Tecumseh Leadership

Words: 815
Pages: 4

In Tecumseh and the Quest for Indian Leadership, the main author is R. David Edmunds. The authors point of view is third person and tends to jump around between the Shawnee, Tecumseh brother, Cornstalk, and Tecumseh himself. The reasoning for this jump in timeliness is a way for him to compare the subjects. The authors thesis for this book is that Tecumseh evoked strong emotion from his friends and foe but overall, he still unified the Native American people against the spread of European and colonial ideology. In chapter one he mostly gives the background of the Shawnee and cornstalk before the birth of Tecumseh. He states, “The Fort Ancient people flourished from around 1200 A.D. to about 1650, then their culture seemed to decline as the population in the Ohio Valley …show more content…
Edmunds states, “Growing up admits the chaos of war, the young Tecumseh was profoundly influenced by his experiences in these years” (22). This was one of the main reasons Tecumseh decided to become a warrior. From a young age, he was always thought to be a natural leader and this later translated to him become a War Chief. Edmunds states, “Although not a dominant figure in tribal politics, Tecumseh had emerged by 1795 as an influential young war chief with a growing following among many of the younger, more anti-American warriors” (39). This was established through him showing great bravery through the multiple battles he had won. Chapter four is mostly about Tecumseh younger brother Tenskwatawa, also referred to as the Prophet. It shows his struggle from being an alcoholic to becoming a great leader for the Shawnee. He became a prophet and lead his people back to their traditional ways. He was the main driving force behind getting rid of alcohol and this was due to him being an alcoholic. Tenskwatawa met opposition from the government because he criticized for being considered the “prophet” or