{"product_id":"speaking-of-indians-9780803266148","title":"Speaking of Indians","description":"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. \u003cp\u003eBeginning 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.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eDeloria 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.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eElla Deloria, born in 1889 on the Yankton Reservation, spent her childhood on the Standing Rock Reservation. Her writings include \u003ci\u003eDakota Texts\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eDakota Grammar\u003c\/i\u003e (a collaboration with Boas), and \u003ci\u003eWaterlily\u003c\/i\u003e (also a Bison Book). Introducer Vine Deloria Jr. is the author of \u003ci\u003eCuster Died for Your Sins: An Indian Manifesto\u003c\/i\u003e and other books.\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Bison Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50725343166738,"sku":"9780803266148","price":10.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_d9880d7a-c67c-4e18-8f70-75c7fc78fc18.jpg?v=1734826399","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/speaking-of-indians-9780803266148","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}