gregor_haas_anthropology of warcap5.pdf

8/11/2019 Gregor_Haas_Anthropology of WarCap5.pdf

1/11

,

NAPOLEON A. CHAGNON

useful ,anactthatrequire sthe "cnuorsement" ofc

o-

villagerswhowill

go

along

\Vitl: th

e manipulation

by

altering their own

kin

usage

to

conform

to

that initiateu

by

theoriginalmanipulator(Chagnon 1988a).

Athird

way

isfor particularmen

to

lobby

for

avillage fission that

will

divide the largcrgroup into smallerones permitting Ego

to

surrounJ

him se lfwith am ixtureofco-resiuentkinmorecongenial to his social

and reproducti

ve

intcrests (Chagnon

19

81; 1982). One's ability

to

inAu

en

ce

others, make uemanus, coerce, garner cooperation, etc. s

often adirectfunctionofth eindividual' skinshipn ex usand thekinds

andnumbersofkin-definedallies heorshecandrawon

to

enforcehi sor

herwill. ConAicts ofinter

es

temergeanduevelop in akinshipmatrixin

most band and village societies, necessitating an understanding of

genealogical relat

ed

n

ess

, reproducti

ve

anu marital

hi

stories, and othcr

featuresof

kin

ship and descent. In addition, high statusand esteem

usually confer advantage in matrimonial striving and, therefor

e, in

reprouuctive success. ltthusshould

be

expected that individuals

wil!

compete over and have conAicts about rclative degr

ees

of

es

teem,

conAicts that may,

on

the surface, reveal no obvious rclationship

to

either so ma tic or reproductive resources. Meas urements of relative

statusand relativeuegr

ees

ofreproducti

ve

success should be made

to

determine if

th

c

rc

is a

po

sitive conclation between them.

An

effective synthesis of the nvo bodi

es

of theory is only no\V

ue

vcloping. Whatapp

ea

rstobeclear, how

eve

r,

is

that theemerging

synthesisis morecapableofincluuingawidervarietyand largernumber

ofspecificvariables thatcan

be

shown to be implicatedin th egenesis of

c

onAi

ct, violen

ce

and warfare. lt

ca

n

al

so

proviue explanations

for

th em,as

well

asexplanations for theinstitutionalandbehavioralmcans

whereby humanscopewith themanumanage to

liv

e

in

aconditionof

relative harmony.

otes

l . Isubsequentl ylearnedthatthetwo groupstClllporar ily,cttledthcir

differences

in

aclub fighl.

2. Li zo

t(19891

givcs

1979

as th

edateofthis

war in

ae

riti

cismof

111\

19

88a publi

cd

ti on where

thi

s

war

is

bri

e

fl

y mentioned

in

a

footn ote. I

will

addrcssLizot's criticislllS

in

a futurepublication.

104

5

Uneasypeace: intertribalrelations

n

Brazil's UpperXingu

TI l

o

/\SGREG

o

R

TeJl theAmericans about usoTell thelll we are not \\"ild

lndians

wh

oc lub p

eo

ple. Tcll

th

elll

we

are

be

autlful.

SHU M IO N Ml : HI N KU

1n 1

88

4the German cxplorer

Karl von

uen S

tei

nen

de sce nd

ed

th

e

KulescuRiver in CentralBra zil to becomethefirst Europeanto visit the

tTihes oftheUppcrXinguba sin.

he

pcopl

es

hedi scovered spokefour

di

ffere

ntlangu

ag

es(T rumai,Tupi,CaribandArawak),butlongstand

ing

po

l tica landsocialcontacthadcreatedaremarkabl yhomogeneous

Xinguanoculturethatendures toda

y h

e tenXingu villagesremain

separatc andpoliti ally autonomouscommunitics, withastro

ng

sensc

ofthc

ir

ownuniquen

ess

and

po

s

iti ve

qualitie

s.

Althoughthe

i l l a g e ~

are

in sornerespectsopposed to andsuspicious

of

th ei rncighbors, theyare

intemclyand elaborateJyinvolved \Vith thcmthrought rade , intermar

riage and intertribal ritual.

What

is

strikingabauttheXinguanosis

th

at

th ey

arepeaceful. During

th

eonehundr

ed

yearsoverwhich

\Ve ha

verccords

th

e

re

is noevidence

of

wa

rfare amon"g the Xingu groups. To

be

sure there hd\e bccn

in sta

nt esofwitcheraft killings a c r o s ~

trib;:d ll

rare ue

fe

ns

i\

'e

ID

,


2/11

THOM S GREGOR

reactions to assaults from the war-Iike tri bes outside of the Xingu basin.

But there is no tradition of violence among the Xingu communities. In

fact , the value systems ofthese communit ies are a ntiviolent in nature.

Supernatural sa nctions inhabit the express ion of aggression, prcstige is

awarded to men who

avoid

conflict, and methods of socializing children

discourage displays of anger. The entire pattern

of

intense , peaceful

relationships between communities speak in g different languages

is

rare

if not unique in native South America and other culture areas of the

world. This paper examines the puzzle: Why are Xinguanos pea cef

ul?

AN PPRECI TION OF THE XINCU NO

CHI E VE ME NT:

THE

SC RCITY OF

PE CE

Ifb

y

war

we mean organized violence between separate communities,

then humans are a warlike species. In attempting

to

compare the Xingu

data with other similar societies I have been frustrated by the mini mal

numbers of peaceful people

s.

Other re

sea

rchers, who have combed the

Iiterature more systematically than myself, have reach ed the same

conclusion. Thus Richard Sipes not

es in hi

s stud y of war and combative

spor

ts:

Relatively peaceful societies are not

easy

to

find

. I had to

investigate 130 societies

to

find eleven, of which five \Vere rejected

because of insufficicnt information

1973: 68).

Similarly, Otterbein

1970) found only four peaceful cultures among the fifty

in his

study of

the evolution of war. Turning to advanced, state-Icvel societies the

sea rcher for peace becomes even more di sheartened. Thus Arthur

vVesting

in

a study ofhigh fatality

wars

during the last eighty years,

finds

that

on

the average thr

ee

such wars were occurring simultaneously, and

that th ere was only one year in which none was being waged. He

concludes: The sad, but seemingly inescapable conclusion that I dra\\'

is

that

war

remains

as

a routine, typical , and thus,

in

faet, normal

human activity 1982: 263).

In

construeting a sample of peaceful cultures I have adapted thc

criteria of David Fabbro 1978), who

has

written one of the fcw

comparative studies of pcaceful

soc

ieties. A peaceful

soc

iety is one that

isnot i

nvolv

ed in i nternal collec tive violence; one that exhibits relati\ cly

little interpersonal viol ence; one that provides no special

roles

for

warriors; and one that has values and sanctions precluding violence as a

means for resolving conflict. t

is

di sheartening to realize that very few

societies m

ee

t these crite

ria

completely. Even those that

do

so

in

a

106

lntertribal relations

in

Brazil s Upper Xingu

reaso

nable fashion , such as the KUllgBushmen (the harmlesspeople of

Elizabeth MarshaJl s popular account) are themselves perpetrators and

victims of armed violence. 1 Peaceful soc ieties are rare, and even when

they are found pea ce is seldom, if ever, absolute.

