1

Historiography
PHILIP J. DELORIA
In 1997, Native historian Donald Fixico observed that more than 30,000 books had been written about American Indians !he number ma" have been conservative then,and it has certainl" been sur#assed since $isit the call numbers between %&1 and %99 in even the smallest librar" and marvel at the #rodi'ious out#ourin' o( writin' on Native #eo#le As "ou browse those im#ressive stacks, however, don)t (or'et that books and libraries are not the onl" wa"s o( recordin' and communicatin' a #ast It)s worth bearin' in mind one o( Fixico)s other calculations* rou'hl" 90 #ercent o( those books were written b" non+Indians ,Fixico, 1997* 3Fixico)s observations su''est at least three central historio'ra#hical #roblems First o( all, how do we make sense o( this vast librar" o( texts, this .estern canon o( Indian histor"/ 0econd, even i( we could order this canon, how would we then situate it in relation to the multi#licit" o( Native histories, each o( which #oses #olitical and e#istemolo'ical challen'es to the .estern tradition o( histor"+tellin' itsel(/ And third, can we ima'ine histories that #roblemati1e or #erha#s even transcend dualisms like Indian2non+Indian, linear2c"clical, or oral2literate/ !hese #roblems de(" eas" solution, #articularl" in the course o( a short essa" Indeed, the ver" notion o( historio'ra#h" 3 a histor" o( histor"+writin' 3 immediatel" raises an even dee#er hori1on o( critical 4uestions 5ow do #eo#le use their #asts to #erceive, ima'ine, and #er#etuate ideas about cultural and social di((erence/ 5ow have historical narratives re(lected the relations o( #ower between various 'rou#s o( Native #eo#le and various 'rou#s o( %uro#eans/ 6an we even be'in to #erceive the com#lex connections between social, #olitical, economic, and environmental trans(ormations and the #s"chic and cultural chan'es that are re(racted throu'h the historical consciousness o( the writer or the stor"teller/ 5istorio'ra#h" 3 and #articularl" in a cross+ or multicultural context 3 re4uires us to think about e#istemolo'" 3 how we know what we know 3 in com#lex wa"s First, one has alwa"s to con(ront the e#istemolo'" o( difference* how have non+Indian writers understood Indians to be di((erent/ And, b" extension, how have Indians 5I0!78I798A:5; 7 conce#tuali1ed non+Indian di((erence/ 0econd, one has to think about the wa"s that e#istemolo'ies have chan'ed across time 5ow was the historical consciousness available to Francis :arkman in the mid+nineteenth centur" di((erent (rom that available to <ohn Neihardt in the earl" twentieth/ And how were the" both di((erent (rom sub=ects like >lack 5awk and >lack %lk, both o( whom narrated their own histories/ In this essa", I #lan to think (irst about 'ra##lin' with the .estern tradition o( historical writin' !he essa" will then raise the 4uestion o( Native historio'ra#h", be(ore (inall" tr"in' to come to terms with the h"brid understandin's o( the #ast that inevitabl" characteri1e our contem#orar" acts o( histor"+tellin' ?et us return (irst to the librar" !raditional historical cate'ories o((er one use(ul wa" o( orderin' the material .e could #arse those 30,000+#lus books usin' words like militar", #olitical, di#lomatic, social, cultural, women)s, race, class, 'ender, sexualit",environmental, (amil", and so on @IndianA would mark a kind o( commonalit",but @Indian historiesA would (it into other cate'ories as well 7ne can see the o##ortunities and the #roblems with books such as .alter .illiams)s The Spirit and theFlesh, .ill 8oscoe)s The Zuni an!"#man, and T$# Spirit Pe#ple,

edited b" 0ue+%llen <acobs, .esle" !homas, and 0abine ?an' All are @Indian historiesA that, one mi'ht ar'ue, (it more easil" into the broader cate'ories o( 'ender and sexualit" Alternativel", we mi'ht use an orderin' scheme that relies more directl" on disci#line or method !he cate'ories would be di((erent* archaeolo'", ethnolo'", ethno'ra#h", ethnohistor", m"th and s"mbol, (olklore, sociolo'", #olic" studies, and so on >ut both kinds o( cate'ori1ations, while use(ul, don)t 'enerall" meet the re4uirement laid down b" the @histor"A in the word @historio'ra#h"A 3 the ex#lanation o( chan'e over time 5istorical #eriodi1ation creates di((erent kinds o( cate'ories, divisions that are tem#oral rather than methodolo'ical or to#ical ?ike all cate'ories, these necessaril" do harm to their sub=ects 3 in this case, the continuit" and (lux o( chan'e over time 5istorio'ra#hical #eriodi1ation im#lies, (or exam#le, that one can distill com#lex historical consciousnesses down to reco'ni1able de(initions and exam#les .e know this to be untrue ;et #eriodi1ation can also be an exercise in orderin' that makes chan'e visible in #roductive wa"s In that s#irit, I want to su''est (our broad historical #eriods in Indian histor"+writin', each o( which has overlaid, rather than su##lanted,th ose that have come be(ore %ach su''ests chan'es in social, #olitical, and e#istemolo'ical #ositions within non+Indian societies that have hel#ed to #roduce new kinds o( histor"+writin' 7bviousl" such crude #aradi'ms will obscure shi(ts and subtleties, but it is also true that additional historio'ra#hical in4uir" will derive its anal"tical #ower b" breakin' down these and other cate'ories .ith that caveat and invitation, let us #roceed* 1 Frontier 5istor"* In which s#atial meta#hors ex#lain Indian3non+Indian di((erence in sim#le terms o( 'eo'ra#h", con(lict, and eventual ,and o(ten #redestined- con4uest ,(rom contact to the #resent- B 8acial2Develo#mental 5ierarch"* In which more com#lex structures result (rom scienti(ic e((orts to ex#lain di((erence within a lar'er human landsca#e ,(rom the late ei'hteenth centur" to the #resentC :5I?I: < D%?78IA 3 Dodernist 5istor"* A #ost+(rontier #aradi'm in which #eo#le ima'ine social boundaries to be (ixed, while simultaneousl" retainin' the #ossibilit" o( their transcendence ,(rom the late nineteenth centur" to the #resentE :ostmodern2:ostcolonial* 6ontem#orar" writin' in which texts and histories seek to deal with the tension between the liberatin' dissolution o( boundaries and the constant resha#in' o( them as #olitical memories o( the colonial #ast ,rou'hl", #ost+ .orld .ar II to the #resent- Frontier Frederick <ackson !urner)s 1C93 (ormulation o( @the (rontierA serves as a use(ul startin' #lace, (or i( it marks the be'innin' o( a series o( academic @(rontierA histories, it also re#resents the su##osed end o( the conditions that #owered a lon' tradition o( #o#ular histor"+writin' ,!urner, 19B0!urner saw American histor" in s#atial terms, a movin' boundar" between %uro#ean civili1ation and Indian sava'er" 5e didn)t talk much about Native #eo#le, but he did codi(" the ver" old notion o( a line that se#arated Indian and non+Indian !hat line de(ined the terrain o( #h"sical, #olitical, economic, and social stru''le and it carried with it the ex#ectation that white America would inevitabl" trium#h !urner)s address 3 and his subse4uent scholarshi# 3 insisted that Americans had arrived at the end'ame o( a national teleolo'" In that sense, it also serves as a use(ul marker o( the modernist tradition o( Indian historio'ra#h" As Francis <ennin's has #ointed out, this s#atial readin' o( Indian histor" as a contest between the sava'e and the civili1ed has ori'ins as old as %uro#ean coloni1ation itsel( ,<ennin's, 197&* F31B- Frontier #aradi'ms su''est a relation between the wa"s in which %uro#eans understood cultural and racial di((erence and the wa"s in which the" understood em#ire and colon" Ima'ined around race, (aith, econom",

