Speaking of Indians

by Ella Cara Deloria

Ella Deloria could speak intimately about Indian ways because she belonged to a Yankton Sioux family. A distinguished scholar who studied with Franz Boas at Columbia University, she had the gift of language and the understanding necessary to bridge races. Originally published in 1944, this book is an important source of information about Dakota culture and a classic in its elegant clarity of insight.Beginning with a general discussion of American Indian origins, language families, and culture areas, Deloria then focuses on her own people, the Dakotas, and the intricate kinship system that governed all aspects of their life. She writes, “Exacting and unrelenting obedience to kinship demands made the Dakotas a most kind, unselfish people, always acutely aware of those about them and innately courteous.”

Deloria goes on to show the painful transition to reservations and how the holdover of the kinship system worked against Indians trying to follow white notions of progress and success. Her ideas about what both races must do to participate fully in American life are as cogent now as when they were first written.

Genres: Nonfiction, Native American, Anthropology, School

163 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1944

About the author

Ella Cara Deloria (January 31, 1889 – February 12, 1971), (Yankton Dakota), also called Aŋpétu Wašté Wiŋ (Beautiful Day Woman), was an educator, anthropologist, ethnographer, linguist, and novelist of European American and Dakota ancestry. She recorded Sioux oral history and legends, and contributed to the study of their languages. In the 1940s, she wrote a novel, Waterlily. It was finally published in 1988, and in 2009 was issued in a new edition.

(from Wikipedia)

Reviews

[Emily McFarlan Miller · Rating 2 out of 5]

A groundbreaking work for its time. Keep in mind when it was written as you read, and don't stop there: Read contemporary female Native American writers!

[Carla Cable · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this over a period of 3 + months with a group. We took it slow and had good discussions. It’s hard to believe it was written in 1944 and published in 1998. We have not come far enough.

“They have fought and suffered for their country. They are Americans and they will want to be treated as such”. We can’t keep our heads buried in the sand. Denial must stop. Learning about the Native Americans will help us respect, admire and drop our stereotypical thinking.

[Molly · Rating 4 out of 5]

A brief and very interesting book, and certainly artifact of its time. Speaking of Indians was written during WWII, and was clearly written for a non-Native audience, and describes the church as the central institution of modern Dakota life. Some of the passages might be jarring to the modern reader--for example, her referring to descriptive Dakota names as a potential "handicap to progress" due to white people's ridicule, and suggesting they be removed in favor of names that would allow easier assimilation into white America at large.

That said, the sections introducing Dakota kinship roles and community life were wonderful, and really helped to lay the groundwork for Deloria's arguments regarding what she views as Dakota progress (and why she believes it has been slower than it could have been). I wasn't acquainted with the extensiveness of the web of kinship, the generosity and collective care involved. It really makes me view the early interactions between Dakota people and the settlers on their land from an entirely different angle, realizing the immense differences between what the Dakota and the white settler societies viewed as being "civilized" -- and the the clashing nature of what each expected from relationships with the other as a result. I'll be thinking about this book for a long time.

[emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

A firsthand account of the ancient history of Native Americans, interpretation of why Europeans would not have been able to get along with Natives, the role of the Church, and kinship relations.
Natives believe people should give frequently and in return would receive gifts of equal value. This was done at appropriate times within certain celebrations. When Europeans came in and Natives gave and gave and gave, and Europeans (later white Americans) gave very little in return, Natives found themselves in a very difficult cultural and financial situation. Later, Natives learned how to capitalize on their resources and become very wealthy, but many still live in poverty and live waiting for the paternal hand of the government to support them.

[Janice · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pro-church and pro-US propaganda!

[Teresa Peterson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read, used this for teaching

[Leslie · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting introduction to the beliefs and lifestyle of the Native Americans, specifically the Dakotas, and how their beliefs and customs, particularly those related to kinship ties, affected their lives on the reservation and their interactions with the white man at that time. The information is mostly pre-World War II.

[Julian Abagond · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good, short introduction to the Lakota Sioux, from prehistoric times to the 1940s. Written for a White Protestant church audience in the US to fight racist stereotypes about Natives. Very pro-Sioux yet also pro-Christian. She was herself Sioux, a missionary's daughter, student of Franz Boas and aunt of Vine Deloria Jr.

[Ana · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little dry at first, but the more you read the more impassioned the argumentation becomes. Ella Cara Deloria had the difficult task of presenting this work to a mostly white audience and the strength of her arguments have made this work a must read in the field of anthropology.

[Risa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Speaking of Indians by Ella Cara Deloria (1998)