The Changing Culture of an Indian Tribe.
New York: Columbia University Press, 1932.
Octavo (24.5 x 16 cm.), 313, [2] pages. Publisher’s list of titles in the series at rear. Columbia University Contributions to Anthropology, vol. XV (Franz Boas, editor). FIRST EDITION. An investigation of the impact of re-tribalization on purposely masked tribe of Plains native peoples, identified by Mead as “Antlers”. The result of studies conducted during 1930, This third book-length work of Mead’s attempts to examine the impacts of white imposition on the tribe, and outline approaches to the gathering of anthropological data from all in such flux. Mead’s focus is on women, and thus there is much information on the changes in the household. There is also a section on changes of marital customs, and the impact of the changes on the well-being of women in the tribe, followed by “Case studies of twenty-five delinquent girls and women”. There is much to grapple with in this early study of the impact of forced cultural change upon native peoples in North America, including the author’s own racism (see the section on delinquency for some of the baldest examples. But Mead is early in recognizing the devastating effect. Also, Mead’s focus on women and the household is perhaps overlooked by those who study household history. Her involvement with the health of the household went beyond her academic work; during World War II, Mead served as executive secretary of the National Research Council's Committee on Food Habits. Original brick red cloth, gilt-titled. In publisher’s brown-printed, tan jacket, not price-clipped. Jacket is trimmed .25” shorter than book height, but oddly, every copy of this with the jacket we have handled had this shorter jacket feature. Fine, in a fine dust jacket.
Price: $90.00