Prime membership required
Terms apply
Episodes
- S1 E1 - Native America: A Story of SurvivalOctober 20, 201638minBegin by comparing the commonly held views of Native Americans to the realities of what was, and still is, a tapestry of rich and vibrant cultures. Professor Cobb explains the pitfalls that occur when history doesn't provide this crucial viewpoint, and will break down the fallacies that result from the common mistake of consigning Native Americans to the past.Free trial of The Great Courses Signature Collection or buy
- S1 E2 - The Columbian Exchange: New Worlds for AllOctober 20, 201631minExplore how the misleading dichotomy of "Old World" and "New World" has impacted perceptions of Native Americans for decades. Delve into the "Columbian Exchange," which is the crux behind the creation of "new worlds for all" and learn about the enduring ramifications these processes had in shaping everything from the fauna and flora to the cuisines of the world.Free trial of The Great Courses Signature Collection or buy
- S1 E3 - The Native South and Southwest in the 1600sOctober 20, 201632minExamine the cultures that existed prior to the Spanish Invasion, the struggle for power through Hernando de Soto's entrada through the Southeast, and the Pueblo War for Independence in the Southwest. Dr. Cobb introduces the Native American worlds that were born in the aftermath of these transformative events.Free trial of The Great Courses Signature Collection or buy
- S1 E4 - Werowocomoco and Montaup in the 1600sOctober 20, 201630minDr. Cobb demonstrates how connections were forged between Native Americans and newcomers as they incorporated each other into their worlds. In doing so, both cultures were transformed. You'll examine specific examples across the Northeastern Woodlands down to Werowocomoco to understand how the search for common ground began at first contact and still exists today.Free trial of The Great Courses Signature Collection or buy
- S1 E5 - Iroquoia and Wendake in the 1600sOctober 20, 201629minOnce Europeans arrived, the Native peoples of the Northeast were determined to maintain their autonomy, despite becoming more integrated with the newcomers. Focusing on the strategies and experiences of the Wendat and Iroquois, you'll understand how Native Americans transformed the European colonial project while preserving a measured separatism.Free trial of The Great Courses Signature Collection or buy
- S1 E6 - Indian-European Encounters, 1700-1750October 20, 201632minThrough an exploration of the Iroquois Confederacy and the Lenape (or Delaware) people in the Northeast, the Great Lakes region, and the Southeast, learn how Native Americans kept or lost their lands through treaties, war, and negotiations. In many cases, the repercussions of these conflicts sometimes went beyond relocation, resulting in enslavement or near annihilation.Free trial of The Great Courses Signature Collection or buy
- S1 E7 - The Seven Years’ War in Indian CountryOctober 20, 201630minThe French and Indian War is often portrayed in history as a crucial turning point for Native nations in the East. For some, it served as a victory, for others, a defeat. And for a greater number still it had no immediate impact on their lives. This episode will change the storyline you've heard by exploring the perspectives of Native people who experienced the era quite differently.Free trial of The Great Courses Signature Collection or buy
- S1 E8 - The American Revolution through Native EyesOctober 20, 201631minExamine three ways Native Americans experienced the American Revolution: as allies, as participants in their own civil wars, and as neutral parties. For many Native Americans, the resolution of the American Revolution held little meaning: There would be no liberty for them under the rule of the colonists or the Crown.Free trial of The Great Courses Signature Collection or buy
- S1 E9 - Indian Resistance in the Ohio CountryOctober 20, 201631minExplore how the 1783 Treaty of Paris, which settled the American Revolutionary War between England and the colonists, brought no peace to Native Americans. Programs that were instituted during this period to help Native nations become self-sufficient (such as "expansion with honor" or establishing reservations) ultimately had the opposite effect.Free trial of The Great Courses Signature Collection or buy
- S1 E10 - Indian Removal: Many Trails, Many TearsOctober 20, 201632minOne of the most well-known and dramatic stories in American history is that of the Cherokee nation and the Trail of Tears. Professor Cobb reveals the story behind the story: one of two nations emerging and transforming, during which legal battles, political manipulations, and a clash between the ill-defined limits of federal and state jurisdiction and tribal sovereignty.Free trial of The Great Courses Signature Collection or buy
- S1 E11 - Native Transformations on the Great PlainsOctober 20, 201629minFrom John Wayne to Dances with Wolves, we are presented a very distinct view of Native Americans in the West. Professor Cobb presents a profoundly different perspective. Learn about Lewis and Clark's "discovery" of a West that was an established home for thousands people and the three factors that drove more change than anything else: guns, horses, and disease.Free trial of The Great Courses Signature Collection or buy
- S1 E12 - Indians, Manifest Destiny, and Uncivil WarsOctober 20, 201633minThe Civil War is a turning point in American history, upholding the Constitutional promises of freedom for...some. Examine one of the pivotal components of the decades leading up to the Civil War: expansion into the West under the doctrine of Manifest Destiny, which drew non-Indians into the West and sparked innumerable conflicts with Native nations.Free trial of The Great Courses Signature Collection or buy
