Cherokee Women: Gender and Culture Change, 1700-1835

"A well-written and important scholarly work on Cherokee women. Ms. Perdue debunks a lot of stereotypes about the role of Native women in tribal culture."-Wilma Mankiller. "The book contributes significantly to American history by demonstrating the centrality of gender to both everyday life and the politics of Indian-European interaction."-Nancy Shoemaker, University of Wisconsin at Eau Claire. "Of the many fine books dealing with cultural change in this most 'civilized' of tribes, Perdue's is the richest in insight and the most persuasive in analysis."-Mary E. Young, University of Rochester. Theda Perdue examines the roles and responsibilities of Cherokee women during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, a time of intense cultural change. While building on the research of earlier historians, she develops a uniquely complex view of the effects of contact on Native gender relations, arguing that Cherokee conceptions of gender persisted long after contact. Maintaining traditional gender roles actually allowed Cherokee women and men to adapt to new circumstances and adopt new industries and practices. The strength of their traditions empowered them to resist changes, including pressure from the federal government to relinquish tribal lands. This landmark study of Native women serves as a model for the historical analysis of gender by all scholars. Theda Perdue is a professor of history at the University of Kentucky. Her numerous works include Slavery and the Evolution of Cherokee Society, 1540-1866 and Native Carolinians: The Indians of North Carolina.