The production of the Handbook of South American Indians Vol 3 (1936-1948)

this paper discusses the intellectual division of labor between us scholars and the ethnographers researching in the field who together produced volume 3 of the ambitious handbook of south american indians, entitled "tropical forest tribes" (1936-1948). julian steward, the book's editor, was an anthropologist with a sociological approach. at the time, he was also involved in conceptual conflicts between scientific policies and collaboration in government programs. here i focus primarily on the relationship between steward and the volume's contributors, specifically the hierarchical attitude that led to an asymmetrical classification of contributors like curt nimuendajú, taken as producers of ethnographic data. researchers who lived in brazil at the time were conceived as 'minor' authors by the editor compared to those held to be academic scholars, i.e. those who directed research and university-level academic training at us institutions. the production of this volume thus reiterated an intellectual division of labor between armchair scholars and fieldwork collectors of ethnographic artifacts for museums.