- S1 E13 - Native Resistance in the West, 1850s-1870sOctober 20, 201632minDelve deeper into the struggle for lands in the Plains between the 1850s and the 1870s. You'll meet the fighters you've heard of, such as Sitting Bull, as well as those you may not have heard about, such as the Hunkpapa Gall. You'll also see the negative repercussions of the 1869 completion of the Transcontinental Railroad.Free trial of The Great Courses Signature Collection or buy
- S1 E14 - The Last Indian Wars?October 20, 201631minFocusing on the Far West, Southwest, and Plateau regions, Professor Cobb examines early laws put in place in California to "control" Native Americans during the gold rush, including state funding to kill or enslave Native Americans. You'll also meet the "real" Geronimo and learn how he came to symbolize the Chiricahua Apache struggle.Free trial of The Great Courses Signature Collection or buy
- S1 E15 - Challenging Assimilation and AllotmentOctober 20, 201632minDiscover how Native Americans adjusted to or refused to give in to the extraordinary challenges and changes they faced during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, specifically the federal government's deliberate and multifaceted effort to dismantle tribal lands and obliterate tribal cultures through allotment and assimilation.Free trial of The Great Courses Signature Collection or buy
- S1 E16 - American Indians and the Law, 1883-1903October 20, 201630minViolence and war were not the only options. Even after the alleged "last Indian wars," Native Americans continued to fight for their rights and lands through the same legal system that had worked towards displacing them. You'll review three critical court cases, and meet leaders such as Standing Bear and Lone Wolf who continued to seek justice and defend tribal sovereignty.Free trial of The Great Courses Signature Collection or buy
- S1 E17 - The Ghost Dance and the Peyote RoadOctober 20, 201631minProfessor Cobb explores how many Native people took matters into their own hands and gained a renewed sense of place, harmony, and balance through two religious movements: The Ghost Dance (often misperceived as the last gasp of resistance before the Indians' final vanishing act) and the Peyote Road (a critically important pathway to peace, reconciliation, and belonging).Free trial of The Great Courses Signature Collection or buy
- S1 E18 - Native America in the Early 1900sOctober 20, 201633minDiscover how Native Americans confounded the late 19th- and early 20th-century predictions about their inevitable disappearance by getting involved in very public arenas, becoming political actors and writers, artists, and athletes. Professor Cobb examines their actions through four concepts: expectation, anomaly, the unexpected, and authenticity.Free trial of The Great Courses Signature Collection or buy
- S1 E19 - American Indians and World War IOctober 20, 201631minExplore Native Americans' involvement in World War I and how it changed the meaning of citizenship and sovereignty in the beginning of the 20th century. Examine why Native soldiers fought in all of the major offensives after America's entry into the war, defending a country that was hostile to tribal sovereignty and also reluctant to extend US citizenship to Native people.Free trial of The Great Courses Signature Collection or buy
- S1 E20 - Making a New Deal in Native AmericaOctober 20, 201633minUncover some of the hidden histories of the period between the late 1920s and early 1940s as you learn how Native Americans set about making a New Deal for themselves and their communities during an era of uncertainty and convulsive change for the nation at large. You'll also get an introduction to the Indian New Deal.Free trial of The Great Courses Signature Collection or buy
- S1 E21 - American Indians and World War IIOctober 20, 201631minMove from World War I and the turbulent 1930s to World War II to learn how the war and onset of the atomic age transformed the lives of Native Americans. While the challenges and opportunities faced by Native Americans paralleled the ones faced by many other Americans, you'll learn how the outcomes proved to be vastly different. And you'll discover Native American heroes of the War.Free trial of The Great Courses Signature Collection or buy
- S1 E22 - Indian Termination or Self-Determination?October 20, 201635minExplore American Indian experiences during the early Cold War period, when loyalties were often questioned. Native Americans used the politics of the Cold War era to define freedom through the 1950s and 1960s. Nationalism and decolonization then surfaced as conflicts over fishing rights brought the struggle over Native American treaty rights back into the foreground of American consciousness.Free trial of The Great Courses Signature Collection or buy
- S1 E23 - Native Radicalism and Reform, 1969-1978October 20, 201632minThe late 1960s and early 1970s saw the efflorescence of American Indian militancy, beginning with the occupation of Alcatraz Island in 1969, to the Trail of Broken Treaties in November 1972 and the Wounded Knee occupation in 1973. Professor Cobb demonstrates how Native American activism intersected with the mainstream movements of the time.Free trial of The Great Courses Signature Collection or buy
- S1 E24 - Reasserting Rights and Tribal SovereigntyOctober 20, 201640minProfessor Cobb reveals how tribal nations haven't settled for survival alone. We're still in the midst of an era of recovery and revitalization, one that has tested the limits of individual rights and tribal sovereignty. He'll follow a few of the critical sites of contemporary struggle.Free trial of The Great Courses Signature Collection or buy
- Watch Trailer!October 20, 20162minThe Great Courses has partnered with Smithsonian to bring you a series that reveals new perspectives on the historical and contemporary experiences of Indigenous peoples and their significant impact on this country. Gain a new point of view on seemingly familiar stories America was built on, and be prepared to change how you understand American history.
Details
More info
By clicking play, you agree to our Terms of Use.