'ender, and 'eo'ra#hical ex#ansion, (rontier o##ositions ma##ed s#ace and human di((erence to'ether in wa"s that used the #ast to naturali1e %uro#ean dominance !he distinct colonial ex#eriences o( di((erent %uro#ean #owers #roduced, within this #aradi'm, di((erent kinds o( histories In New France, historians such as 9abriel 0a'ard ,Hist#ire du %anada, 1F3F-, :ierre >oucher ,Hist#ire &'rita(le et )aturall, 1F33-, and FranGois Du6reux ,Hist#ria %anadensis, 1FFE- be'an recordin' (rontier #asts characteri1ed b" economic and reli'ious encounters 0#anish colonial historians had to con(ront #asts marked b" 'reater violence and more (re4uent con(lict !heir uses o( histor" are #erha#s best illustrated b" the (amous 1&&031 debate between >artolomH de ?as 6asas, who critici1ed the excesses o( 0#anish con4uest, and <uan 9inHs de 0e#Ilveda, who ar'ued that one could easil" conceive o( a @=ust warA a'ainst Indians who were @slaves b" nature A ?ikewise, 9on1alo FernJnde1 de 7viedo " $aldHs ,Hist#ria *eneral + natural de las Indias , 1&37, 1&&7and Francisco ?K#e1 de9Kmara ,Hist#ria de las Indias, 1&&B- o((ered #rominent historical readin's o( the0#anish colonial #ast that naturali1ed both con4uest and Indian di((erence %uro#ean writers, be the" French, %n'lish, 0#anish, Dutch, 8ussian or other, assumed that Indians and %uro#eans con(ronted each other across a vast social chasm, and their histories link Indian di((erence to'ether with %uro#ean ex#ansion In New %n'land, Increase Dather)s ,rief Hist#r+ ,1F7F-, <ohn Lnderhill)s )e$es fr#m America ,1F3C-, .illiam >rad(ord)s Of Pl+m#uth Plantati#n ,1FB03E7, #ublished in 1C&F-, and <ohn .inthro#)s Hist#r+ #f )e$ En*land ,B vols , 1CB&3F- all re#resent earl" American histories that rel" on the notions o( an Indian3white boundar" and #h"sical con4uest (or their anal"tical and narrative (orce Further south, 0amuel :urchas, .illiam >"rd, <ohn 0mith, and others o((ered re'ionall" in(lected histories usin' the same model :erha#s the most #ower(ul American 'enre in this tradition was the ca#tivit" narrative,a (orm that #roduced writin's as diverse as Dar" 8owlandson)s 1FCB ca#tivit" and 0arah .ake(ield)s 1CFE book, Si- "ee.s in the Si#u- Teepees !he earl" ca#tivit" narrative #re(i'ured later modernist writin' in its use o( the meta#hor o( culturecrossin',but it ultimatel" insisted u#on a cultural di((erence understood throu'h a 'eo'ra#h" o( con(lict 6a#tivit", as 8ichard 0lotkin has observed, o((ered one o( the (ew le'itimate excuses (or bein' on the (ar side o( the (rontier boundar" !o know Indian societ" and histor", one had to learn it under duress %ven a s"m#athetic (i'ure like Daniel 9ookin, who crossed the boundar" as a missionar", #roved unable to esca#e the dualist visions o( the (rontier Alon' with 0lotkin, 6hristo#her 6asti'lia and <une Namias, amon' others, have o((ered si'ni(icant anal"ses o( this literature .ilcomb .ashburn and Alden $au'han have both edited collections o( ca#tivit" narratives Nineteenth+centur" historians made onl" subtle alterations to the (ormula that#laced o##osed societies (i'htin' across a (rontier boundar" And indeed, their writin' re(lected the #rero'atives o( American mani(est destin" itsel(, as much a colonial and im#erial #ro=ect as those o( %n'land, France, and 0#ain !imoth" Flint ,Indian "ars #f the "est, 1C33-, <ames 5all ,Letters fr#m the "est, 1CBC, amon' others-, and Francis :arkman were amon' the multitude o( nineteenth+centur" historians ca#tured b" a clear and sim#le sense o( boundar" :arkman)s %#nspirac+ #f P#ntiac ,1C&1-, (or exam#le, used an Indian+war #ast to hel# ex#lain a nineteenth+centur" #resent, Indian wars both recent and im#endin' 0eein' white America as @metal,A combinin' (lexibilit" and stren'th, :arkman viewed Indians as meta#horical rock, their in(lexibilit" ex#lainin' their eventual doom @;ou can rarel" chan'e the (orm without destruction o( the substance,A he ar'ued @8aces o( in(erior ener'" have #ossessed a #ower o( ex#ansion and assimilation to which Mthe IndianN is a stran'erO and it is this (ixed and ri'id 4ualit" which has #roven his ruin 5e will not learn the arts o( civili1ation, and he and his (orest must #erish to'etherA ,# F3- :arkman later went on to write

