On Our Own Ground: The Complete Writings of William Apess, a Pequot (Native Americans of the Northeast) (Paperback)

~ (Author), Barry O'Connell (Editor) "William Apess, the author of the following narrative, was born in the town of Colrain, Massachusetts, on the thirty-first of January, in the year of..." (more)
Key Phrases: sole corporation, red brethren, young mates, Marshpee Indians, New England, William Apes (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

O'Connell, a professor of English at Amherst Collegesince there's also UMass Amherst , has performed a real service in compiling and editing the complete works of Apess. A member of the Pequot tribe of Massachusetts, Apess became, in 1829, one of the first Native Americans to write and publish an autobiography. Further, he did so with only six years of formal education. A Son of the Forest tells the story of Apess's early life (he was scarcely 30 when he wrote it) and of his conversion to Christianity in 1818. Eleven years later, he was ordained a Methodist minister. O'Connell notes as especially remarkable that Apess, unlike many of his contemporaries and their white tutors (who saw Christianity as a way to speed the Native Americans's cultural assimilation), used his Christianity to better assert his Indianness. Nowhere is this more evident than in his "Eulogy on King Philip" and "The Indians: The Ten Lost Tribes," which are at once impassioned pleas on behalf of Native Americans and fierce denunciations of white colonialization. O'Connell provides an extensive and invaluable introduction and footnotes to aid the reader in the recovery of this important Native American figure.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Library Journal

Editor O'Connell (English, Amherst Coll. ) has gathered together the complete 19th-century writings of Apess, a mixed blood of Pequot and white descent. A Textual Afterword discusses difficulties with different texts and explains the dearth of editorial notes. A brief Bibliographical Essay covers works by and on Apess, on Pequots and other New England Native Americans, and on general autobiographical and literary studies. But the essay emphasizes the works of Apess, an interesting man of deep Christian convictions who fought for the United States in the War of 1812 and then focused the nation's attention on the plight of the Mashpee Indians. This scholarly work, first in a new series, is recommended for research and Native American collections.
- Patricia A. Clark, Los Angeles P.L.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 432 pages
• Publisher: University of Massachusetts Press (April 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0870237705
• ISBN-13: 978-0870237706
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #407,806 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Timeless Works From A Pioneering Indian Author, November 21, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: On Our Own Ground: The Complete Writings of William Apess, a Pequot (Native Americans of the Northeast) (Hardcover)

Editor O'Connell has done something very valuable in making these forgotten texts available to a wider audience. The writings of Pequot William Apess are, sadly, highly relevant even now. This is partly because of the universal import of religious conversion, ethnic identity and the personal challenges he confronted, but even more because American Indians are still denied the civil and human rights enjoyed by fellow citizens. Apess's fiery prose and profound insights on America from his Indigenous perspective not only shed much light on his life and times, but will shatter cherished myths of Euramericans about the presumed fairness of our society. Opponents of multiculturalism would probably complain that yet another marginal author has been dredged up from the past. But Apess is not obscure, rather, his brilliance was obscured by neglect of those who most needed to hear his message. There is far more to his work than merely documenting Indian victimhood. As author, minister and also activist on behalf of his Mashpee Wampanoag congregation in the 1830s, Apess's life work testifies eloquently that Indians have always exercised agency in shaping their history and ours as a whole---even in circumstances not of their choosing.

5.0 out of 5 stars Timeless works from a pioneering Indian author, November 22, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: On Our Own Ground: The Complete Writings of William Apess, a Pequot (Native Americans of the Northeast) (Hardcover)

Editor Barry O'Connell performs a signal service in making these forgotten texts available to a wider audience (and also
his very useful introduction). The writings of William Apess are, regrettably, still highly relevant even now. This is partly because of the universal import of the issues of religious conversion, ethnic identity and the personal challenges he confronted, but even more because American Indians are still denied the civil and human rights enjoyed by other Americans. Apess's fiery prose and profound insights into the American experience from his Indigenous perspective are guaranteed not only to shed much light on his life and times, but will shatter cherished misconceptions of European Americans concerning the presumed fairness of our society.

Opponents of multiculturalism would probably complain that yet another insignificant author has been dredged up from the past. But Apess is not obscure, rather, his brilliance was obscured through the neglect of those who most needed to hear his message. There is much more to his work than merely documenting the victimization of Indians. As author, minister and also activist on behalf of his congregation of Mashpee Wampanoags in the 1830s, Apess's life work testifies eloquently that Indians have always exercised agency in shaping their history and ours as a whole---even in circumstances not of their choosing.

9 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding, May 19, 1999

By A Customer

Eurocentric assumptions perpetrated by white males have obscured the incredibly brave and noble work of Native American writers. As a feminist who is interrogating those eurocentric paradigms, I am delighted to come upon this wonderful book.