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Rating: 
Summary: A compairson of 2 native cultures fighting for a way of life
Review: I was put to sleep three times by this book. Those poor natives. They just can't get no justice. This book does provide a new look at what an injustice western civilation has done to native people.
Rating: 
Summary: A major contribution to field of comparative history
Review: Please disregard the 2 of 5 rating from the sleep deprived person from North Carolina. This 5 out of 5 work of comparative history will keep you turning the pages. It may actually disturb your sleep with its effective demolition of the historiography of American exceptionalism when it comes to imperialism towards indigenous peoples.More importantly, this is NOT a narrative about the Sioux or the Zulu as "victims." Although many scholars have noted the impact of Western imperial expansion on indigenous peoples throughout the world, it is only recently that historians have begun to employ the ill-defined and problematic methodology of comparative history to understand the similarities and differences of these diverse colonial encounters. Gump's book integrates two major themes. One theme is that indigenous societies and cultures are dynamic. This means that they are characterized by intentional action and change. Whether the forces of change are internal or external, indigenous societies are not static. The second theme is that societies and cultures are components of particular times and actual places. There is a dynamic interrelationship between attitudes, values, beliefs, behaviors and the specific circumstances of historic events. Examining two of these 19th century interrelationships provides us with an understanding of the dynamism of indigenous peoples' cultural adaptation and resilience. The Sioux and the Zulu were as involved in the historical process of change over time as any other people. In spite of their economic and cultural marginalization, adjusting to these circumstances did not necessarily diminish their cultural values. For a good introduction to the comparative frontier history of the United States and South Africa see Leonard Thompson and Howard Lamar's chapter, "Comparative Frontier History" in their book, The Frontier in History: North America and South Africa Compared, (Yale University Press, 1981), 3-13. For a comparative study in race relations consult George M. Frederickson's book, White Supremacy: A Comparative Study in American and South African History,(Oxford University Press, 1981).
Rating: 
Summary: PCism taken to a new High
Review: The author is determined to prove how bad whites are and how good native peoples were. Nothing that can not be found in the local pub from a bunch of liberal freshman.
Rating:
Summary: PCism taken to a new High
Review: The author is determined to prove how bad whites are and how good native peoples were. Nothing that can not be found in the local pub from a bunch of liberal freshman.
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