The Longhouse Iroquois of Southern Ontario and New York State are carriers today of an ancient tradition of political and religious oratory, one strand of which is a set of speeches, chants and songs associated with the calendrical round of ceremonies. Among these are four rituals based on a graded hierarchy of "spirit forces" -- from the animals and plants on earth to the celestial bodies in the sky, to completely ethereal beings beyond. The study, based on analysis of 17 transcribed and translated versions of these ...
Read More
The Longhouse Iroquois of Southern Ontario and New York State are carriers today of an ancient tradition of political and religious oratory, one strand of which is a set of speeches, chants and songs associated with the calendrical round of ceremonies. Among these are four rituals based on a graded hierarchy of "spirit forces" -- from the animals and plants on earth to the celestial bodies in the sky, to completely ethereal beings beyond. The study, based on analysis of 17 transcribed and translated versions of these rituals from seven speakers representing four longhouses and two languages (Cayugo and Seneca), focuses on three interrelated points: the hierarchic rituals reflect the Iroquois conceptualization of the cosmos; they reveal two kinds of variation, one associated with differences in function among the four types, the other associated with stylistic differences for speakers belonging to different local traditions; and variation in performance is linked to the process of oral composition itself.
Read Less
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Textual maps & tables. Some rubbing. Corner bumps. Some light stains to rear cover. VG. 28x21cm, xi, 448 pp, Series: National Museum of Man, Mercury Series, Canadian Ethnology Service, Paper No. 20. Contents: Speakers & the Longhouse: Speeches: Themes & their Variations; The Structure of the Iroquois Cosmos; The Compact with the Creator; Speaking: The Oral Composition Process: Whole Speeches & Sections; Lines & Formulas; Grammatical Overview of the Texts: Appendices: Three Whole Addresses: Excerpts from Four Other Thanking Events; Section on Hanging Fruit; Excerpts from Two Beseeching Events: Section on Hanging Fruit; Two Brief Announcements. [The Appendices (pp 285-420) consist of Cayuga text transcription with line-by-line English translation]