Description
Wampum has become a synonym for money, and it is widely assumed that it served the same purposes as money among the Native Algonquians even after coming into contact with European colonists' money. But to equate wampum with money only matches one slippery term with another, as money itself was quite ill-defined in North America for decades during its colonization. In this stimulating and intriguing book, Marc Shell illuminates the context in which wampum was used by describing how money circulated in the colonial period and the early history of the United States. Wampum itself, generally tubular beads made from clam or conch shells, was hardly a primitive version of a coin or dollar bill, as it represented to both Native Americans and colonial Europeans a unique medium through which language, art, culture, and even conflict were negotiated. With irrepressible wit and erudition, Shell interweaves wampum's multiform functions and reveals wampum's undeniable influence on the cultural, political, and economic foundations of North America. Published in Association with the American Numismatic Society, New York, New York.
About the Author
Marc Shell is Irving Babbitt Professor of Comparative Literature and professor of English at Harvard University. He is the author of many books, including The Economy of Literature, Money, Language, and Thought, and Art and Money.
Reviews
"I am struck with the remarkable depth and breadth of Marc Shell's scholarship in this book, his fascinating focus on the role of bilingualism and especially wampum in the development of American banking and currency, and his intriguing plays on words and images. An extremely stimulating and enjoyable book."--Kathleen J. Bragdon, author of The Columbia Guide to American Indians of the Northeast
"Not only does this book illuminate an interesting and little-discussed corner of American cultural history--the history and cultural significance of currency--but it does so in an open and engaging style. Provocative and filled with creative ideas, this book will appeal to readers interested in Native American studies, American studies, and comparative literature."--Frederick E. Hoxie, coeditor of Lewis and Clark and the Indian Country: The Native American Perspective
Book Information
ISBN 9780252083938
Author Marc Shell
Format Paperback
Page Count 168
Imprint University of Illinois Press
Publisher University of Illinois Press
Dimensions(mm) 254mm * 178mm * 10mm
About the Author
Marc Shell is Irving Babbitt Professor of Comparative Literature and professor of English at Harvard University. He is the author of many books, including The Economy of Literature, Money, Language, and Thought, and Art and Money.
Reviews
"I am struck with the remarkable depth and breadth of Marc Shell's scholarship in this book, his fascinating focus on the role of bilingualism and especially wampum in the development of American banking and currency, and his intriguing plays on words and images. An extremely stimulating and enjoyable book."--Kathleen J. Bragdon, author of The Columbia Guide to American Indians of the Northeast
"Not only does this book illuminate an interesting and little-discussed corner of American cultural history--the history and cultural significance of currency--but it does so in an open and engaging style. Provocative and filled with creative ideas, this book will appeal to readers interested in Native American studies, American studies, and comparative literature."--Frederick E. Hoxie, coeditor of Lewis and Clark and the Indian Country: The Native American Perspective
Book Information
ISBN 9780252083938
Author Marc Shell
Format Paperback
Page Count 168
Imprint University of Illinois Press
Publisher University of Illinois Press
Dimensions(mm) 254mm * 178mm * 10mm
