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Chargement... A Key Into the Language of America (1643)par Roger Williams, Roger Williams
Chargement...
Inscrivez-vous à LibraryThing pour découvrir si vous aimerez ce livre Actuellement, il n'y a pas de discussions au sujet de ce livre. This edition of Roger Williams's famous work on Native Americans is accessible and relatively easy to read. It modernizes the orthography while retaining the wording, italics, and some other features of the original. The Introduction by Howard M. Chapin provides a succinct summary of the publication history of the work. Scholars will wish to study the original 1643 edition (available on Early English Books Online) or a reprint of volume 1 of the 1963 edition of The Complete Writings of Roger Williams. A great little historical curiosity, this early "dictionary" is sorted by subject matter. There are a few terms (spelling not consistent but that's all right, it helps with the pronunciation) and then a little commentary, such as this one under Chap.V: Their Virgins are distinguished by a bashful falling downe of their haire over their eyes. Roger Williams, as the Editors inform us, wrote this, his first published work, in 1643. As an early Anthropologist and Linguist, he mentions different dialects but does not distinguish greatly between the Algonkian tribes. Some words are similar to those of the Abenaki, one tribe found further to the west, but others are not. I could do without his three verses of four lines each that are found at the end of each chapter, generally pontificating on the superiority of the Christian faith over the heathen, although Williams gained fame as much, or more, for his independent views on religious tolerance that landed him in hot water (as well as exile) from his fellow "Pilgrims". Because there were no cameras or recordings at the time, we owe Roger Williams a great debt of gratitude for the little slice of history that he saved for us. aucune critique | ajouter une critique
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A New Edition of One of the Most Important Cultural Artifacts of European and Indigenous American Contact Roger Williams's Key into the Language of America, first published in 1643, is one of the most important artifacts of early Indigenous American culture. In it, Williams recorded the day-to-day experience of the Narragansett people of Rhode Island in their own words, the first documentation of an American Indian language in English. Williams's Key can be read at many levels because of its historical, literary, political, and religious significance. Its greatest value, though, is its intimate portrait of the Narragansett and their linguistic neighbors in the early years of European colonial settlement, before disease, dislocation, warfare--in particular, King Philip's War--and colonial interference had diminished their population and power in the region. An extraordinary achievement, Williams's Key gives us a contemporary account of Narragansett family life, of their sociability and skill in business, their dress, foodways, and the farming, fishing, and hunting that formed the basis of their sustenance practices. This new Tomaquag Museum edition includes for the first time cultural commentary provided by the Narragansett Tribe as well as modern linguistic information provided by a leading authority in the study of American Indian languages. The Tomaquag Museum, located in Exeter, Rhode Island, is an Indigenous nonprofit organization dedicated to sharing the culture, arts, and history of the Narragansett and other tribal communities of southern New England. Aucune description trouvée dans une bibliothèque |
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Google Books — Chargement... GenresClassification décimale de Melvil (CDD)497.3Language Other Languages North American native languages Algonquian languagesClassification de la Bibliothèque du CongrèsÉvaluationMoyenne:
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In addition to gaining a small understanding of what words were important to Native Americans and Roger Williams in his decision to include them in his Key, his observations and "More particulars" were wonderful.
I could vividly see Native American life through his observations, some long, some short, some of particular events, some of generalized descriptions of common activities, behaviors, and rituals. Here is an observation he put in after the Native American and English words for "Their pounding Mortar":
"Obs. Their women constantly beat all their corne with hand: they plant it, dresse it, gather it, barne it, beat it, and take as much paines as any people in the world, which labour is questionlesse one cause of their extraordinary ease of childbirth."
The "More particular"s are spiritual observations and are in the form of poetry, for example, this one relating to money:
The Indians prize not English gold,
Nor English Indians shell:
Each in his place will passe for ought,
What ere men buy or sell.
English and Indians all passe hence,
To an eternall place,
Where shells nor finest gold's worth out,
Where nought's worth ought but Grace.
This Coyne the Indians know not of,
Who knows how soone they may?
The English knowing, prize it not,
But fling't like drosse away.
I found the book erudite, charming, sad, and full of what now, of course, seem like the most terrible prejudices and judgments. In some ways I think Roger Williams respected the Native Americans and tried very hard to keep his prejudices at bay in his observations. He wasn't always successful, but I respect the complexity of what he accomplished and the level of detail and sharing of his personal experiences. ( )