Some Observations on the Ethnography and Archaeology of the American Aborigines

Morton, Samuel George, 1799-1851Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 3.0
Word count
39K words
Chapters
4

Tags

English Originals Social Sciences Anthropological StudyAcademic MonographField NotesEthnology ResearchArchaeological EvidenceIndigenous Peoples

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Some Observations on the Ethnography and Archaeology of the American AboriginesAuthor: Morton, Samuel George, 1799-1851,Language: English, Class: E151: History: America: United States, Release Date: Jun 24, 2009

Editor's review

This is a short observational paper published by Morton in the nineteenth century on the ethnography and archaeology of the American aborigines. Though brief, it preserves the typical approach of the scholarship of its time to classifying, comparing, and describing Indigenous American populations. As a free Project Gutenberg eBook, it offers readers quick access to the original text. Its value lies not in conclusions that appear reliable today, but in serving as a primary source for the history of science and the history of anthropology: readers can see how early physical anthropology organized evidence, used comparative methods, and what presuppositions and limitations researchers of that era had. It should be read with a critical eye and understood within the context of disciplinary history, rather than treated as current knowledge about American Indigenous peoples. Suitable for readers interested in the history of anthropology, the history of science, and colonial-era knowledge production for focused study.

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Reading tips

  1. Read an introductory text on the history of anthropology first to understand the research paradigm and controversies of Morton's era
  2. Annotate the author's classification criteria and types of evidence as you read, distinguishing observation from inference
  3. Compare with modern scholarly discussion of the same issues, list differences in viewpoint, and write critical notes
  4. Given its limited length, schedule two or three close readings, each focusing on one segment of the argument

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

Contents

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4

FAQ

Does this text still have reading value today? It has value, but mainly as material for the history of science and the history of anthropology. It records how nineteenth-century researchers described and classified American Indigenous peoples and helps readers understand the evolution of disciplinary paradigms. Its specific conclusions should not be used as reliable knowledge today; maintain a critical distance while reading.
Can readers without an anthropology background understand it? The original is an English academic essay of moderate-to-high difficulty despite its short length. Readers without an anthropology background should first read an introduction to the discipline's history to understand the classification terminology and research controversies of the time; otherwise they may mistake historical views for current conclusions.
What should be noted when reading the electronic edition? This is a public-domain eBook released by Project Gutenberg and is freely available. Use reading software that supports annotation to mark terminology and argument structure; also note version information and original page numbers, and cite the source and access date when quoting.

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About the author

Morton, Samuel George, 1799-1851 Author

Samuel George Morton (1799–1851) was an American physician and physical anthropologist. Two of his works are held in this collection, including Crania Ægyptiaca and Some Observations on the Ethnography and Archaeology of the American Aborigines. The former belongs to craniological study, while the latter concerns ethnographic and archaeological observations of the American aborigines, showing that his writing drew on anatomical specimens and field materials and tends toward scholarly empirical description. Because his research involved human skull measurement and racial classification, later scholars often place him in the academic context of early physical anthropology for discussion and criticism. Details of his life, education, and appointments are limited in publicly available sources and are not speculated upon here.