Philip J. Deloria is assistant professor of history at the University of Colorado, Boulder, and a coauthor of The Native Americans.
“[A] convincing study. . . . Deloria builds his case with caution
and precision, careful to avoid sweeping claims.” —Michael Kenney,
Boston Globe
“Deloria argues [that] nothing is so ideologically weighted as a
seemingly innocent pleasure. Playing Indian speaks volumes, and it
says much more than ‘How!’”—Jeremy MacClancy, Times Higher
Education Supplement
“‘What, then, is the American, this new man?’ asked J. Hector St.
John de Crevecoeur in 1872. Every American generation since has
asked the same question. And, according to this lucid, nimble and
occasionally frolicsome re-examination of the history of the United
States, it is one that Americans have often tried to answer by
‘playing Indian.’”—Jim Boothroyd, Times Literary Supplement
“Deloria demonstrates how ‘Indian play’ has always taken on new
shape and focus to engage the most pressing issues of a particular
historical moment, and he notes that American views of Indians tell
us much more about Americans than they do about Indians. . . .
Americans need Indians in order to define themselves as Americans,
asserts Deloria. Beginning before the Boston Tea Party, and
continuing into the present, Americans have adopted Indian attire,
images, and traditions for both political and individual needs.
This important book belongs in all American history
collections.”—Library Journal
“A wonderful book. . . . Playing Indian is valuable not only for
its skillful, critical reading of a part of American history and
identity construction, but in the ways we can use these histories
to expand our awareness of the lasting, contradictory—at times
painful, at times healing—effects of ‘play.’”—Naomi Adelson,
Transcultural Psychiatry
Winner of the 1999 Outstanding Book Award given by the Gustavus
Myers Center for the Study of Bigotry and Human Rights in North
America
“Not since I first read Michel Foucault, Fredric Jameson, or bell
hooks has a text crackled with so much theoretical frisson. Its
historical insights are rich and political repercussions profound.
American culture will never look the same.”—Joel Martin, author of
Sacred Revolt and Native American Religions
“Playing Indian adds importantly to our understanding of how the
American Indian has been, and is, perceived by non-Indian
Americans. For anyone who is interested in the subject, Mr.
Deloria’s study is all but indispensable. It is impressive in its
learning, its objectivity, and its clarity.”—N. Scott Momaday
“Playing Indian will help the reader understand why, from the
revelers at Merrymount to the Berkeley tribes of the 1960s, every
oppositional current in America has found its way to the people
called ‘Indians,’ and why, though (as D. H. Lawrence said) the Red
Indians will never again possess the broad lands of America, their
spirit will.”—Noel Ignatiev, author of How the Irish Became White
and coeditor of Race Traitor
“Exciting, persuasive, and unlike anything else in the literature,
Playing Indian offers new insights into the interplay of identities
in American society.”—Richard White, University of Washington
“Through hard-edged interchange between historical description and
razor-sharp analysis, Phil Deloria is able to show how the
phenomenon of Indian-playing has operated in the United States
since before the founding of the republic. It is a terrific book,
well worth reading and wonderful to teach.”—Robert Warrior,
Stanford University
"[A] convincing study. . . . Deloria, builds his case with caution
and precision, careful to avoid sweeping claims." -Michael Kenney,
Boston Globe
"Deloria argues [that] nothing is so ideologically weighted as a
seemingly innocent pleasure. Playing Indian speaks volumes,
and it says much more than 'How!'"-Jeremy MacClancy, Times
Higher Education Supplement
"'What, then, is the American, this new man?,' asked J. Hector St.
John de Crevecoeur in 1872. Every American generation since has
asked the same question. And, according to this lucid, nimble and
occasionally, frolicsome re-examination of the history of the
United States, it is one that Americans have often tried to answer
by 'playing Indian.'"-Jim Boothroyd, Times Literary
Supplement
"Deloria demonstrates how 'Indian play' has always taken on new
shape and focus to engage the most pressing issues of a particular
historical moment, and he notes that American views of Indians tell
us much more about Americans than they do about Indians. . . .
Americans need Indians in order to define themselves as Americans,
asserts Deloria. Beginning before the Boston Tea Party, and
continuing into the present, Americans have adopted Indian attire,
images, and traditions for both political and individual needs.
This important book belongs in all American history
collections."-Library Journal
"Playing Indian is a wonderful book. . . . Playing
Indian is valuable not only for its skillful, critical reading
of a part of American history and identity construction, but in the
ways we can use these histories to expand our awareness of the
lasting, contradictory-at times painful, at times healing-effects
of 'play.'"-Naomi Adelson, Transcultural Psychiatry
Winner for the 1999 Outstanding Book Award given by the Gustavus
Myers Center for the Study of Bigotry and Human Rights in North
America
"Not since I first read Michel Foucault, Fredric Jameson, or bell
hooks has a text crackled with so much theoretical frisson. Its
historical insights are rich and political repercussions profound.
American culture will never look the same."-Joel Martin, author of
Sacred Revolt and Native American Religions
"Playing Indian adds importantly to our understanding of how
the American Indian has been, and is, perceived by non-Indian
Americans. For anyone who is interested in the subject, Mr.
Deloria's study is all but indispensable. It is impressive in its
learning, its objectivity, and its clarity."-N. Scott Momaday
"Playing Indian will help the reader understand why, from
the revelers at Merrymount to the Berkeley tribes of the 1960s,
every oppositional current in America has found its way to the
people called 'Indians,' and why, though (as D.H. Lawrence said)
the Red Indians will never again possess the broad lands of
America, their spirit will."-Noel Ignatiev, author of How the
Irish Became White, and co-editor of Race Traitor
"Exciting, persuasive, and unlike anything else in the literature,
Playing Indian offers new insights into the interplay of
identities in American society."-Richard White, University of
Washington
"Through hard-edged interchange between historical description and
razor-sharp analysis, Phil Deloria is able to show how the
phenomenon of Indian-playing has operated in the United States
since before the founding of the republic. It is a terrific book,
well worth reading and wonderful to teach."-Robert Warrior,
Stanford University
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