the monumental seven+volume stud" France and En*land in )#rth America ,1CF&3 9B- which, alon' with the works o( 9eor'e >ancro(t and .illiam :rescott, make u# the dominant nineteenth+centur" histories o( American (rontier colonialism !he stor" o( Indian (rontier con(lict became a sta#le o( #o#ular histor", with (re4uent retellin's in a variet" o( (orms !hese included drama, the #enn" #ress, Indian+ (i'hter autobio'ra#hies, memoirs o( overland trail mi'ration, .ild .est show #er(ormances, historical #aintin's, such as those o( Frederic 8emin'ton, and @seriousA #o#ular histories, like !heodore 8oosevelt)s "innin* #f the "est ,1CC93 9F-, which #ortra"ed American develo#ment as one lon' Indian war !urner was 8oosevelt)s contem#orar", and his (amous thesis essentiall" (ounded the twentieth+centur" (ield o( .estern American histor", which has been the subse4uent 5I0!78I798A:5; 9 restin' #lace (or this #articular historical #aradi'm and a (re4uent location (or the stud" o( Indian histor" Althou'h the !urnerian (rontier has been attacked b" numerous historians and trans(ormed b" neo+ !urnerians and cultural #luralists, the notion o( a line or 1one that demarks Indian3 white con(lict has continued to resound as a ke" tro#e in Indian3%uro#ean histor" :o#ular histor" continues to use (rontier models And one can continue to (ind scholarl" studies that (ocus on unambi'uous con(lict between Indians, settlers, and the (ederal 'overnment 0everal #ublishers have established core constituencies o( both historians and readers who continue to (ind in this #articular cate'or" a meanin'(ul histor" Amon' man" others, Perwin ?ee Plein , Fr#ntiers #f Hist#rical Ima*inati#n, 1997- has written an excellent surve" o( thetrans(ormations o( the (rontier idea in relation to Indians An e4uall" interestin' #art o( this tradition is the bod" o( scholarshi# that has looked criticall" at the wa"s the relation between a s#atiali1ed sense o( racial and cultural di((erence and the act o( con4uest have been ex#ressed in histor", literature, and art 8o" 5arve" :earce)s classic Sa/a*ism and %i/ili0ati#n ,19&3- was one o( the (irst modern works to examine this discourse o( di((erence in American histor", and :earce has been abl" (ollowed b" 8ichard 0lotkin ,#articularl" Re*enerati#n thr#u*h &i#lence, 1973 and The Fatal En/ir#nment, 19C&-, 8obert F >erkho(er, <r ,The"hite an1s Indian, 197C-, >rian Di##ie ,The &anishin* American, 19CB-, and others %ach o( these writers seeks to show how the (rontier meta#hor was both #roduct and #recursor o( the various kinds o( social dislocations Indian #eo#le have su((ered throu'hout American histor" 9ordon 0a"re ,Les Sau/a*es Am'ricains, 1997- and 7live Dickason , The +th #f the Sa/a*e, 19CE- ex#and this treatment to cover the French >en=amin Peen ,The A0tec Ima*e in "estern Th#u*ht, 1971- and, (rom a moralist literar"+ critical #osition, !1vetan !odorov ,The %#n2uest #f America, 19CEhave examined the discourses in 0#anish exam#les Amon' others, Anthon" :a'den ,Eur#pean Enc#unters $ith the )e$ "#rld, 1993O L#rds #f All the "#rld, 199&- has discussed %uro#ean ideolo'ies broadl" and com#arativel" Finall", as #robabl" the most (amiliar tradition in American histor"+writin', the notion o( (rontier con(lict between s#atiall" de(ined civil and sava'e societies has been a si'ni(icant tar'et (or Native historians as well In addition to the classic Native writers o( the nineteenth and earl" twentieth centuries ,see 5a(en, this volume- more recent Indian criti4ues have invariabl" had to con(ront various elements o( the (rontier #aradi'm $ine Deloria)s %uster Died f#r 3#ur Sins ,19F9- o((ered a model (or the historicall" in(lected #olemic !he works o( %li1abeth 6ook+?"nn, <ack Forbes, .ard 6hurchill, Donald 9rinde, 0cott Domada" and others have utili1ed the idea o( coherent cultural boundaries, while at the same time critici1in' the wa" those boundaries have been called into bein' Racial Science and Hierarchies Im#licit 3 and o(ten ex#licit 3 in the (rontier tradition has been the 4uestion o( race, which has been inextricabl" linked to notions o( sava'er" and civili1ation I( (rontier

writin' has its roots in the colonial encounter, then more com#lex, hierarchical 10 :5I?I: < D%?78IA considerations o( race mi'ht be seen as havin' a sli'htl" later startin' #oint In this second tradition, one sees a chan'e in structure (rom dualism and a sin'le (irm boundar" between two societies to social evolution, with its concomitant rankin's o( the racial endowments o( multi#le #eo#les I( the (irst tradition has been a#tl" suited to ex#lain continuin' colonial con(lict, the second has been =ust as use(ul (or thinkin' about the scatterin' o( #eo#le $ithin the boundaries o( the Lnited 0tates and the world at lar'e Indians, A(ricans, whites, the black Irish, ?atinos, and Asians 3where did each o( these 'rou#s o( #eo#le (it in relation to each other/ And how did one come to the knowled'e that would allow one to make the necessar" distinctions/ !he #ractices and #rocedures that characteri1ed the scienti(ic stud" o( race inevitabl" in(luenced Indian histor"+writin' !hese re#resent a diverse ran'e o( ideas, (rom earl" s#eculation concernin' Indian ori'ins to amateur ethnolo'" to the classic 0ocial Darwinism o( the late nineteenth and earl" twentieth centuries to toda")s tortured debates over racial di((erence :articularl" in the earl" cases, ethnolo'ists and historians assumed that di((erent #eo#les could be ranked on a scale ,rather than an absolute boundar"- that ran (rom var"in' levels o( #rimitivism and sava'er" to var"in' levels o( civili1ation And while this tradition has its own #o#ular historical re#resentations, it more si'ni(icantl" si'nals the be'innin' o( the on'oin' relation between science and histor" in the creation o( knowled'e about Indian #eo#le ,>ieder, 19CFO 5insle", 19C1O :a'den, 19937ne mode o( scienti(ic racialism revolved around the 4uestion o( ori'ins ,see Darnell, this volume, (or a discussion o( mono+ and #ol"'enesis- <ames Adair)s Hist#r+ #f the American Indians ,177&- mi'ht be seen as an earl" exam#le in this #articular historio'ra#hical tradition Adair, who traded with several 0outheastern tribes and married amon' the 6hickasaw, h"#othesi1ed that Indian #eo#le occu#ied a uni4ue racial #osition as the remnants o( the lost tribes o( Israel 0imilarl", in the earl" nineteenth centur", artist 9eor'e 6atlin su''ested that the Dandans were @white,A the survivors o( a .elsh ex#edition ?ater historians would look (or ori'ins amon' the Norse, 9reeks, %'"#tians, and others The ,##. #f #rm#n ,1CB9330-, (or exam#le, constructed a thorou'h American #rehistor" (or Indian #eo#le, #lacin' them s4uarel" within the @lost tribesA tradition ?ike these other treatments, The ,##. #f #rm#n had then to account (or raciall" @su#eriorA Indian #eo#le ,that is to sa", @whiteA- who occu#ied #ositions near the sava'e bottom o( the develo#mental scale !he ,##. ex#lains this inconsistenc" historicall", o((erin' a North American #ast o( devastatin' war and cultural declension 0ome scholars 3 and more #articularl", the #o#ular media 3 continue toda" tos#eculate about Indian ori'ins and develo#ment in racial terms !he (lurr" over Pennewick Dan, a su##osedl" @caucasoid t"#eA (ound amidst material 9,300 "ears old, su''ests the on'oin' nature o( this racialist tradition !he semantic sli##a'es between the technical term @caucasoid,A the racialist term @caucasian,A and the #o#ular media 'loss @whiteA raise loaded 4uestions about Indians, %uro#eans, and North American histor" !he tension in such instances results (rom com#lementar" instincts 3 either the s"m#athetic namin' o( Indians as @whiteA or the less+beni'n claimin' o( North America (or An'los In the (irst instance, non+Indian accounts mi'ht elevate 5I0!78I798A:5; 11 @nobleA Indians above other races b" 'rantin' them whiteness In the second, the" mi'ht rele'ate Indians to the bottom o( the hierarch" b" #ositin' a North American #rehistor" crudel" colored @white A In either case, the linka'es between science,