As

shall become clear

fu

rth er on, this same caveat applies to the peoples of the Upper Xingu.

The societies that come c10sest

to

fi tti ng the model of the truly

pcaccful culture are small in sca le and primarily hunters are

forag

ers.

This conclusion is

in

keeping with research

on war by

Wright

19

65:

68), Bo rch and Caltung 1966), Ru sse ll 1972), Eckhardt 197

: 56

),

Wibcrg

1981: 114

) and others who have positively associated war with

community size and cultural development . Peaceful peoples

also

tend

to be gc og raphica lly iso lated. Otterbein 1970), for example, find s that

societies lacking in military organizations, such as the Copper Eskimo,

the Dorobo and the Tikopians, live

on

islands, mountain tops, arctic

wastel ands and plateaus su rrounded by malaria infcs

ted

jungles. In

some cases this isolation is a strategic adaptation to dealing with more

aggressive societies that sllrround them .

In

most instances , however,

pcaccful societies appear to achieve their status by evading rather than

soh-ing the problems of intertribal relations. The

tri bes

of the Upper

Xingu are of special interest precisely because they do not conform to

thc pro file of the typical peaceful society. Unlike most peaceful peoples

they are sedentary with fairly advanced economies based on slash and

burn IlOrticulture (a

sys

tem that is often associated with warfare [Vayda

196 1

. The iso lation characteristic of many peaceful societies is also not

typica l of the Xinguanos. Indeed, the unique feature of the arca is the

intemity and the richness of intertribal relations.

PEA CE IN THE UPPER XINCU

The historical developmental

o

th

e Xingu

s) stem

How di d the Xinguanos reach the compromises and make the social

changes needed to crca

te

thc culture of the region? At the moment, in

thc absence of

sys

tematic archeological data or an historically accurate

ora l tradition in the Xingu , \Ve have onl)' cducated guess

es.

The first

derives from Calvo's 1953 ) b

el

ief that th e Xingu basin has served

as

a

refu

gc for peoples mC llaced by more aggressive tri bes to the north. We

may

spe

culate that the refugees , unwilling to stand their ground and do

battle , \Vere uniquel y arnenable

to

assimilation into a peaceful inter

tri bal sy

st

em. The geographically isolated Xingu basill may have thus

10

7


3/11

THOM S GREG

O R

filtered out warlike peoples. In opposition

to

this theory is Carneiro's

(

1961

) intriguing hypothesis that the Xingu tribes \Vere once warlike and

organized at the chiefdom leve . Malaria , introduced

in

the sixteenth

century by the Europeans, depopulated the region, reduced competi

tion for the now abundant land, and eventually produced the stable

intertribal system we see today.

Although the origins of the Xingu

pea ce

remain uncertain,

we

can

occasionally glimpse the past

in

today's social

life.

One of the major

puzzles of the Xingu system, for example, s its tendency to assimilatc

other societies. The Xingu region

is

an area of "native acculturation,"

whi

ch has expanded

to

peacefully inelude tribes from four different

language groups

~ t o a remarkably homogeneous Xingu culture. The

Txicao, a Carib speaking

tri

be, is in the initial stages of joining the

Xingu system and provides

llS

with elues to

how

the process occurs. The

Txicao village, formerly a single house in a clearing, s currently

designed

like

the Xinguano communities. The Txicao cut their hair

like

Xinguanos, wear arm bands and earrings in the Xingu style, and carry

on

Xingu rituals . These changes ha ve largeJ y occurred within the last

few years , and are all the more remarkable since the Txicao initiated

contact with the Xinguanos by raiding their villages.

The events that led the Txicao to participate in Xingu culture began

with a series of retaliatory raids by the Xinguanos against the Txicao.

These raids, combined with epidemic disease, left the Txicao in such a

desperate sta

te that

it

became in their interest to establish peaceful

relations with the Xinguanos. This process wa s facilitated by thc

tendency of all the Xingu villages to e

xpel

men accused of witchcraft.

Two accused witches, using

kin

ship ties to the Txicao established

through previously kidnapped Xinguano children, are

now

living with

Txic

ao

wives in the Txicao community. They are agents of"Xinguifica

tion" and are systematically teaching their rituals, music and

mythology. The Txicao do not yet clearly perceive that their OWll

culture is in jeopardy. Rather they

view

what they are learning as a

beautiful and interesting addition to their traditional culture. But it

is

also clear that if the process continues the Txicao will

be

full members of

the Xingu system within a relatively short period of time. The Xingu

system thus has a tendency to expand and bring unrelated groups into

its orbit.

108

Intertribal relations in Brazil s Upper Xingu

h e structure o

the

Xingu peace and the system today

Peace

in

th e Upper Xingu is a bimodal pracess which organizes

tri

bes

and individuals in enduring relationships, but at the same time sets

lhem apart and

keeps

them at a social distance. Fundamental to this

pro

cess are values that define the identity of individuals and tri

be

s while

s

ctti ng

expectations

for

participating

in

the system. M

)'

account of these

val

ues and institutions is primarily based on field

work

among the

Mehinaku, but

it

is supported by research in most of the other

communities, and by recent (1985) interviews with informants fram all

of the other language groups on the specific subject of

war

and peace.

n

ancient times, according

to

one ofthe Xingu origin myth

s,

the Sun

creat eel three

rac es

ofhumankind, including Xinguanos, "wild Indians"

and whites. Recogni zing the warlike nature of whites and wild Indians,

he assigncd them to separate worlds and even separate afterlives, well

away fram the headwaters of the Xingu River and the "Village

in

the

Sky

abo

ye

it . Idea]]y, according to the villagers, things should have

re

mai

ned

this way, since the Xingu s

ystem was

self-contained and

autonomous.

AII

the villagers' needs, whether

for

trade goods, spouses,

or ri tual participants, were met within the system. But the wild Indians

and the white man came to look for the Xinguanos, out of a desire for

plullder, trade, and sex with Xingu women. As a result, the system is

mo re open than it

ha

s ever been before, with regular contact with both

Brazi

lian

s and llon-Xingu Indian

s.

But these relationships are a source

of profound ambivalence to the villagers, who look forward to a day

(wh ich may actually come fairly soon )when they can once again seal off

thcir reservation

from

contact with the outside world .

Scen from within, th e Xingu \Vorld is divided into ten single-village

tri

bcs,

each of which is intensel y engaged with its

fellows.

