The Pamunkey Indians (the group that remained of
the once-powerful Powhatan nation) seem to have celebrated the
Pocahontas and John Smith myth in the early 20th century. Why would they participate in the retelling of this fictitious story? First, take a look at
this chapter on the challenges faced by the Pamunkey during the 19th century, and then consider that in 1932,
during the Great Depression, the State of Virginia aided the Pamunkey in establishing a pottery school that could produce items for the tourist trade.
3 comments:
After reading the chapter on the Pamunkey's grievances towards their treatment in the South, it seems like they might have perpetuated the Pocahontas myth at a time when Southern white society was robbing them of power and worth. If being grouped with slaves or free African-Americans was dispossessing the Natives of their rights or their land though laws and stricter slave codes, the Pocahontas myth could help the Pamunkey achieve greater status in white society. The chapter describes the Pamunkey "[as] proud people surrounded by a threatening white world, [because] the Pamunkey and other Virginia Indians rankled with the intensification of white supremacist legislation and, with it, the grouping of their existence with slaves or "free Negroes" (69). Thus, a myth that celebrates a union between a white man and a Pamunkey ancestor in marriage--linking these Natives with whites rather than African-American slaves might have given them an upper hand against those who preached white supremacy.
On the other hand, the webpage discussing the history of pottery making among the Pamunkey seems to suggest that, since the state of Virginia was aiding the tribe in the Great Depression by "fostering arts and crafts in the community," the state's intervention may have led it to have an influence over the tribal art--leading to the perpetuation of the state of Virginia's founding myth. Perhaps a combination of having a pottery school sponsored by the state of Virginia, items being marketed at the school to white American customers/tourists, and a style composed of various Native traditions and arts perpetuated the Pocahontas myth via this pottery school.
Great analysis, Brooke--I think that both points you made were really valuable. You might enjoy watching the rather satirical documentary, *Pocahontas: Her True Story*, available at the Jupiter library (E99.P85 P633 2006).
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