ARCTIC ALASKA AND ITS PEOPLE Essay Research — страница 2

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skills. But whatever the cause, fewer relatives meant less people to count on in time of need. In the larger settlements, such as the whaling communities of Point Hope and Barrow, this culminated in a recognizable system of layering whereby a small number of families were able to attain more wealth and power than those less well endowed. Such power was not hereditary, however. As climatic or other natural events brought about a reduction in the available food supply, or as less competent umialiks assumed leadership, the responsibility would pass on to more fortunate or more capable families. It is often thought that prior to the arrival of Europeans with their guns and whale bombs, the available land and sea mammal population could easily support small native groups living more

or less permanently in the area. In a few localities this was largely so. But for most, not only was seasonal mobility the norm, but the threat of disaster was ever present – whether caused by climatic alteration tidal wave, disease, or similar calamity. Climatic changes especially could seriously reduce the availability of fish and game such as salmon, caribou, and ptarmigan. No matter where the locality, the result was famine. Indeed, there are recognizable periods in Arctic Alaska prior to the arrival of Europeans [for example, between 1838 and 1848] when several territories were completely depopulated through famine or disease. Eventually, a few ex-residents returned, or if they had died out, other members of adjacent areas moved in to fill the space, and life continued.

One important Inupiat institution uniting family members was the qargi, a kind of family gathering place. Although an overturned boat placed downwind on the beach could serve as a simple qargi, the structure was usually a building of some permanence. Before the arrival of Christian missionaries in the 1890s, every Inupiat settlement had one or more of these ceremonial houses. Children joined the house of their father, and on marriage a woman transfered to that of her spouse. During the day, it was a common meeting place for boys and men; girls and women commonly spending their working hours in family houses. But in the evening, the qargi became the family social center where members and friends regularly played games, told stories, danced, and participated in rituals. With the

opening of the ceremonial season in the fall, men spent much of the day there in work and recreation. Wives brought them food and sometimes remained to join in games and dancing. Sometimes men and older boys slept in the qargi as well. Recreational activities reached their peak in mid-winter. Games of physical strength, gambling, storytelling, and string-figures were common. There was friendly competition between different qargi groups, and formalized in wrestling matches and contests in weight lifting, jumping, chinning a bar, minature bow and arrow shoots, and kickball. Another regular wintertime activity of the qargi was dancing. Some dances, limited to men, portrayed a particular event such as the search for polar bear or a joke played on a friend. Women’s dances were

usually more static, consisting of rhythmical movements of hands and body performed in a given spot. Sometimes couples danced together or as part of a larger group. Mimicry in a dance was also common, the target being anyone the dancer wished to make fun of. Several drummers, beating tambourine-type drums and chanting provided accompaniment. The blend of the beat and rhythmical rise and fall of voices, accented with shouts of auu yah iah, drew qargi members to the dance floor. In the larger villages, two or more local families sometimes joined together in an arranged feast, dance, or athletic contest. In these communities, poorer Inupiat households might be allowed to observe or participate in qargi events of more well-to-do families in return for their maintaining the building,

running errands, or otherwise assisting the owners. The self-sufficiency of the traditional Inupiat family units should not be taken to mean that economic relations between local families in a given locality were non-existent. In times of plenty when ice cellars were full, the need for inter-family cooperation was minimal. But one never knew whether a full cellar this year would be followed by an empty one next. When a local family had little food and a neighbor had more, asking for help would carry considerably more weight if the one without had been generous in the past. In times of need, sharing across family lines was common. Only during periods of famine or plenty would the arrangement be likely to break down. In the former instance, families split up anyway, looking for