The total

po

p

llJa

tion

is

appraximately 1200 persons, most of whom can per

wnally recognizc each other at Ieast to the extent of identifying tribal

and kinship affiliation s. To a degree, social interaction

is

structured by

mcmbership

in

the four maJor language groups, with the most freqllent

co ntact occurr ng between members of the same group. Each language

group is regarded as having a unique culture, and even a unique

h)'s ical appearance . From the perspective of the Arawakan tri bes, for

cxa mple, all of the Carib tribes are described by one term

(uYa napukwa ") and all are said to be alikc in their languagc, thcir

ap

pearance, their pCllchant

for

rudcncss, and cven thcir prcfcrence for

109


4/11

THOM S

GREGOR

barely cooked fish. Similar stereotypes label the other linguistic groups,

and are reciprocated by them. At heart, however, the values of this

peaceful intertribal system

are

cosmopolitan

in

charaeter. Thus one of

the Mehinaku villagers explained that

to

him the Carib language once

resembled the barking of dogs and the slobbering of

pigs.

"But then late

their food, had sex with their women, and learned their words.

2

Now I

think their language

is

beautiful."

The values and institutions o{ peace

In June of

1985

, I too k the Mehinaku chief, who was then visiting Rio

de

Janeiro, on a tour of the city zoo. Each time

we

examined an

unfamiliar animal, such

as

a giraffe or an elephant, he posed the same

guestion: is it peaceful ("awujitsi") or is it ferocious ("japujaitsi")?

In

the Xingu, this is the overriding moral guestion about individuals,

relationships, and cultures. Above all, the concept of what is

good is

tied

to

peacefulness . The good man is circumscribed in his behavior, he

avoids confrontations, and he rarely shows anger. In Mehinaku,

his

peaceful comportment is "ketepepei," a word that is also applied to a

well-made craft objeet, suggesting a beauty and balance.

1

The good

citizen is peaceful because he responds

to

the feelings of others. He

refrains from injuring them because he would "feel sad" and sense their

pain

as

if it were

his

own. The violent man lacks the requisite sensitivity,

and

kills and maims others, often without motive. He beats and

tonncnts his children, and "it is for this reason that hi s children do not

sense others' feelings when they are adults." The difference bet:ween the

peaceful Xinguanos and the warlike Indians and whites is lack of

empathy.

If

pressed, informants \ViII offer additional reasons why peace makes

good policy:

The

peaceful man is treated peacefully

by

others; after

death, only the peaceful man lives in the lparadisiaeal] Village in the

Sky." But

in

faet, peace as a philosophy is not substantially developed

as

a positively defined concepto The value of peacefulness

in

the Xingu

appears to be a "terminal value," one that is at the apex of a pyramidal

structure of instrumental and speeific rules of conducto As is common

with su eh fundamental values, its rightness is taken for granted .

Question a villager about the reasons

for

peaeeful interaetion, and he is

more than likely to leave aside an abstract diseussion of valucs and tum

to the relationships that conneet the Xingu tribes.

110

lntertribal relations in Brazil s Upper Xingu

lntertribal relations trade

The eadiest observers to the Upper Xingu noticed that ea eh of the tribes

af h e regian made goods that they exported to the others: shell belts and

necklaees, stone axes, salt, cotton, fish spears, hard-wood

bows

and

ee ramie pots. Sorne of the tribes maintained effeetive monopolies

in

thesc itcms, so that good trading relationships and peaceful relations was

a necess

ary

part of subsistence. Today, the monopolies persist, even

though the system has been significantly eroded by the introduction of

steel axes and aluminum pots.

Sorne of the specializations are ecologically based. The high guality

clay

used

by the Waura

for

their ceramie

pots

is available primarily on

lhei r traditional territory. The shells used for necklaces and belts

by

the

Carib speaking tribes are mainly aceessible in areas near their villages.

Othcr trade speeializations are grounded in speeial knowledge or in

substan tial investment of labor. The Waura ceramic monopoly is the

best cxa mple of the former, and the Mehinaku salt works, with its large,

labor intcnsive plantings of water hyacinth

4

is an instance of the later

type

af monopoly .

What is particularly intriguing about the speeializations is that nane

of thcm is fully defensible as a monopoly. Knowledge of ceramics

dlffuses acro ss tribal boundaries as a result of intermarriage and visiting.

Cla)' and shells could

be

obtained outside ofCarib and Waura territory.

The

lab or

needed to make salt or other products is potentially abundant

in

all of the Xingu villages. The puzzle of the monopolies deepens when

we consider that the trade

goods

are highly valued by the Xinguanos .

Shell bd ts, necklaces and eeramic pots are the measure of a man's

wca

lth. 'fhey are used

to pay

shamans in medieal treatments and are

public offeri ngs for important rituals. Why not make these things at

hom

e?

When this guestion is put to villagers from different tribes, they

rcspond with a list of

sa

nclions that protect the monopolies. The men

do

no! dare

to

get shells and make necklaees beca use they are fearful of

Carib witches. The women would not make pots because they would be

ridiculed by Waura women who

are

masters of the craft. No one would

ma

ke

salt for export beeause that \Vould anger th e Mehinaku. Thus put,

lhe trade system seems to depend on

in

stitutions which separate villagers

rather than those which bring them together. But in fact , the villagers

also val U the positive impaet of

i

ntertribal relations. Trade mea ns trust,

II


5/11

THOMAS GREGOR

since the items offered may not

be

reciprocated

for

several months or

more. Trade means mutual appreciation, since craft objects, unlike Our

manufactures, are an extension of the se lf which the maker hopes will be

admired. Trade

is

a social relationship that is valued in and or itse

lf.

and

is a conscious reason

for

maintaining the monopoli es. As one of

my

informants explained to me: They have things that are r

ea

lly beautiful,

and we have things that th ey like. And so we trade and that is good.

Intennarriage

AII

of my informants agreed that no one likes

to

live in villages other

than his own. When, due to the extension of the incest taboo and the

small size of the Xingu communities, a man can not find a suitable mate

in his own communit)', he

will

marry into another vilJage. Approx

imately thirty-five per cent ofXi ngu marriages are of this type, and given

the reception of a typical in-married spouse it is a wonder that the

percentage is that high. Th e first problem suc h a spouse faces is that of

the language. The Xinguanos are proud of their languages which are the

major maker oftribal distinctiveness. They are intensely ashamed when

they

try

to speak a language they do not know. Consequentl)' the

villagers develop a

pa ssive understanding of the language of their

spouses' community long before they speak it them se lves . You should

not, explained one of my Mehinaku informants, speak the Janguagc

of your fath er-in-law.

An equally significant barrier to intertribal marriage is the patte

rn

of

hazing the in-married spouse.

The

villagers maintain that such a person

robs them of potential mates, and properly he must paya price by

being made to suffer. Presently, in the Mehinaku, one young man is

being tormented by his wife's lovers. His hammock has been filled with

ashes, his canoe hidden and submerged deep in the swamp outside the

villag

e,

and

his

garden has been vandalized. Th e level of ridieule and

practical joking to which he is subject has reached such a pitch that he

avoids the men's house and the center of the community: "1 don't dare

go

there at all.

