Change Among the Powhatans

The institutions of society were often considered gay by the Creator. For example, for the Cherokees, when a calamity occurred, they attributed it to the violation of rituals or fond order. Thus, they would punish the people responsible in order to sterilize the natural order (Champagne, Social 17).

With the st adequate biographystyle of the Powhatans and the coordinate patterns of behavior and hierarchy, the Powhatans were in like manner resistant to change. Because the Southeastern Indians believed that divine powers were invested in the favorable institutions and the world, they were unwilling to initiate changes unless they were shown to be approved by the gods. Therefore, changes were regarded as a quarrel to the divine power, which could lead to affable disharmony and destruction (Champagne, Cultural 33).

Powhatans did not display bulky cultural differentiation. Priests played an instrumental role in a variety of affairs in the society. Because priests were the intermediaries of gods. They were regarded as influential in the weather conditions. They were also considered healers of diseases. Furthermore, they were consulted in times of wars, and also expect to determine the guilt of criminals. No other cultural institutions existed to challenge the supremacy of the priests (Rountree 11).

The Southeastern Indians fused all cultural aspects of life together (Champagne, Cultural 34). Therefore, when a Cherokee Indian was sic

Champagne, D. "A Multidimensional Theory of Colonialism: The Native spousal relationship American Experience." Journal of American Studies of Turkey 3 (1996): 3-14.

The Powhatans' sparing status was reduced to poverty because they were powerless against the white settlers and US government. Furthermore, the severe anti-racist sentiments of the whites resulted in the Powhatans losing land because their protests against the white trespassers went unheeded.

Because the Powhatan priests were worshipped as the chief agents of the Gods, they were the almost resistant to the changes initiated by the Western settlers.

They had the most to lose because their powers would be rendered obsolete in Western institutions that spue power into the hands of a variety of people and institutions (Rountree 11).

The US government engaged in efforts to alter the economic and social structure of the Southeastern nations. In order to manipulate the craftsmanship situation, the government set up a factory system, marketing goods to the Indians, so as to keep other foreign traders away. Thus, the Indians became indebted(predicate) to the factories. This move also had political ramifications. When the Indians were no longer able to pay off their debts, they were forced to relinquish their territory (Champagne Social, 88).

In terms of an economy, the four societies were subsistence economies, relying upon horticultural production and hunting. The village governments in the four societies played a significant role in organizing food production during times of war. Apart from cultivating products for the household, each family was also expected to contribute a surplus to a village crib to be used to aid the poor and to have got the government and ceremonies. Therefore, unlike the Europeans who worked for the accumulation of wealth, the Indian tribes were not interested in acquiring more food than was needed for subsistence. On the contrary, they were lauded for giving their surplus food and possessions away (Champa
Order your essay at Orderessay and get a 100% original and high-quality custom paper within the required time frame.