Helen Codere
| Helen Frances Codere | |
|---|---|
| Born |
September 10, 1917 Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada |
| Died | June 5, 2009 Concord, Massachusetts |
| Education | Ph.D. in Anthropology, Columbia University (1950) |
| Occupation | Anthropologist |
Helen Frances Codere (September 10, 1917 – June 5, 2009) was an American cultural anthropologist who received her BA from the University of Minnesota in 1939 and her PhD in anthropology from Columbia University where she studied with Ruth Benedict. She is best known for her work with the Kwakwaka'wakw people of coastal British Columbia, Canada, known formerly as the "Kwakiutl."
Her academic years spanned over fifty years and included professorships at Vassar College, the University of British Columbia, Northwestern University, Bennington College, and the University of Pennsylvania.
Helen Codere was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, but soon after moved to Minnesota. She never married and stated that "single women lack some of the freedom and mobility of single men; they are objects of even greater curiosity and scrutiny in a world in which going two by two is projected", although she did have a longtime companion, Marion Tait.
Her vacation place in Vermont closely resembles her childhood interest of living like the author Henry David Thoreau had once done – it had no running water, but a system of barrels with gutters along the two cabins. Codere favored khaki-type trousers and casual shirts. She is known for being a "renaissance woman," by her friends. "She was extremely accurate with words, had a great sense of humor, a compelling laugh, and was fiercely independent. She was adamant about reading the paper every day, and always looked ready to go on a hike".
Codere held positions in the American Ethnological Society and various faculty appointments, notably Brandeis (1964–82), where she also served as dean of the graduate school (1974 – 77). Her academic appointments spanned five decades and included positions at Vassar College, the University of British Columbia, Northwestern University, Bennington College, and the University of Pennsylvania. Her many awards and fellowships include the Social Science Research Council and the Guggenheim Foundation.
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