racial hierarch", and histor" can be sur#risin'l" consistent across time David 5urst !homas)s S.ull "ars4 5enne$ic. an6 Archae#l#*+6 and the ,attle f#r )ati/eAmerican Identit+ o((ers a brilliant readin', #lacin' Pennewick in lar'er historical context ,B000- %arl" ethnolo'" o(ten narrated Indian #asts in similar wa"s As the" sou'ht to understand Indians, writers like <ohn 5eckewelder, 5enr" 8owe 0choolcra(t, :eter Du#onceau, and 0amuel Dorton wrestled with the tension between the absolute di((erence o( the (rontier model and the hierarchical di((erence su''ested b" natural science ?ewis 5enr" Dor'an, (or exam#le, made what would become a classic anthro#olo'ical move, (rom the detailed descri#tive stud" o( di((erence (ound in Lea*ue #f the H#!de!n#!sau!nee6 #r Ir#2u#is to the com#arative racial and lin'uistic studies o( Ancient S#ciet+ ,see Darnell, Diller, this volume- In Lea*ue, Dor'an ,like #roto+ethno'ra#her 5eckewelder be(ore him- investi'ated and described the customs,belie(s, rituals, structures, and histories o( a sin'le 'rou# o( native #eo#le Accordin' to Dor'an, the Iro4uois were @advancedA in relation to other Indians, but the" lacked the #ro'ressive s#irit to ascend the racial hierarch" @!he hunter state,A Dor'an insisted ,des#ite abundant evidence o( Iro4uois a'riculture-, @is the 1ero o( human societ" and while the red man was bound b" its s#ell, there was no ho#e o( his elevationA ,# 1E1- In #assa'es such as this, Dor'an saw a hierarch" that connected the @1eroA o( Indianness with the a'ricultural civili1ation o( %uro+ Americans 0amuel Dorton)s %rania America ,1C39- sou'ht to reveal the nature o( American racial hierarchies throu'h a combination o( #h"sical anthro#olo'" ,measurin' the cranial ca#acit" o( di((erent racial 'rou#s- and #hrenolo'" ,(indin' markers o( racial character in skull (ormations!he writin's o( a third ethnolo'ist, 5enr" 8owe 0choolcra(t, o((er a com#lex sense o( the min'led develo#ment o( three strands in the intellectual histor" o( race and Indians In "estern Scenes and Reminiscences ,1C&3-, 0choolcra(t)s earl" im#ressions o( Indians (ollowed the o##ositional lo'ic o( the (rontier @!he word QIndian,)A he recalled, @was s"non"mous then, as #erha#s now, with hal( the o##robrious e#ithets in the dictionar"A ,# F&- >ut 0choolcra(t (ound himsel( workin' amon' Indian #eo#le, and saw an o##ortunit" (or scienti(ic investi'ation A(ter a cross+racial marria'e, and "ears as an Indian a'ent, natural historian, and collector o( Indian stories and histories, 0choolcra(t claimed he had learned to re=ect much o( the (rontier model Indians, he said, should be studied as a distinct branch o( the human race Focusin' on lan'ua'e, 'overnment, and reli'ion, 0choolcra(t undertook, in several di((erent #ro=ects, an ethnolo'ical and literar" catalo'ue o( the culture and histor" o( the native #eo#le o( the 9reat ?akes and #rairies 5is out#ut included Al*ic Researches ,1C39-,One#ta ,1CEE3&-, )#tes #n the Ir#2u#is ,1CEF-, and Hist#rical and StatisticalInf#rmati#n ,1C&137- .hen thinkin' com#arativel", he was able to #lace raciall" de(ined Indians in relation to a white societ" #arsed alon' hierarchical class lines @As a class o( men,A he observed, @native s#eakers, without letters or education, #ossess a hi'her sco#e o( thou'ht and illustration, than the c#rresp#ndin* class in civili1ed 1B :5I?I: < D%?78IA li(eA ,# F7- And this insi'ht nud'ed 0choolcra(t toward a third notion, that o( evolutionar" chan'e @!he old idea that the Indian mind is not susce#tible o( a hi'h or advanta'eous develo#ment,A he ar'ued, @rests on 4uestionable dataA ,# F7- 0choolcra(t, one should note, concluded his remarks with a return to (rontier dualism,insistin' that native reli'ion ke#t Indians @be"ond the #ale o( civili1ationA,# FC- %lsewhere, he ar'ued that it was not sim#l" that Indian societies could not advance 3 the" had actuall" declined And "et, with the notion o( evolutionar" chan'e, 0choolcra(t #ointed to (uture #ermutations o( racialist thinkin' .ith the #ublication o( Darwin)s Ori*in #f Species in 1C&9, intellectuals be'an wonderin' not =ust about racial di((erence, but about its

historical develo#ment Anthro#olo'ical writers such as %dward !"lor ,1C71(ormall" #osited a sin'le @culture,A with #eo#le movin' alon' a #rescribed evolutionar" #ath that led (rom the sava'e to the civili1ed Indians re#resented a stalled branch @!he",A anthro#olo'ists ar'ued, are what @weA once were 3 a livin' re#resentation o( an earlier histor" ,0tockin', 19FC- !he #otted histories o((ered b" late nineteenth+ and earl" twentieth+centur" 'overnment #olic" makers, missionaries, and anthro#olo'ists, (or exam#le, #laced Indians on such a social evolutionar" tra=ector" Duch o( the writin' on Indians (rom the latter #art o( the nineteenth centur" is oriented toward #olic" !he Indian 8i'hts Association, (or exam#le, was onl" one o( man" 'rou#s who naturali1ed the idea o( a develo#mental hierarch" !akin' a social evolutionar" #ast (or 'ranted, the" looked toward a (uture characteri1ed b" ra#id Indian develo#ment, and the" made this narrative concrete throu'h the so+called @AssimilationA #olicies .ith white assistance, Indians could, in e((ect, esca#e the (rontier model and move u# the hierarch" to become civili1ed, 6hristian, and economicall" rational ,5oxie, 19CE- Althou'h tem#ered b" the rise o( cultural relativism a(ter .orld .ar II, such develo#mental assum#tions continue to live on toda", under#innin'(ederal and state #olic", church missionar" activit", and educational do'ma Modernist History !urner)s 1C90 endin' o( the (rontier marked another, e4uall" si'ni(icant moment o( chan'e in white historical consciousness concernin' Indians !he .ounded Pnee massacre, also in that "ear, seemed to man" to be the (inal battle o( the im#erial stru''le (or North America Indians immediatel" looked di((erent when seen throu'h the lens o( what 8enato 8osaldo has called @im#erialist nostal'iaA ,8osaldo, 19C9.ith a modern sensibilit" tuned toward re'ret, much Indian histor"+writin' continued to see the #ast throu'h the meta#hor o( boundaries 3 onl" now those boundaries were not so much s#atial and im#enetrable as the" were tem#oral and #ermeable ,: Deloria, 199C- Nostal'ia #ermeates this tradition and it led writers to invert and to dissolve older, @(rontierA boundaries while at the same time retainin' the racial #rivile'e that came with the develo#mental hierarch" 5elen 5unt <ackson)s 1CC1 A %entur+ #f Dish#n#r, (or exam#le, did not en'a'e the scienti(ic concern with race that continued to mark much historical writin' And while it acce#ted the dualistic division that 5I0!78I798A:5; 13 characteri1ed the (rontier school, it (li#+(lo##ed the values assi'ned to civili1ation and sava'er" <ackson o((ered a histor" o( white American barbarism, an em#athetic inversion that would (re4uentl" mark modernist writin' >ut i( inversion was one com#onent o( this historio'ra#hical tradition, so too was the anthro#olo'ical notion that one mi'ht #artici#ate in an Indian world, at least on a small scale 6olumbia anthro#olo'ist Fran1 >oas and his students led the wa" in re#lacin' the ri'id racial divisions o( the nineteenth centur" with the more #ermeable cultural boundaries o( the twentieth 0alva'e anthro#olo'" 3 the lo'ical descendant o( a 0ocial Darwinian linkin' o( histor" and science 3 #roved most amenable to the notion that one could cross time and culture to 'ather u# an Indian #ast ,0tockin', 19FC- ;et most ethno'ra#hers were not thinkin' historicall", (or salva'e anthro#olo'" insisted u#on Indians (ro1en in an @ethno'ra#hic #resent A 8ather, amateur historianssuch as 0tanle" $estal, % A >rininstool, 9eor'e 5"de, and .alter Dc6lintock went amon' Indian #eo#le and 'athered in(ormation (or bio'ra#h" and histor" :erha#s the 4uintessential ex#ressions o( this modernist boundar"+crossin' revolve around the ?akota hol" man26atholic catechist >lack %lk In 1931, #oet <ohn Neihardt visited >lack %lk in search o( the historical material that eventuall" became ,lac. El. Spea.s ,193B-, and later, "hen the Tree Fl#$ered ,19&1- Neihardt)s writin' ,or is it >lack %lk)s s#eech/ 3 the relations o( literar" #roduction are con(used, to sa" the leastover(lows with modernist re'ret, nostal'ia, and the inversion o( civil and @sava'eA

