Life of Ten Bears: Comanche Historical Narratives

The Life of Ten Bears is a remarkable collection of nineteenth-century Comanche oral histories given by Francis Joseph "Joe A" Attocknie. Although various elements of Ten Bears's life (ca. 1790-1872) are widely known, including several versions of how the toddler Ten Bears survived the massacre of his family, other parts have not been as widely publicized, remaining instead in the collective memory of his descendants. Other narratives in this collection reference lesser-known family members. These narratives are about the historical episodes that Attocknie's family thought were worth remembering and add a unique perspective on Comanche society and tradition as experienced through several generations of his family. Kavanagh's introduction adds context to the personal narratives by discussing the process of transmission. These narratives serve multiple purposes for Comanche families and communities. Some autobiographical accounts, "recounting" brave deeds and war honors, function as validation of status claims, while others illustrate the giving of names; still others recall humorous situations, song-ridicules, slapstick, and tragedies. Such family oral histories quickly transcend specific people and events by restoring key voices to the larger historical narrative of the American West. Francis Joseph Attocknie (1912-84) was the great-great-grandson of Ten Bears. Thomas W. Kavanagh is the author of Comanche Ethnography: Field Notes of E. Adamson Hoebel, Waldo R. Wedel, Gustav G. Carlson, and Robert H. Lowie (Nebraska, 2008) and The Comanches: A History, 1706-1875 (Nebraska, 1996).

Author: Thomas W. Kavanagh
Publisher: University of Nebraska Press
Published: 05/01/2016
Pages: 252
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.16lbs
Size: 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.69d
ISBN13: 9780803285507
ISBN10: 0803285507
BISAC Categories:
- History | Indigenous Peoples in the Americas
- Social Science | Ethnic Studies | American | Native American Studies
- History | United States | 19th Century

About the Author
Francis Joseph Attocknie (1912-84) was the great-great-grandson of Ten Bears. Thomas W. Kavanagh is the author of Comanche Ethnography: Field Notes of E. Adamson Hoebel, Waldo R. Wedel, Gustav G. Carlson, and Robert H. Lowie (Nebraska, 2008) and The Comanches: A History, 1706-1875 (Nebraska, 1996).