Finally, the in-marri ed spouse mu st overfulfill his obligations to his

in-Iaws. Onerous enough at home, in the host co mmunity these cluties

can amount to servitude.

As

one young man ex plained to me as 1

interviewed him in his father-in-Iaw's house: Each day 1 fish

for

Tl\

fath er-in-Iaw, work in his garden, or build him a canoe. Today's \\'rk is

2

Jntertribal relations in Brazil s pper Xingu

do ne, but 1can not lie in my hammock and seem

to

be

la

zy. 1 have to sit

on th is bench even though m)' back and shoulders ache.

The

shame regarding language and the pattern

ofhazing

is evidenee

of the centrifugal, oppositional nature of the Xingu villages. Intertribal

ma

rriage transcends the social distance by ex tending kinship across

triballines and eventually producing bilinguaJ children who can move

faidy freely from one community

to

the other. These individuals are

c

ru

ciallinks bctween the Xingu villages

in

establishing new marriages ,

in

ex

tending bonds of fictive kinship between the tribe

s,

and in

fa cili

tati ng

visits, rituals and trade.

The

res ult

is

that loyalties are

di

vid ed

a/ong lines of kin ship and residence and the barriers between the tri bes

are se mi-permeable. In a conflict between perso

ns

from different

co

mmunities kinship overrides eommon residence. Th e quarreJ is

simply not perceived as a community affair, and the disputants count

only on the active support of their kinsmen.

he centripetal potential of intertribal marriage for producing one

Com mon Xingu soeiety

is

most nearly realized

in

the Yawalapiti village,

which

no\\

has more speakers of Carib and Tupi than Yawalapiti For

so me of the villagers in other communities this

is

an unfortunate

arra ng ement, whieh th

ey

compare

to

a noisy

flock

of birds of different

speee

s, none of whom can

sp

eak eaeh other's language. But

for

all of

the

Xi

nguanos, intertribal marriage isa major so uree of peaceful contact

with each of the Xingu villages.

The

role

o the chief

O

ne \\'o rd from the chief and everyone does whatever they want was

}o

h n C ooper's summation of the ehiefly role

in

soeieties of the South

American lowlands. Among the Xingu so ci eties th e

chid

also has

mnimal authority Isee Dole 1966

),

and yet he has a substantial

expressive role in rituaL

in

making public speeches (Gregor 19

77

: 80-

3), and in organizing trade sessio

ns

(Dole 1956-58

). The

most visible

enactment of hi s special po sition Occurs during the major intertribal

fcstiva

ls

in the

fall

of each year.

The

foeus of the rituals

is

the inaugural

of

ne

\V

chiefs and the commemoration of

ehids

who have di ed.

The

ritua

ls

require the participation of

all

the tribes, and are perceived by the

il age

rs

as an explanati on of the peace

fuJ

nature of the Xingu system:

We don't make

war; \ve

have festivals

for

the chiefs to which all of the

viJ]ages come. \Ve sing, dance, traeJ e and wrestle.

3


6/11

THOM S GR EGOR

Within the communities, the chief embodies the valu

es

of

generos

ity,

hard

work

, lawfulness, and peacdulnes

s.

Ideall y, he never

di

s

plays

anger, never engages

in gos

sip, never makes witchcraft accusa

tions, and never participates

in

witch killing

s,

no matter how severe the

provocation. P

sy

chologically, among the Mehinaku, he approximates

the idealized father in that he represents prosocial values and the

repression of anti social impulses.

The

villagers explain that the

chid

takes care of

,

provides

for

, and

give

s

food

to

hi

s people, who are

often referred

to as

his children. Like

thdather

of a famil

y,

the chief

is

said to be responsible for the moral tone

ofhi

s community. He lectures

his

children

in

the evening and at dawn , co

rr

ecting their behavior

the

wa

y a father ledures his s

on. Ac

cording to the villagers, com

munities that split into rival factions (as has recently occurred to the

Carib speaking Kalapalo) or lose ancient traditons

(a

s has happen ed

among th e Trumai) havc not heeded th eir chiefs, or have not had a chief

worth heeding.

The

role of the eh

id n

the Xingu

is

not entirely limited

to

ceremony

and speeches. With th e

ad

vent of the Brazilian administration the tribes

have mov

ed

much closer together , and increas

in

gly intera ct

in

informal

situations unstructured by the traditional rules of affinal

kin ship and

ritual.

On

occasion, th

is

contact ha s led

to

fri ction between groups of

young men in different

tri bes

wh o chop down tre

es

on the paths between

the villages and borrow other tribesmen's canoes and bicycles. Thc

chiefs play an active role

in

negotiating a quick settlement

to

disturb

ances of this kind. More serious di sagreement

s,

such as allegations of

theft and witchcraft , are beyond the scope of the chief's formal authority

and must be

re

solved by the disputants themselves.

What strikes the observer of the Xingu eh ief is that despite his role

as

a

negotiator, the status is elaborated

far

b

ey

ond what might be expected

from societies with an essentially unstrat ified political system.

The

elevation of the chieftainship, particularly

it

s ceremonial componcnt,

appears to be a means of celebrating the peaceful intertribal systelll

rather than the chief's local authority.

As expressed

in in

stitutions, the Xingu peace system is based on

mutuall)' rewarding ritual participation, th e exchange of trade goods

and spouses, and a consciou s appreciation of the values of a peaccful

culture. But

in

fact this is o

nl )'

half the pictur

e.

The Xingu peace rclics

heavily on

in

stitutions that separa

te

the

tri bes

and preoccupy the

villagers with thoughts of death and violence.

If we

question l yillagcr

4

lntertribal relatian s in Brazil s U

pp

er Xingu

about the benefits of peace, he quickl y turn s

to

the dangers of unu sual

but s

oci all

y

im

portant events, su eh as \vitch killings, battles with

wild

Indians, wife-beal ings, rap

es,

phys ical puni shment of children, and th e

sa

di

stic killing

an cl

torture of animals. n an important sen

se

, the

Xi

ngu

pea

ce is

negatively defined, emerging with greate

st

clarity

in th

e culture

of

ag

gressio ll and violence. T his culture stands as a foil against which

the Xing ua n

os

forg e a self identity, and aim the

ir

beha\ior towards the

ide al of peaee.

)JE

G

ATIVE PE

A

CE

: BLOO

D, WIT

C

HES

, AN D

W LO

i\

D I AN S

[:\1

T H E X 1N G U C U LT U R E O F

V IOLEi\ C E

Ang

er,

ggressian, violence

Anger

is

a di sturbing and

ev

en frightening emotion for man y of the

Xinguanos.