s"m#athies In 19E7, <ose#h %#es >rown, dee#l" moved b" Neihardt)s book, made a similar visit to >lack %lk)s home, where he sta"ed (or several months !he result was The Sacred Pipe ,19&3-, which, like ,lac. El., blurs the boundaries between sub=ect and recorder Neihardt)s author ta', (or exam#le, reads @as told throu'h,A while >rown sim#l" writes @recorded and edited b"RA In such writin', culture+ crossin' tended to be an individual issue, and so man" similar works are bio'ra#hical in nature .illiam .ildschut and !wo ?e''in's, Frank ?inderman and :rett" 0hield and :lent" 6ou#s, >rininstool and ?uther 0tandin' >ear, $estal and .hite >ull, .alter D"k and ?e(t 5anded, ?eo 0immons and Don !ala"esva, amon' man" others 3 these bio'ra#hies and @as+told+toA histories all bear the mark o( the relationshi# between writer and anthro#olo'ical in(ormant And this (orm has continued to have resonance and #ower, #articularl" when ada#ted b" historicall" minded anthro#olo'ists such as :aul 8adin ,6rashin' !hunder-, Nanc" 7estreich ?urie ,Dountain .ol( .oman-, and Dar'ot ?ibert" ,<ohn 0tands In !imber- 8ecent #o#ular writin's include, amon' others, the various collaborations with 8ichard %rdoes ,Lame Deer6 See.er #f &isi#ns , 197BO La.#ta "#man, 1990O Ohiti.a "#man, 1993O%r#$ D#*, 199&O amon' others-, $ada 6arlson ,)# Turnin* ,ac., 19FE-, and Dark 0t :ierre , ad#nna S$an, 1991:erha#s the most si'ni(icant moment in the modernist tradition, however, was the (ormal linkin' o( histor" and ethno'ra#h", two disci#lines that had been dancin' to'ether (or over one hundred "ears Founded in 19&E, the American 0ociet" (or %thnohistor" (ocused on brin'in' the methods o( ethno'ra#hic (ieldwork and the documentar" evidentiar" bases o( American Indian histor" into ex#licit interdisci#linar" dialo'ue ,Axtell, 19C1- %thnohistor" has thrived in the "ears since, and man" o( the classic recent works o( Indian histor" have come (rom its adherents Indeed, 1E :5I?I: < D%?78IA man" o( the cha#ters in this volume re(lect the #roductive historical investi'ations undertaken b" ethnohistorians in (ields such as demo'ra#h", commerce, reli'ion, law, land tenure, and #olitics, amon' man" others %thnohistorians have, in addition, brou'ht an increasin' historio'ra#hical sel(+consciousness about their (ield, its direction,and its basis o( knowled'e and authorit" Amon' the man" noteworth" texts are edited collections like Nanc" 7 ?urie and %leanor ?eacock)s )#rth AmericanIndians in Hist#rical Perspecti/e ,1971-, .illiam 8 0wa'ert")s Sch#lars and theIndian E-perience ,19CE-, 6alvin Dartin)s The American Indian and the Pr#(lem #f Hist#r+ ,19C7-, 6olin 6allowa")s )e$ Directi#ns in American Indian Hist#r+ ,19CC-, <enni(er 0 5 >rown and %li1abeth $ibert)s Readin* ,e+#nd "#rds ,199F-, Donald Fixico)s Rethin.in* American Indian Hist#r+ ,1997-, Devon Dihesuah)s )ati/es and Academics ,199C-, and 8ussell !hornton)s Stud+in* )ati/e America4Pr#(lems and Pr#spects ,199C- In man" wa"s, however, ethnohistor" is sim#l" the lo'ical develo#ment o( modernist boundar"+ crossin' traditions As Perwin Plein has ar'ued, the blurrin' o( 'enres that (inds historians doin' (ieldwork and anthro#olo'ists writin' @librar"dissertationsA has @em#tied ethnohistor" o( its methodolo'ical contentA ,Plein,1997* B1B%thnohistor" now con(ronts issues that #roblemati1e its (amiliar #racticesand call out (or new a##roaches to the tellin' o( an Indian #ast !hose chan'es have come, in #art, (rom e#istemolo'ical shi(ts that have altered recent understandin's o( histor" And the" have come, in #art, out o( the critical #resence o( native #eo#le in the (amiliar #ractices surroundin' the #roduction o( knowled'e Native Narrative >e(ore we can 'ra##le with these issues, however, it is vital that we return to the 4uestion,bracketed so man" #a'es a'o, o( native narration o( native #asts As white Americans have created a librar" o( Indian histor", native #eo#le have themselves

