In 1956,

Anthony F. C. Wallace Anthony Francis Clarke Wallace (April 15, 1923 – October 5, 2015) was a Canadian-American anthropologist who specialized in Native American cultures, especially the Iroquois. His research expressed an interest in the intersection of cultural a ...

published a paper called "Revitalization Movements" Wallace, Anthony F.C. 1956. "Revitalization Movements"
''

American Anthropologist ''American Anthropologist'' is the flagship journal of the American Anthropological Association (AAA), published quarterly by Wiley. The "New Series" began in 1899 under an editorial board that included Franz Boas, Daniel G. Brinton, and John ...

'' 58: 264-281. to describe how

culture Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these grou ...

s change themselves. A revitalization movement is a "deliberate, organized, conscious effort by members of a society to construct a more satisfying culture" (p. 265), and Wallace describes at length the processes by which a revitalization movement takes place.

Overview

Wallace' model 1956 describes the process of a revitalization movement. It is derived from studies of a Native American religious movement, The Code of

Handsome Lake Handsome Lake ( Cayuga language: Sganyadái:yo, Seneca language: Sganyodaiyo) (Θkanyatararí•yau• in Tuscarora) (1735 – 10 August 1815) was a Seneca religious leader of the Iroquois people. He was a half-brother to Cornplanter, a Senec ...

, which may have led to the formation of the

Longhouse Religion The Longhouse Religion is the popular name of the religious movement also known as The Code of Handsome Lake or Gaihwi:io (''Good Message''), founded in 1799 by the Seneca prophet Handsome Lake (Sganyodaiyoˀ). This movement combines and reinterpr ...

Wallace derived his theory from studies of so-called primitive peoples (preliterate and homogeneous), with particular attention to the

Iroquois The Iroquois ( or ), officially the Haudenosaunee ( meaning "people of the longhouse"), are an Iroquoian-speaking confederacy of First Nations peoples in northeast North America/ Turtle Island. They were known during the colonial years to ...

revitalization movement led by

Seneca Seneca may refer to: People and language * Seneca (name), a list of people with either the given name or surname * Seneca people, one of the six Iroquois tribes of North America ** Seneca language, the language of the Seneca people Places Extrat ...

religious leader and

prophet In religion, a prophet or prophetess is an individual who is regarded as being in contact with a divine being and is said to speak on behalf of that being, serving as an intermediary with humanity by delivering messages or teachings from the s ...

(1735-1815). Wallace believed that his revitalization model applies to movements as broad and complex as the rise of

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesu ...

, Islam,

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

, or

Wesleyan Methodism Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related Christian denomination, denominations of Protestantism, Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John W ...

. Revitalizaton is a part of social movements. Scholars such as Vittorio Lanternari (1963) and Peter Worsley (1968) have developed and adapted Wallace's insights.

Notes

References

* Kehoe, B Alice, ''The Ghost Dance: Ethnohistory and Revitalization, Massacre at Wounded Knee Creek,'' Thompson Publishing, 1989. * Vittorio Lanternari. ''The Religions of the Oppressed; a Study of Modern Messianic Cults.'' (London: MacGibbon & Kee, tudies in Society 1963; New York: Knopf, 1963). * Peter Worsley. ''The Trumpet Shall Sound; a Study of "Cargo" Cults in Melanesia''. (New York,: Schocken Books, 2d augmented, 1968). * Lamont Lindstrom. ''Cargo Cult: Strange Stories of Desire from Melanesia and Beynd''. (Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press. 1993).
Anthropology Social movements Sociology of religion {{reli-socio-stub

Overview

See also

Notes

References