Natives and Newcomers: The Cultural Origins of North America
"With admirable clarity, good humor, and methodological rigor, Axtell has succeeded in telling the story of those often hopeful, yet ill-fated, early encounters between vastly different groups of people."--The Journal of Interdisciplinary History"Gracefully written and persuasively argued, this collection of essays is Axtell at his best. The essays explore the various social, political, and economic consequences of interactions between Natives and Europeans in early North America with Axtell's usual insight, his keen eye for nuance, and a coherence that belies their origins as separate works. Natives and Newcomers is a wonderful model of the practice of ethnohistory and a superb introduction to the topic of inter-cultural exchange and to the cultural origins of North America. This book is ideal for classroom use in a variety of disciplines."-Jose Antonio Brandao, Western Michigan University"Vividly written, smartly argued, and wide-ranging, Axtell's interconnected essays explore both the conflicts and conjunctures that characterized early Indian-European relations in North America. I can't imagine a more engaging way to enter this lost world than through the crystalline prose of this master essayist, who turns his ethnohistorian's gaze on newcomers and natives alike."-David J. Weber, Southern Methodist University"A pioneer in ethnohistory, James Axtell brings wit, clarity, and erudition to the study of Early American encounters. What gives this collection of essays special power is Axtell's insistence that the history of cultural encounter is a profoundly human story, a continuing struggle under often horrendous circumstances to establish mutual understandings. In a fiercely contested field of scholarship, Axtell provides his readers with many original insights that should promote rich discussion."-T. H. Breen, Northwestern University