In

\l

1ch

inaku, the term

for

an

gcr ( japujapai ) is applied

mctaphorica lly lo things that are completcly out of control, such as a

raging

fi

rc

, a thu nde

rst

orm , venomous

wa

sps and a spe cies of pepper

so

ho t that

il lc

a

\'es

anyone foolish enough to eat it writhing on the ground

in agony. T he vi

ll

agers exp

la

in th at they are not angry people, because

th

e)

avo id food s th at produce aggress ion: \Ve don't ea t an imals with

bl

oocl

or hot

foocl

s. O ur

food is

'tastele

ss

' a

nd

so our bellies are ne

VC

1l0t

with an

gc

r. ; V/ hen th e villagcrs do become an g

ry,

they can rclea

se

th

ci

r

fcel ing

s harm

lc

ss

ly: W

h

en

we

are allg

ry \VC wre

stle; and then the

anger disappe

ar

s. The w

ild

Ind

iJ1lS

don't

kn

ow how

to

wrestlc and

so

thcy

cl

ub

pc

ople

in

stead . Finally,

th(;

vill

a

gc

rs claim t11':

)

are

pt


7/11

THO MA S G [( E C OH

beca use the killing produces \\founds and blood, and especlally a bloody

corpse, which is an object of fe;,u and revulsion. Such a corpse lS buried

m a shallow graH': outside the vlllage, and its soul wlll ne

vo

ascend to

the Village in the

Sky. The

killcr is also contam in ated.

The

blood enters

I

IS

body where it enlargc:. the fJce and abdomen, darkens the skin and

produces a characteristic foul smell. Xinguanos \Vho kill witches use

special garments and medicines to distance themselves from the task,

and when it

is

completed, they attclllpt

to

remove the dcflling blood

from

then

bodies

by

consUlling medicines made from anatto. But, like

Lady \J acbcth \\ho coulclllevcr cleanse her hands of Duncan's blood,

these

fi

en

ds

for killing humc.iT1s cal1not \Vholly wipe away the moral

stain. Considered repulsive, they are deprecated

as

village leaders and

rejected

as

lovers.

The wild Indians

Each of the Xi ngu languages has a word

for

non-Xingu Indians. In eacn

language the term

com

eys emotions that rallge from fear, to distaste and

contempt. T he term, \vhic h my informants often translated

as

wild,

condenses in a single powerful symhol what the Xinguano is not and

strives not

to

be. According to my Ara

wl

ka n informants, the wild Indian

is ugly. His skin is black and he rubs it with rancid pig fat. His hair is slick

with grease. He \Vears lip

s k . ~

and slobbers whcn he talks. He sleeps on

the ground l

ike ,m

animal. He sits on the pro

\\'

ofhis canoe and defecaks

into the

wa

ter he dri n

ks.

He nevcr bathes and has a foul smell. 6 He eats

rats, toads, pigs ancl

sl1d

kes.

Above all, the \Vild lndian lS violent:

ll

e beats his children. Il c rapes

his

\Vife.

He shoots arro\Vs at the \vhite

111an's

planes. He s

pl

i

ts

peoplcs

hea cl s wth clubs. Il e kidnaps children ancl burns \illages. He kills his

o\Vn

kin. War

for

him is a festival. Why is the wild Indian so violent?

T he answcr is traclition: It is because their grandfathers werc violent.

My

informants also cited legends in wh ich the Sun presented tne \VilJ

Indlans with we apons and a violent culture , and othcr origin myths in

which some of the wild In

di

ans \Vere the o

ff

spring of a bestial union

bctwe en a \VO lllan and a ve nom o

us

snakc (sce Gregor

1

C S 5:

56 -

7).

\\f

hen I pressed further, they woul

c l ex

p

la

in the propensih

for

violen ce

as

derivi ng from their steady diet of bloa

dy

anim als, and their inability

to

wr cstlc like the Xinguanos.

Thesc answc rs are genuine explanations for thc \illag ers, hut

11 6

Intertribal relations n Brazil's Upper Xingu

ultimately , the wild Indian is violent because that is his nature:

That

lS

the

\V

a\' it is with them. Wild Indians are not people. It is

for

this rcason

th at outrages are described with an almost detached tone, as if they

are

so

b

ey

ond the

hum

an pale that one can expect no better of them .

In

f3e

t, in terms of cultural symbolism, the wild Indian approaches the

status of an animal. Like an animal, he sleeps on the ground, defecates

in the water, fornicates in strange positions, crawls with vermin, and

re

eks

wi

th

foul odors. Like an animal, he attacks unpredictably, and

\\'l thout provocati on.

7

The Xingu villagers themselves ha

ve

been the victims of unprovoked

aggress lon from thc wild Indians, most recently the Suya and Txicao.

Thesc ra ids (in which Xinguanos were shot and kidnapped and com

mllni ties

ra

nsacked ) precipitated violent defensive reactions.

In

one

sueh assa

ll

lt approximately th irty years ago, individuals from several

eommuni ties teamed up \vith a Brazilian

to

kili many Txicao men,

women, and children. In explaining this departure from the normal

pattern of peacefulness, my informants exphasized that the Txicao had

atlacked first and that they would attack again unless destroyed.

Moreove

r,

the moral gulf between the wild Indians and the Xinguano

made it permissible. Nonetheless, the successful warriors took no

trophies and received no special honor upon their return. According

to

some of my accounts, they had

to

consume medicines

to

rid themselves

of the enern y's defili ng blood before they

\Vcre

accepted in their villages.

T hese dcfe

ns

ive raids clearly show that the Xinguanos are fully capable

of o

rga

ll ized armed violence. Such warfare, however, is regarded by thc

v

ill

agcrs

as

a moral exception

to

thc normal pattern of peaceful

re latio ns, and in fact seems to have been historically unus ual.

Nowadays

th

ere is little daily contact between most of

th

e Xinguanos

and the wild lndian. Nonethdess, he is in their thoughts, their myths,

and (among the \ J[eh inaku)

in

their dreams

as

an image of no\V not to

beha\'e. 'Keep still, a Ill other \ViII say

to

her child

as

she atkmpts

to

remov e his heacl lice, or you will crawl with verminlike a \Vild

l11c.li;ll1.

\ggressi\ic indivicluals find themsel

ve

s compared

to

a lip-diske

cl

Kayapo

Indian wbo the i ~ J g e r s find especially repulsive, and \vho has allcgcdly

ki

lle

cl

more than one hundre

c

lndians and whites.

The

wild Indian

thereby pr

ovi des

a dram ,ltic moral counterpoint

for

the ideal of peaceful

heha

vi

or. Contrary to appcarances, he plays a role in the Xingu rcace.

11


8/11

THOMAS

GREGOR

he witch

In ancient times, claim the Mehinaku, a malignant spirit felJ to the

ground. His bod y parts and adornment were apportioned among sorne

of the villagers who discovered that they could

use

them

as

fetish objects

to cause

ilJncss

and death. These first witches passed their

skills

on

to

their sons

by

scarifying them with snake

fangs

and scorpion stingers.