been en'a'ed in the on'oin' #roduction o( Indian histories And i( we insisted on thinkin' about this (irst bod" o( historio'ra#h" in terms o( accretin' la"ers, each driven b" historical shi(ts in the conditions under which histor" was #roduced, we should do no less (or native histories !he historio'ra#h" that emer'es is ever" bit as com#lex, i( #erha#s less easil" ca#tured, (or native historical traditions are as diverse as tribes themselves Indian #eo#le have #ersistentl" maintained oral records 0ome o( those records have chan'edO others have remained relativel" unchan'ed Native #eo#le have meticulousl" #reserved the #ast in s#iritual understandin's and collective memories o( #lace !he" have recorded the #ast in various written (orms, includin' mnemonics, ima'es, and books And the" have resha#ed it in order to meet social, cultural, and #oliticalchallen'es Indian histor" 3 as #ossessed and #roduced b" native #eo#le 3 has been as com#licated and time+bound a #rocess as it has been (or non+Indians In this, the" have been no di((erent (rom an" 'rou# o( #eo#le in the world Native historians have insisted that, sim#l" because the #ractice o( oral tradition and oral histor" has been so o(ten invisible to the librar", does not mean that it lacks le'itimac" .hile academic debates concernin' the nature o( oralit" and literac" 5I0!78I798A:5; 1& continue, scholars such as <an $ansina have demonstrated that oral tradition can #reserve in(ormation across broad s#ans o( time ,$ansina, 19C&- And native oral histories have their own social and cultural le'itimac" outside o( academic =ud'ements,which have o(ten been less concerned with meanin' and context and more (ocused on veri(iable (acticit" !his is an ironic (ocus, 'iven the #roblemati1in' o( (act and the em#hasis on context that has characteri1ed the #ost+structuralist awareness so much a #art o( recent %uro+ American histor"+tellin' Nonetheless, as An'ela 6avender .ilson #oints out, oral histor" 3 when seen in a Native context 3 has certain a((inities with %uro+American histor", o#eratin', (or exam#le, under similar constraints ,.ilson, 1997- 0tories are re#eated under certain conditions, at certain times o( the "ear, in connection with certain landsca#es, and, in man" cases, are sub=ect to the @#eer reviewA o( knowin' audiences !he Nava=o >lessin'wa", (or exam#le, is a histor" that, one mi'ht ar'ue, has remained lar'el" unchan'ed across si'ni(icant s#ans o( time and hundreds o( retellin's throu'h exactl" this kind o( oversi'ht And "et, it is clear that there are distinctions to be made between, (or exam#le, oral traditi#ns that are held and renewed collectivel" and oral hist#ries that ma" be #ersonal and bio'ra#hical In a wide+ran'in' treatment o( Indian histor"+tellin', :eter Nabokov su''ests com#licatin' three (amiliar cate'ories o( native historical narrative*m"th, le'end, and (olktale @D"thsA are sacred stories that take #lace in an earlier world and are held as absolute truths ,Nabokov, 199F- As Peith >asso has shown, such stories continue to exist as vital collective narratives about the #ast 3 histories 3 that 'ive ex#lanator" meanin' to the world o( the #resent A#ache #lace stories, in this case, link contem#orar" landsca#e and culture to ori'ins that have become essentiall" timeless ,>asso, 199F- @?e'endsA maintain their link to what mi'ht be called @.esternA historical time 3 the" contain human characters and (actual content @FolktalesA exist as (ictional literature, educational and entertainin' !he" include @=ust soA stories, trickster tales, 'host stories, =okes, and other in(ormal ex#ressions Nabokov includes within this cate'or" @tricksterA histories that are ex#licitl" constructed as tools (or #olitical stru''le 7bviousl" the cate'orical lines are =ust as blurr" in this accountin' as the" are in the %uro+ American historical traditions alread" discussed A#aches, to return to >asso)s exam#le, do not sim#l" live in a static, m"thic world !he" create new histories about newl" created #laces, revealin' the 'a#s and (issures in an" scheme that would si(t out tem#oral distinctions amon' native histories >ut Indian histories are not sim#l" de(ined b" (orms, contents, and acts o( narration 7ral traditions and histories ,like written texts- have constantl" had to con(ront the 4uestion o( readin'

3 a con(rontation that ori'in stories alwa"s (ace* should the" be heard as literal de#ictions o( historical events, as some #ro#onents advise/ 7r do the" reall" (unction as meta#horical @#seudo+historiesA containin' renditions o( cultural circumstances rather than histor", as most academic scholars su''est/ 8o'er %cho+ 5awk ,B000- has in4uired into the historical content o( ori'in stories, and he #ro#oses to em#lo" academic tools to excavate ar'uabl" historical settin's (rom narratives that (eature an accumulated overburden o( culturall" s#eci(ic inter#retive detail !his endorsement o( academic anal"sis as the basis (or decidin' historicit" could easil" be viewed as an a((irmation o( intellectual im#erialism, a (orced (ittin' o( .estern historical consciousness on histories that are not meant to be considered 1F :5I?I: < D%?78IA so, and "et another attack on ori'in stories and oral histor" 3 the heart o( Indian historio'ra#hical traditions A counter to such criti4ue mi'ht be to su''est that the ma=or #rece#ts o( academic anal"sis, such as checks (or veracit" and 4uestions o( authorshi#, readershi#, and context, ou'ht to be reco'ni1ed as a vital #art o( the tradition o( Indian histor"+tellin' and not as the sole domain o( im#erialistic non+Indian histor" In the end, the search (or common 'round between distinctive historio'ra#hic traditions ma" "ield insi'ht into shared #rinci#les o( histor", brin'in' 'reater com#lexit" into the creation o( the stories we tell about the #ast >ut encounters between dee#l" entrenched, coexistin' worldviews are never easil" ne'otiated .here one observer sees common 'round, another mi'ht see contested territor", a #lace o( collision between im#erialistic winners and victimi1ed losers Native #eo#le have also recorded the #ast in wa"s that are not exclusivel" oral :lains winter counts, (or exam#le, (unction as mnemonic devices, with each #icture re#resentin' a memorable ,o(tentimes an idios"ncratic- event that allows the recollection o( a 'iven "ear ,Daller", 1CC32197B- And thou'h the counts are arran'ed in the (orm o( a circle, the" do in (act allow a @linearA conce#tion o( the relationshi# o( one or more #ast events In addition to recordin' #ersonal and collective narratives, the 6herokee s"llabar" was sometimes used to record calendar in(ormation in a similar wa" And o( course, native #eo#le have recorded their own #ersonal and collective histories, both in native lan'ua'e ortho'ra#hies and in written %n'lish Nineteenth+centur" Indian historians tended to be exce#tional (i'ures such as .illiam A#ess, 9eor'e 6o#wa", 0amson 7ccam, and a ver" (ew others >ut b" the twentieth centur", man" native #eo#le had worked their wa" inside mission 6hristianit" and academic disci#lines such as anthro#olo'" !heir cross+cultural writin's, o(ten in(lected b" the traditions o( modernist histor", (re4uentl" tried to use the #ast to make a case (or contem#orar" Indians Anthro#olo'ists Arthur 6 :arker, %dward Do1ier, < N > 5ewitt, and D)Arc" DcNickle, writers Sitkala 0T, :auline <ohnson, 6harles %astman, and <ohn <ose#h Dathews 3 these were onl" a (ew o( the native #eo#le who o((ered Indian histories as #art o( their literar" out#ut ,5oxie, 199B!he diversit" o( tribal ex#erience makes it di((icult to attem#t an" 'eneral #eriodi1ation o( native histor"+tellin' Nonetheless, one mi'ht su''est, as a startin' #oint, three broad #eriods* ,1- an @oral2traditionalA #eriod in which #eo#le used and recalled si'ni(icant events as tem#oral markers embued with historical and cultural

