THE AGED IN PAST AND PRESENT EASTERN CHEROKEE SOCIETY

This is a study of the status, roles and functions of the aged in aboriginal Cherokee society and contemporary Eastern Cherokee reservation life. The first part of this work focuses on an ethnohistorical reconstruction of the prestigious 'place' the so-called beloved men and beloved grandmothers occupied in pre-removal Cherokee tribal life. In the mid-nineteenth century, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians emerged as a new socio-political entity, no longer under the old religious gerontocracy, but still guided by the tribal elders. The second part of the study illustrates the nature and extent to which today's older tribal members, the senior citizens, participate in and contribute to family and community life. The picture emerging from field research contradicts the disengagement and reductionist theories of aging. Instead, it appears that, despite some limitations, the aged are still integrated members of Eastern Cherokee society which has maintained a positive cultural perception of and values associated with old age and the elderly.