Graduallya culture of witchcraft developed, which allegedl)' persists in

each of the Xingu

vilJages. It

is witchcraft, the personal malevolence of

individual villagers, that causes death, disease, crop blights , wind

storms, and plagues of mosquitoes.

Why are sorne villagers thought to practice witchcraft? Ultimately,

the reasons are the same

as

those which motivate aggressive animals and

wild

lndians: They don't have feelings for others; they are not people .

But there

is

also an important difference between witches and

wild

Indians. The

wild

lndian,

like an

animal, has

no

social relationship

with his victims. The witch, on the other hand, is a kinsman, a fellow

villager, or another Xinguano.

His

motives for attacking others includc

revenge

for

the theft ofhis possessions, anger

at

sexual advances towards

his

wife,

the affront of being left out of a distribution of

fish,

or almost

any imagined slight. Nursing his grudge, the witch assembles a variety

of fetishes charged with magical power. These include tiny

bows

and

arrows, splinters of wood from ancient objects, potsherds believed to be

from

mythical times, and the hair clippings, clothes

or

personal effulvia

of the victim. After the appropriate spells and magical acts, the victim

falls

ill and soon dies.

Both the literature on the Upper Xingu and my own research

persuade me that witchcraft

is

seldom if ever actually practiced. The

fear,

however,

is

palpable in

all

of the communities in which 1 have

worked. Among the Mehinaku, where 1 have

lists

of witchcraft accusa

tions from more than half the adults in the villagc (Gregor 1977: 207-9),

every adult male

is

suspected by a least some members of the

COI -

munity. It is small \Vonder that at night children may

be

called

in

so that

they

will not be shot with invisible arrows. The doors are locked, and

fearful householders sometimes construct crude alarms of tin pot Iids.

By

day, the village gossip network is alive with rumors and accusations of

specific individuals \fter a

dea th

, highl y paid professional sorcercrs and

witch hunters (see Gregor 1977: 340-344 ) provide further support for

the system of belief by identifying the witch and exhibiting his fetishcs

118

Intertribal relations in Brazil s Upper Xingu

(which thcy th cmselves have secretly created for the occasion).

the alleged victim of witchcraft

is

a young man, the accused m

ay be

executed by the kin of the deceased. Such executions occur approx

mately evc

ry

two to three

years in

the Xingu (the last instance in 19

84),

and are a major limitation on

om

classification of the Xinguanos as trul)'

peacefu

l.

The kil li

ngs

themselves are brutal affairs, in which the victim

is t

ake

n by surprise and slaughtered with arrows, machetes and riAes.

Such executions are possible in an essentially antiviolent culture

becausc of the killer's absolute conviction in the justice of his action ,

and the use ofde vices that separate him

from

his daily role

as

a peaceable

Xinguano. These include a variet)' of magical spells and objects

said

to

give him courage for the

task,

weaken his victim, and remove the

polluting effc ct of the blood.

8

Thc

po

litical impact of witchcraft beliefs and witch killings on

Xinguano political institutions cannot be overemphasized. The most

sign

ifica nt

is th

e veneer of courtesy that marks ordinary relationships.

Persons who despise one another seldom show anger. They

are

fearful of

their enem

y

s

wi

tchcraft, and equall)' frightened of being held respon

sib le

as

an alleged witch ifhe

falls ill.

Between tribes (especiall)' from the

perspective of Arawakan and Tupian groups), the pattern of

false

good

manners is even more marked. The

ma

st dangerous witches are often

said to

live in other tribes,

so it is well

to receive them with courtesy

when thev visi t. Those who are cautious avoid

all

informal (nonritual)

visits to other tribes, limiting intertribal relations

to

relativel), predict

ab

le and ci rcumscribed ceremonial occasions.

9

Perha

ps

th

e most interesting effect of witchcraft beliefs on the Xingu

po litical systcm is to limit the power of the chief. Despite the s) m bolisl11

ofilie peace-Ioving chief, his role is a threatto the balanced nature ofthe

Xingu intertri b

al

system. As things stand, he can onl)' command the

loyalty of his dependent

ki

n.

A

dis

pute between him and members of

another tribe is seen as a disagreement between the parties involved , not

as an intertriba l dispute. Were he able to command the loyal tv of

an

entire co mmunity, an interpersonal quarrel betwee n two loca1 chiefs

could evolve into a

full

Aedged

war.

But even a

po

we rful Xingu chief

knows he must tread softly

in exc

rcising his limited authority.

The chief is the point man in the political system, an d as such he is

inevitably the target of jealous accusa tio ns

by

the communit

)

at

large. In

th

e midst of

hi

s noncontrover

sia

l, self

-d

e

pr

eciating public speeches, he

Imagines hi s rivals' resentment. When he has actual control of individu

119


9/11

T

I l

OM S GR E GOR

als and resources (as

is

becoming increasingly true of two of the chiefs

who are linked

to

the Indian agency administration) he

li

v

es

in chronic

anxiety: Let

us say

that

1

di stribute gifts .

1

keep nothing for mys elf or my

family, but thEre is still not enough to go around . 1explain

to

those

who

received nothing that there

is

no more Idt. They say 'fine, that

is

alJ

right,

\Ve

understand.' They

say

th e right things, theyspeak beautifully.

But at night they sort th eir fetishes and plan to murder me and

my

family Thus he imagined witch curbs the power of the chid, retains

the essentially egalitarian ba sis of local organizabon, and preserves the

symmetrical and balanc

ed

relationships among th e different tribes .

But at what a price \Vithin the villages th e apparent good fellowship

of everyday life masks murderous intent. Today

in

the Xingu villagcs

there are individuals wh o are marked for execution . During my last field

trip in December of 1985

two

of them were too frightened

to

leave their

own houses. Others moved erratically from village

to

village in the vaio

hope that they would be accepted elsewhere . .

n

even larger group nO\\l

live

off the reservation among the

wild

Indians and

on

backwoods

Brazilian farms and ranches - completely cut off

from

their kinsmen

and their traditional culture.

The cost of witchcraft belie

fs

can go

be

yond openly accused witchES

to

include virtually

ev

eryone , no matter how we

ll

established

as

good

citizens, no matter how well protected

by

large numbers of male kin.

Such

is

the sys telll among the Mehinaku, and 1 believe

in

the other

villages as well, that everyone will from time to time be gossiped about

and come under suspicion.

As

one man explained:

1

am not a witch .

But 1

am

frightened that people think 1

amo

Have

you

noticed that

children will not com Eclose

to

me?

It

is because their parents have said

that 1 am a witch.

