Q3. Explain the role of an Indian band leader (known as sachem or sagamore). How did he gain and keep his position? What were his duties and how did the value of reciprocity function in his relationship with the band? Explain who pnieses and powwows were.

The sagamore or sachem's primary duties were to mediate between clans and to engage in inter-tribal diplomacy. Anything that required greater coordination efforts beyond that of families or clans, such as large-scale hunting, was the sachem's responsibility. The European observers were often horrified that the sachem's position depended upon the collective will of the people, versus that of European monarchs, the latter of whom ruled by force and heredity, Some sagamores did claim to have shamanistic powers that caused them to be more "dreaded" (Salisbury 44). However, most sagamores depended upon counsels of pnieses and powwows, which were made up of other members of...
[ View Full Essay]