si'ni(icance, characteri1ed, on the #lains, (or exam#le, b" the invention o( winter countsO ,B- a #eriod sha#ed b" 6hristiani1ation, in which mer'in's o( the ideolo'ies and tro#es o( the >ible with those o( oral traditions became relativel" common, sha#in' the nature o( historical discourse amon' Indian #eo#leO ,3- a #eriod sha#ed b" academic and non+academic scholarshi#, in which detailed ethno'ra#hic and historical in4uir" into Indian histor" hel#ed resha#e native conce#tions and narrations o( the #ast 0uch a #eriodi1ation is not meant to su''est wholesale rewritin's o( Indian #asts, but rather to cast into relie( the subtle trans(ormations in e#istemolo'" and narrative which inevitabl" accom#an" the #assa'e o( time and cultural transmission 0ince the 19F0s, then, we have seen Indian #eo#le #la"in' increasin'l" im#ortant roles in trans(ormin' the librar" o( non+native histories !he #olitical u#heavals o( the 5I0!78I798A:5; 17 19F0s not onl" made non+Indian historians more sensitive to issues, the" also created the social and #olitical contexts (or the develo#ment o( an Indian academic histor" In 197B, (or exam#le, D)Arc" DcNickle was named the (irst director o( the Newberr" ?ibrar")s 6enter (or the 5istor" o( the American Indian, which has o((ered a home to man" native scholars ever since !he (irst American Indian 0tudies #ro'rams came o( a'e in the earl" 1970s, and, like the DcNickle 6enter, hel#ed create native intellectual centers (or new a##roaches to Indian histor" !he list is si'ni(icant, (or man" o( these scholars have been at the (ore(ront o( Indian histor"* <ack Forbes at the Lniversit" o( 6ali(ornia, DavisO Duane 6ham#a'ne at L6?AO 9erald $i1enor, !err" .ilson, and 6lara 0ue Pidwell at L6 >erkele"O $ine Deloria, 0cott Domada", !om 5olm, 7#helia Se#eda, and others at the Lniversit" o( Ari1onaO %li1abeth 6ook+?"nn at .ashin'ton 0tateO 7ren ?"ons and <ohn Dohawk at 0LN;O Dichael Dorris at DartmouthO 8u#ert 6osto and <eanette 5enr" at L6+8iverside ;et it is also the case that one cannot track a clean tra=ector" (or recent Indian histor" be'innin' in the late 19F0s In 6hicano histor", (or exam#le, one can #oint to a 'eneration o( 6hicano :h D reci#ients, the so+called @class o( 7& A Dario ! 9arcia, Albert 6amarillo, 7scar Dartine1, <uan 9ome1+Uuinones, 8icardo 8omo, 8ichard 9riswold del 6astillo, amon' others, have moved throu'h their careers to'ether, #roducin' an initial burst o( dissertation+based scholarshi#, sustained trainin' o( multi#le 'enerations o( students, and the develo#ment o( a 6hicano historical canon !he #roducts o( a di((erent #olitical milieu, Indian intellectuals more (re4uentl" turned to law or literature than to histor" or anthro#olo'" And so in man" wa"s, it was not entirel" the voices o( Indian intellectuals that #ushed histor" and ethnohistor" to o#en u# to native #ers#ectives It was also the #resence o( Indian sub=ects 3 in(ormants, readers, and students 3 who insisted u#on makin' themselves heard Postmodern and Postcolonial .ith that, we can now turn to consider the #resent moment in Indian histor"+tellin' which, it strikes me, is one o( achievement, activism, and uncertaint" %arlier, I used the words @#ostmodernA and @#ostcolonialA as descri#tive terms, and, des#ite the

shared trendiness o( the @#ostA #re(ix, I su''ested that one mi'ht see them as bein' in tension with one another I)ve ar'ued that @(rontier,A @hierarchical,A and @modernA schools o( histor"+writin' can be visuali1ed in terms o( the boundaries between Indians and others that have been ima'ined, inverted, and #roblemati1ed A ri'id and lar'el" im#ermeable (rontier boundar" mirrored the ideolo'ies o( colonial and im#erial contest A set o( ranked distinctions #ut the #roblems o( racial and ethnic distinctiveness in a reassurin' order And i( modernists have clearl" marked the boundaries between Indian and other, the" have done so in order to trans'ress those same markers o( di((erence 5owever one de(ines @#ostmodernism,A it seems a##arent that sometime over the last (ew decades we)ve entered a moment in which such boundaries have essentiall" disinte'rated ,<ameson, 19917ne can see this disinte'ration in a social sense, (or exam#le, as cross+racial marria'e and mixed+blood identit" have become im#ortant issues in both histor" and 1C :5I?I: < D%?78IA sociolo'" 7ne can see it in the most recent census data, in which the Indian #o#ulation sk"rocketed be"ond an" rational demo'ra#hic ex#lanation and which su''ests that non+Indians, havin' re=ected certain ethnic borders, are sim#l" choosin' an identit" that suits them 7ne sees it in aesthetics, as @IndianA themes in art and literature have become accessible to the entire world In #olitics and the media, we)ve watched the dissolution o( distinctions between #ublic and #rivate and between news and entertainment And amon' all the other #laces one mi'ht #oint, one also sees it in the tellin' o( histor" In addition to traditional treatments o( #olitics and law, recent scholarshi# has o(ten (ocused more on the (luidities o( culture and identit", #articularl" in sociall" ambi'uous situations 9erald $i1enor, 8ichard .hite, !sianina ?omawaima, Alan !a"lor, 6rai' .omack, <ames Derrell, Del#hine 8ed 0hirt, Alexandra 5armon, 9re' 0arris, Dar'aret 6onnell 01as1, <ames 6li(ton, amon' man" others, have looked at con(used moments that have cast u# individuals characteri1ed b" multi#le identities ,see 5inderaker, this volume- .hat to make o( (i'ures like 0imon 9irt" or 5endrik Au#aumut or boardin' school children or .ild .est show #er(ormers/ !he answers have o(ten revolved around the wa"s in which cultural and social borders have been con(used or demolished .hite)s iddle 7r#und ,1991- and Derrell)s Indians1 )e$ "#rld ,19C9-, (or exam#le, use structurin' meta#hors that su''est worlds characteri1ed b" shattered social structure and conse4uent rebuildin' %#ntact P#ints ,6a"ton and !eute, 199C-, an im#ortant recent collection o( essa"s, insists on a rede(ined (rontier, one conceived around @contested s#acesA where @kinetic interactionsA create @new cultural matrices, American in their eclecticism, (luidit", individual determination and di((erentiationA ,# B- 8ather than considerin' the d"namics o( visible boundaries, such studies 'ain their coherence b" examinin' sub=ects or 'rou#s in a broad and multi#licitous @cultural (ieldA in which clarit" is lackin' and identities are cobbled out o( con(usion and con(lict