Witchcraft beliefs ha

ve

the potential of dragging the Xinguanos into

an

ab

ys

s of accusatiollS killings, and ultimately a Hobbesian

war

of

c\cryone against everyone. But even though the villages smolder with

anger, only rarely does th e violence degenerate into a \'engdul

feud

o1

have documented a few

instanCES

in o\'er

fifty

years of

Xi

ngu witch

killings where the conflict continued

to

spiral after the initial executiol1 ,

but in no case \Vas there more than one Jdditional death. In general.

widEr co n

flict is

restrained by the careful choice of the victim. Though

apparen tly sclected mag ically, he is killed only \\fhen he and his kin are

substantially outnumbered

by

the killers. If he is too strong, they nwy

employa sorcerer

to kili

hi m magically, or th

ey

\Vill Silllply seek re\'cngc

120

Intertribal relations

in

Brazil s Upper Xi

ngu

throug

h

malicio us gossip.

The villa

gers

a

re

conscious

th

at the sys telll of revenge

is

atavistic and

vio

lates th e

esse

ntial Xingu value of peacefulness .

One

of the most

powe rfu I indi viduals in the Xingu cOlllmunitie

s

aman whose own

Eather was killed as a witch,

is

presently conducting a personal crusade

against the killi ngs . He belittles false shamans, and

uses

the gossip

network to discredit their accusations. 1would not kili a witch

eve

n if

he ki

ll

ed

my

sons, he explained.

T

here is no

wa

y

to kn

ow with

ce

rt

ainty wh o is guilty. Most of those who have been killed were

neecJ]css ly k

ill

ed. TIle

ir

deaths were ugly affairs. C

on

scious awarene

ss

o

how the

sy

stem fun ctions thereby limits th e violence

in

the Xingu,

and off

ers

sorne hope for an evolution t

ow

ards a more rationally bas ed

politicaJ system.

WHY

ARE XINGUANO S PEACEFUL?

War makes rattling good history; but pe ace

is

poor reading.

TI IO MA S HAROY

Peace theory

Compara tive r

es

earch on th e cause of war and peace is based on the

hiddcn

pr

emises t

ha

t peace is an expectable state of affairs in human

rel

ationsh

ips

'ere it not for conflict. Pe

ac

e is th e absence of conAict,

an

d it

is

con

fl

ict that nee

ds

to be

expl

ained (cf. Ila

a:

,. this volumc). My

own perspective is the reverse.

Po

litical systems are so volatile and

war

is

so contagious that its ex istence should occasion little surprise. lt is peace

that needs special explanation. Bu t

it is

he re that social science l

ets

us

clown since peace is seldom studied much less explained. A case in

point is lhe

oumal

o

Pe

ac

e

Research

,

the foremost interdisciplinary

o

umal devo

te

d to peace studies. Despite

it

s title, the

oumal

is mainly

dc

dica

ted to t

ll

e studv of conAict, conAict resolution and the causes of

war. Thus the editor sadly notes: It hu ns out that of th e approximately

4

00

articles [publisned

in

the

oum

a

]

over seventeen years, a single one

has bee n devo tec1

to

the empir

ica

l study of pe aceful socie

ties

with a \i

e\\

to

find out what seemed

to

make th cm peaceful (Wiberg 1981: 11 3l.

With fcw ethnographic examples to studv. peace theory is a highly

sp

cc

ulati vc and e

sse

ntiallv intuitive sec tor of social science resc arch .

Thc simplcst of th e th eo'

rie

s are those of negativc peace (Galtung

121


10/11

THO M AS GR EG O R

196

8:

487

Nega

ti

ve peace

in

a pure form is based on minima}

relationships:

G

ood

fen

ces make good neighbors.

The

cl ass ic form of

ne

ga

tive

peac e

is

deterrenc

e,

a con

sc

ious political policy that goes

ba

ck

at least as far as ancient Greece and remains an actin: part of militar)'

doctrin

e.

The

effi

cacy of dete

rr

en

ce

in non Western socie

ti

es is att

es

ted

to

by

a substantial number of anth

ro

pological studies, such as E \ans

Pritchard s (1940) examination of t

:

e ordered anarchy of statelcss

soc ie

ti

es.

Pos itiv epeace depcndson the

exc

han

ge

of goods,

scnices

and peo plcs.

On

e of the e

ff

ec ts

of e

xc

hange is to cr

ea

te

lo

yalties which are

di

vided

by

both territory and bond s of inter

es

t, such as kinship and economi

cs

.

T he

se

competing a

ll

e

gi

anccs attract a natural constituency

in fav

or of

maintaini ngpeacefuJ relat

io

ns(C

ol

son 195 3, Gluckmal1 1955 , Murphy

19

57

) Mo

reO\"Cr, ex

chan

gc

leads to thc creation of a common culture.

Parall el in stitutions in different soc iet

ic

s can generate a co nsensus of

val

ucsand stimulate the kind ofdiffuse emotionally meaning

ful

relation

ships that would inhibit violen ce (C altung

1968:

491).

Although

a]]

of these th eo

ri es

are intuitively reasonabl

e,

none of

them survi

ves

the t

es

t of the cro

ss

-cul tural data. T rade and culture

homology,

for

example, are actua

JJ

y po s

iti

vely associated with war (Teft

1

97

5).

In

termarriage, which should le

ad to

the most

so lid

kind of

a

lli

ances based on kinship also fa

il

s the tes t of cross-cultural comparison :

interm arriage, k

in

sh

ip

and war are

ac

tually positively correlated (Tcft

19

75

:

70

1). Ju

st

as intcr perso nal violence often nccurs

in cl

ose relation

ship

s,

the most

in

tense conflicts see m

to

occur between politi

es

that are

similar in structure ano intens ely engaged with one an ot]cr.

Pea

ce

theory is at an embr

yo ni

c stage of developmen

t,

but thc

apparent failure of the bas ic theo rems of deterrenc

e,

exchange and

cultural homolo

gy

is surp

ri

sing and counter-int

ui

tive. A partial

explanabon of the

fail

urc

ma

y be that the theorems are

to

a degree

contra

dl

ctory.

Tho

se

wh

o champion cultural homo

lo

g\ and exchangc

maintain that closen

ess

, p

osi

tive af

fe

ct and diffu se attac

hm

ent are the

k

ey

s to peace. Promoters of the instituti ons of nega

tive

peace, on the

other han

d, see

peace em

crg

ing from

di

stance,

fe

ar, and e

vc

n hostility.

T he

re

is a possibility that both are partl v correcto Intimate

ass

ociatioI1

and s

im

ilar valucs mean that th ere ar e common])' yalued o

bj

ec

ts to

fight

ove

r, and that the fights

will be in

tcrnecine a

nd vici

D

US

.

Cu

ltural

dis

tance alld the mutual f

ea

r, ho

weve

r, create

l

highly voh

:lti

le

sys

tem

in

whi ch a minor breach of the pea ee lcads to a major conflict. We can

1

22

lntertribal relations in Brazil s pper

n

u

conceive of a system - and 1 be

li

e

ve

that the Xinguanos are

arare

example -

wh

ich is balanced at a stable midpoint betw

ee

n th e i

ns

btu

ti

ons of p

os

iti

ve

and negative peace .

