Honoring Elders

Aging, Authority, and Ojibwe Religion

Nonfiction, Social & Cultural Studies, Social Science, Anthropology, History, Americas, United States, Religion & Spirituality
Cover of the book Honoring Elders by Michael D. McNally, Columbia University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Michael D. McNally ISBN: 9780231518253
Publisher: Columbia University Press Publication: August 6, 2009
Imprint: Columbia University Press Language: English
Author: Michael D. McNally
ISBN: 9780231518253
Publisher: Columbia University Press
Publication: August 6, 2009
Imprint: Columbia University Press
Language: English

Like many Native Americans, Ojibwe people esteem the wisdom, authority, and religious significance of old age, but this respect does not come easily or naturally. It is the fruit of hard work, rooted in narrative traditions, moral vision, and ritualized practices of decorum that are comparable in sophistication to those of Confucianism. Even as the dispossession and policies of assimilation have threatened Ojibwe peoplehood and have targeted the traditions and the elders who embody it, Ojibwe and other Anishinaabe communities have been resolute and resourceful in their disciplined respect for elders. Indeed, the challenges of colonization have served to accentuate eldership in new ways.

Using archival and ethnographic research, Michael D. McNally follows the making of Ojibwe eldership, showing that deference to older women and men is part of a fuller moral, aesthetic, and cosmological vision connected to the ongoing circle of life-a tradition of authority that has been crucial to surviving colonization. McNally argues that the tradition of authority and the authority of tradition frame a decidedly indigenous dialectic, eluding analytic frameworks of invented tradition and naïve continuity. Demonstrating the rich possibilities of treating age as a category of analysis, McNally provocatively asserts that the elder belongs alongside the priest, prophet, sage, and other key figures in the study of religion.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Like many Native Americans, Ojibwe people esteem the wisdom, authority, and religious significance of old age, but this respect does not come easily or naturally. It is the fruit of hard work, rooted in narrative traditions, moral vision, and ritualized practices of decorum that are comparable in sophistication to those of Confucianism. Even as the dispossession and policies of assimilation have threatened Ojibwe peoplehood and have targeted the traditions and the elders who embody it, Ojibwe and other Anishinaabe communities have been resolute and resourceful in their disciplined respect for elders. Indeed, the challenges of colonization have served to accentuate eldership in new ways.

Using archival and ethnographic research, Michael D. McNally follows the making of Ojibwe eldership, showing that deference to older women and men is part of a fuller moral, aesthetic, and cosmological vision connected to the ongoing circle of life-a tradition of authority that has been crucial to surviving colonization. McNally argues that the tradition of authority and the authority of tradition frame a decidedly indigenous dialectic, eluding analytic frameworks of invented tradition and naïve continuity. Demonstrating the rich possibilities of treating age as a category of analysis, McNally provocatively asserts that the elder belongs alongside the priest, prophet, sage, and other key figures in the study of religion.

More books from Columbia University Press

Cover of the book Reforming Democracies by Michael D. McNally
Cover of the book The Lives of Sri Aurobindo by Michael D. McNally
Cover of the book Advanced Clinical Social Work Practice by Michael D. McNally
Cover of the book The Yogin and the Madman by Michael D. McNally
Cover of the book Virus Alert by Michael D. McNally
Cover of the book The Evolutionary Biology of Flies by Michael D. McNally
Cover of the book Why Only Art Can Save Us by Michael D. McNally
Cover of the book An End to Poverty? by Michael D. McNally
Cover of the book The Fracking Debate by Michael D. McNally
Cover of the book The Sustainable City by Michael D. McNally
Cover of the book The Cinema of Robert Altman by Michael D. McNally
Cover of the book Craving Earth by Michael D. McNally
Cover of the book Philosophies of Happiness by Michael D. McNally
Cover of the book Action Movies by Michael D. McNally
Cover of the book The Science of Chinese Buddhism by Michael D. McNally
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy