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Cushing's contemporaries were critical of his efforts and activities in Zuni, primarily because of what they considered the lack of published material that Cushing produced during his tenure at the Pueblo. This fact has also been lamented by anthropologists since that time, and the lack of writings may well be the source of the general opinion that the material he made available is tainted and superimposed with "poetic overtones". Granted, Cushing's grandiose style is evident in many of his publications that appeared in periodicals during his lifetime. However, in order to be fair one should consider that Cushing was writing to an audience of the Victorian Era and he spoke in terms that he knew they would understand and wanted to hear. In this regard we can only criticize him for the forfeiture of his science to what was popular at the time. He created the objects of his research by a temporal distancing that was reflected in a terminology that at that time was not only popular, but was also scientific. Thus, subsequent criticisms such as Barbara Tedlock's portrayal of "wrong-headedness" and "wrong-heartedness" are in themselves wrong headed and wrong hearted, and Cushing's methodology is based upon concepts that any ethnologist should understand, apart from any perceptions with moral overtones of rightness or wrongness.
Jesse Green's compilation is an extremely important body of work for any student of the Zuni culture. There is a great amount of material here that reflects Cushing's theories on Zuni semantics and mathematics (counting), and stories by Cushing that can be found no where else. Many of the letters he wrote to his sympathetic colleagues are rich in information as to the sources of the folklore and myth that he documented, and revealing on many aspects of his membership in the Priesthood of the Bow. Would you like to know Cushing's side of the story in his feud with the Stevensons? It is here.
What is also here to a certain extent is Cushing's vindication. Next generation Zuni anthropologists such as Ruth Bunzel and Franz Boas were highly critical of Cushing's findings. While Bunzel's work at Zuni is nothing less than important, it has as its source those Zuni denizens who were or had been intent on implementing the demise of the Bow Priesthood, a secret society of which Cushing was a member and was the source of much folklore and myth, including those of the Zuni origin.
Cushing's letters and journal entries are very readable and incredibly enjoyable. He was a poet at heart and it is reflected in his writing style. The book is worth its weight in gold simply for Jesse Green's lengthy and informative notes, occasional insights, and his extensive bibliography.
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