rights and Sacred Sites
READ: Finish Starn, Chapters 15-17 and Epilogue
Nov. 9
Reading Quiz and Classroom Discussion of Starn and Film
READ: Begin Alexie, pp. 1-52
Nov. 11
Film: “Smoke Signals”
READ: Alexie, pp. 53-129
Nov. 16
Tribal Cultures versus Pan-Indian Cultture
READ: Alexie, pp. 130-195
Nov. 18
Political and Economic Change: The Debate over Tribal Gaming
READ: Alexie, pp. 197-244
Nov. 23
Reading Quiz and Classroom Discussion of Alexie and Film
READ: Finish Alexie, pp. 245-306
Nov. 24-26
Thanksgiving Holidays
READ: Garroutte, Introduction, Chapters 1 and 2
Nov. 30
Contemporary Native American Identity: Politics of Race, Citizenship
and Culture
READ: Testimony, Chapter 19; Garroutte, Chapters 3, 4
***Final Research Paper Due***
Dec. 2
Reading Quiz and Classroom Discussion of Garroutte
Final Exam Review Sheet Provided
READ: Garroutte, Chapters 5, 6 and Conclusion
6
Dec. 13
***Final Examination***
Calhoun Hall 100, 2:00-5:00, Monday
Key to Readings:
Deloria = Indians in Unexpected Places
Basso = Wisdom Sits in Places
Crow Dog = Lakota Woman
Starn = Ishi’s Brain
Alexie = Reservation Blues
Garroutte = Real Indians
Testimony = Nabokov’s Native American Testimony
7