At

this point there is m

ea

ningful

homology and exchang

e,

and

ye

t at the same time membe rs of the

sys

tem w

ill

be sufficiently conce

rn

ed about the dangers of

agg

r

ess

ion

to

avoid any breach of the peace.

Why then do the Xinguanos

li ve

at peace?

The

y do

so

beca u

se

of the

ir

uniq ue history in an ecological abu nd ant and isolated reg ion of South

America . They maintain that peace because of the in sti tu

ti

ons and

values wh ich bring them to

ge

ther in meaningful relationship

s, in

clud

ing t

ra

de, intertribal marria

ge

and the institution of the chieftainship. n

an ideal

wo

rld, this would be enough. But political life

in

ev

itably

generates rese ntment, antago

ni

sm and fear. Among the Mehinaku

these tensio

ns

ha ve

be

en built into institutions that mal' actuall y

preserve the peace. Thus linguistic ethnocentrism and hos

til

e

ste

reotypes keep the Xin guan

os

at home and limit interac

ti

on betwee n

thc t

ri

bes . The compelling im ag

es

of violence and blood are constant

reminders

to

the villagers of what they must avoid.

Th

e

agg

r

ess

i

ve

wild

lndians stand

as

symbols of

\Vh

o they must not be.

Th

e be liefs in

witchcra

ft

are a powerful

sa

nc

ti

on that enforces court

es)'

among the

village

rs

and limits the

rol

e of the chief.

The

irony of the un

eas

)'

Xingu

pea ce is that the institutions whi ch curb conAict are

al

so those which

painfull

l' cx

pre

ss

fear and an

ge r.

N

otes

This paper is based on ficl d resea rch among th e tribcs ofth e Upper

Xingu duri ng lhe summer and fall of 19j5. Thi s wo rk was

supported by grants fro m

th

e HeHT\ Frank Guggc nhe

im

Founcla

hon and the Na

ti

onal Sciencc Foulldation

1.

Richard

Le

e

(1

9

: 9:

370- 400) documents a long hi story of

2Z

felld

li kc kilJings among a smalJ population of Kung. Alth ough the

demographic im pact of sllch battles

is

hard to qualify, it would

seem

to ac

count for at lea st as high a percent

agc

of the death rate as

war

in OUT

own societv (about

1-

2% of a

lJ

d

ea

th s). 'r hc

so

cial and

psychologic

al

imp

ac

t violen ce within Kung soci

e!:)

may cvcn be

h igher. If

th

ese are OllT mea sur

es

of

Vhat

constitutcs \\ ar,

tl

len e\en

harmless pcople qualify.

2. Speech , se xua l relati ons, and

ea

ti

ng

ar e all cl oscly

co

nne

ct

ecl

activities in

th

e co ncep

ti

on of

th

e hum an body.

3. The concept a

llc1

importance of pcacduJn css is rough

ly

similar lo

123


11/11

TH OlvlAS GREGOR

thal of "ifutisu

,

the tefln used by

th

e C a r i b - S f l ~ J k i n g tribes

in

the

X

in gu

system

(sce Basso

1973: 12-1'+ ,.

4. Fo

lia

ge from this

pbllt is

burned and the

as

h

is

Icaehed \Vith water

lo produce potassium ehloride, the sall of the Xinguanos As the

villa

gc

rs describe

it

, the Carib

tri

b

es'

sp

ee

ialii'ati

ol1S

in , hell belts

and nec

kla

ces should also be consldered labor intens

ive

monopoli es, sin ee they

in

vo ll'e longand dange rous trips to find the

shell s, and arduous \Vork to craft th em into Ih e final produet.

5. AII

of the Xingu

tri

be s eat

fi

sh, monk

ey

, and a

numb

er of speciesof

birds, i c l i n g most game animals.

6. The \'i1lagers are far more aeute1y attuned

to

odors than \Ve are, and

will

often spit to reduce the sensation ofabad sme

ll. n

Jeeounts of

interaetion with both

wild

Indians and

for

es t an imals (with whom

wild

Indians are believed

to

share a great d

ea

l

in

eommon) the

Xinguanos often remark on th e fetid smell.

7. Some of t

lIc

Xinguanos claim

to

have seen a tri

be

ea lled "Thc

People Who Live Inside Trees" som e

di

stanee to th e east of their

reservation. The tree people purportedly live in tr ee trunks, eat

uneooked bir

ds

, \Vear no clothes, and spea k in hoots and grunts.

Symbolieally, this eultureless tribe fulfills an ani mal-like potential

whieh other wild Indians onl y approximate.

8. In

1972, 1witne

ss

ed

the killing of an Xingu Indian who

\Vas

haeked

to death \V ith machetes as

we

tri

ed

to hold off

hi

s J

ssa

ilants in a

room at the Indian Pos t. .

\f t

er

th

e exeeu ion,

th

e killers ex hibitcd

an iey

ca

lm.

One

approaehed me , pointed

to th

e co rpse and thc

wa

i)ing relati

ves

and s

aid:

"You ca n take photographs now."

9. T hcse findings are based primarily on In y wo

rk \Vith

Tupi and

Ar awak speaking informants.

124

Raiding

trading and

tribal

autonomy in insular Southeast

sia

T HOM AS GIBSON

In

this paper, war fare

in

insular Southeast

Asia

is

exa

min ed through the

compa

riso

n of three groups ofhighland shifting cultivators .

The

thesis

s that the current soc

ial ev

aluation of violence and

agg

ressio n within

eaeh group is

th

e result of differing historical e

xp

e

ri

ences

wi

thin a

loosely int

eg

rated r

eg

ional political economy dominated by th e institu

ti

ons of s

lave

raiding and coerced trade.

Th

ose groups

po

sitively

di

sposed towa

rd

bellicosity are those which pl ayed a predominantly

pr

eda tory ro

le

in the r

eg

ion, while tho

se

which are nega

tive

ly

di

sposed

t

owa rd

v

io

lence

in

any form were primaril y pr

c\.

Th

ere i

s,

however,

no thing de termini stic about the argument , for each concrete example

rcp

re

se

n

ts

onl

)'

one of a number oflogically possible r

es

ponses

to

a gi

ve

n

sequencc of historical eve nts.

All

three groups s

till

retaill a sign ifica nt

degree ofau

to

nomy over their internal politi

ca

l and ideol

og ical sys

tem

s,

and each must be seen as creatively responding to a changin g

se

t of

e> ie

rn al politic

al

and economic forces.

n the

fi

rst part of the papcr, a brief outline is pr ovided of th e general

hi

stori

cal co

ntext

in

which these three soci e

ties

have d

eve

lope d. [n

th

e

se

cond part, an ovcrview of eaeh socich is

gi

ven. III th e third

pa

rt, their

respective attitud

es

toward \'iolcncc, social ranking and i ndebtedness are

12 5

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