:omo writer 9re' 0arris)s outstandin' a(el c5a+4 "ea/in* the Dream ,199Estands as an icon o( this #ostmodern ambi'uit" In the book, 0arris weaves coherence out o( the blurred threads o( his own identit", that o( Dabel DcPa", his #ersonal and scholarl" encounters with her, the s#ace o( the reservation and the cit" >" the time he is throu'h, there is little le(t o( the lines (ormerl" used to distin'uish Indian (rom non+Indian, historian (rom sub=ect, literature (rom histor", nature (rom su#ernature Dan" non+Indian writers have celebrated the 'eneral sense o( liberation that comes with such an embrace o( ambi'uit" 7thers have re=ected it, #re(errin' a more conservative a##roach to 4uestions o( truth and di((erence >ut exce#t as the" have included 4uestions o( @multiculturalismA and educational re#resentation, the socalled @culture warsA bein' (ou'ht amon' non+Indian intellectual elites have o(ten been irrelevant to man" native writers .hat has mattered has been the other context, that o( #ostcolonialism ,althou'h one should note that man" Indian writers hesitate over the term itsel(A (ull #ostmodern embrace o( the individual sub=ect can easil" result in an attenuation o( the im#ortance o( histor" .hat comes to matter is not so much the causeand+ e((ect o( the #ast as it is the wa"s individuals and 'rou#s have (i'ured themselves out in the midst o( tr"in' circumstances :ostcolonial a##roaches also (ocus on the 5I0!78I798A:5; 19 individual, o(ten the coloni1ed #erson who (inds a #lace and an identit" throu'h the institutions o( those who have done the coloni1in' >ut the #ostcolonial (ocus on the individual is di((erent, (or it re4uires a con(rontation with the histor" that created those tr"in' circumstances ,Ashcro(t, 9ri((iths, and !i((in, 199&O >habha, 199E!he "oun'est 'eneration o( Indian historians, it seems to me, is concerned to insure, in Pwame Anthon" A##iah)s a#t #hrase, that the @#ostA in #ostcolonial is not the same as the @#ostA in #ostmodern ,A##iah, 199B- !hat is, in the midst o( an incredibl" #roductive historical (ocus on boundar" dissolution and ambi'uit", native historians are also insistin' on reco'ni1in' and resha#in' boundaries both in the #ast and in the #resent An" reinstallation o( boundaries will, #erha#s necessaril", include issues o( identit" #olitics in the #roduction o( histor" :erha#s never more than now, the 4uestion is bein' raised* who should do Indian histor"/ For what audience and (or what reason/ ;oun' Indian historians such as An'ela 6avender .ilson and Anton !reuer, who insist on the #rimac" o( native lan'ua'e histor" and oral tradition, are #assionate advocates (or the #reservation o( cultural di((erence in a #ostmodern world !o ar'ue otherwise would be to allow tribal #eo#le, histories, and traditions to dissolve into a 'lobal meltin' #ot (ar more e((ective and #ernicious than the (ailed #ro'ram o( assimilation o( a centur" a'o >ut while these writers seek a certain #urit" 3 Indian histories lar'el" devoid o( the colonialist documents o( the con4uerors, researched in native lan'ua'es amon' native elders 3 the" also have to account (or the im#urities o( histories written in a #ostmodern moment !he @#ure #roductsA as <ames 6li((ord has said, reworkin' .illiam 6arlos .illiams, have @'one cra1"A and there)s no 'oin' back ,6li((ord, 19CC- !he desire (or #urit" is, o( course, a #olitical desire In that sense, native+ori'inated histor" ou'ht to be considered on the same terrain as the

e4uall" #olitical non+native histories we)ve discussed >ut i( we choose to mark Indian histor" as #olitical, let us make doubl" sure that we mark the #olitics that underlie non+Indian histories as well, re=ectin' the claims to ob=ectivit" and truth that have em#owered those histories !his multivalent realit" su''ests to me that (uture Indian histories ma" well be #roduced in a sel(+conscious collision, the #olitics and e#istemolo'" o( #urit" and di((erence clashin' with the #olitics and e#istemolo'" o( ambi'uit" and (luidit" !hus, one can see in An'ela .ilson)s work an assertion that Indian oral histor" (unctions in wa"s similar to %uro#ean histor", with s#eci(ic checks and balances (or somethin' called @accurac" A At the same time, however, .ilson also insists that the e#istemolo'" o( oral tradition is radicall" di((erent and that, in its di((erence, it challen'es .estern wa"s o( knowin' A #aradox, then* histories overla# in method and #ractice >ut histories are also written and told to re=ect such overla#s, (or #ractice is alwa"s marked b" #ower, and histor" has alwa"s been crucial to thinkin' about 3 and contestin' 3 #ower !he best evidence (or the continued workin' o( #ower in histor" lies in the (act that the (rontier school o( Indian historio'ra#h" is alive and well, as are the #ro#onents o( modernist desire and the voices o( scienti(ic racialism !his essa" has, in e((ect, been workin' throu'h an on'oin' set o( authorial #ositions :ower relations continue to make it #ossible (or %uro+Americans to choose to write histor" throu'h B0 :5I?I: < D%?78IA %uro+American lenses such as (rontier, hierarch", crossin' In challen'in' those #ower relations 3 both directl" and throu'h the maintenance o( Indian distinctiveness 3 it)s e4uall" #ossible (or native #eo#le to write histor" throu'h a strictl" native lens Intellectuall", however, neither #osition seems tenable, (or neither does =ustice to what is, at least in terms o( the last &00 "ears, a thorou'hl" cross+cultural histor" !he best contem#orar" scholarshi# treats Indians and non+Indians in a chan'in' world, with historical consciousnesses that are the #roducts o( that world and o( those chan'es 0uch scholarshi# reco'ni1es the need to both dissolve and reassert boundaries at the same time .ritin' contem#orar" Indian histor" re4uires a creative weavin' to'ether o( contradictions First, the #olitical demands made b" those concerned with colonial2 #ostcolonial issues re4uire an" historian 3 Indian or non+Indian 3 to en'a'e in a sel(+re(lexive consideration o( difference in the e#istemolo'" o( histor" 5ow are Indian #eo#le and Indian histories di((erent, both in terms o( the #ast and in terms o( the #ro=ect at hand/ 0econd, the realities o( the #ostmodern moment re4uire historians to en'a'e in a sel(+re(lexive consideration o( chan*e in the e#istemolo'" o( histor" 5ow are the Indian histories o( toda" n#t the Indian histories o( the #ast/ 0omehow, historians 3 Indian and non+Indian alike 3 need to esca#e the tendenc" to (orce each other to choose lo"alties (rom a dichotomous vision that s#lits histor" into two untenable cam#s In the end, the most interestin' new Indian histories will come (rom Native #eo#le

who have been able to look the %uro+American librar" (ull in the (ace, learnin' its #olitics, its lessons, and its secrets !he" will also come (rom non+Native #eo#le who have been able to transcend the librar" and look Native #eo#le (ull in the (ace, understandin' their #olitics and their #asts And the" will come (rom individuals who are naturall" #ositioned in between and who work to develo# their narratives with a (ull awareness o( di((erence and ambi'uit", and chan'e and timelessness