Oral Culture and the Potlatch Connection
The task of recording the stories and histories of the people is so incredibly important. Passing on this knowledge from one generation to the next is as significant as sharing the skills for hunting, preparing food, and making clothing; a basic necessity. In Orality and Literacy (Ong, 1982), Walter Ong describes the unique characteristics of primary oral culture. As I read, I could not help but reflect on the similarities within our local First Nations community, who have made the transformation away from being a primary oral culture, yet who continue to hang onto these traditions.
In my community we have the convergence of three First Nations bands. Over half of my class is First Nations and my school is very involved in their community. The First Nations people are a terrific example of having evolved from a primary oral culture yet whose traditional ways of sharing stories and history continue. However, rather than using words, which can be altered, the First Nations record and share their stories of the past through dance.
To help retain memory of people and events, Ong describes the importance of creating memorable, “heavy” characters whose deeds were considered monumental. He mentions that “colourless personalities cannot survive oral mnemonics”. This brings forth the importance of questioning the validity of characters and stories passed on through oral cultures. With each telling, does Goliath get larger and David become increasingly brave? How far from the truth do the stories grow? Or, does it matter as long as the underlying message behind the story remains the same?
Within the First Nations culture, elaborate masks help to create the “heavy” characters. Oversized features provide individually identifiable characteristics. A common theme is the ability to transform from a human form into animals of both the land and sea. The stories of transformation make the characters memorable, supernatural. While individual bands have their own stories and historically significant characters, there are some common threads that run between them. For example, the stories of Dzunukwa, the wild woman of the woods who captures and eats children, is a common story shared by many groups. It continues to be shared with the children today, frightening them into staying close to their homes. Telling the stories of Dzunukwa, using facial and hand gestures as one describes children hanging from the smokehouse racks to be dried and eaten later, brings her character to life in a much more convincing way than reading it in print.
In a primary oral culture, Ong describes the importance of rhythm and repetition. Telling the stories and history through dance, the First Nations peoples provide another good example of Ong’s observation. The rhythmic drumming and repetitive movements ensure that the observer has ample time to commit the story to memory.
Ong describes the importance of sharing the stories and history in large groups. For the Coastal First Nations, Potlatch ceremonies were traditionally held to mark important, memorable events. People were invited to become witnesses, to remember the event, to become a bearer of the history. These were also times when the dances, masks, and stories of the past were re-told to ensure that they were kept alive. From 1884 to 1951 Potlatch ceremonies were banned in Canada. There was an earnest attempt to destroy 7000 years of oral culture and tradition. Fortunately, the traditions, culture, and history survived. Last year I was invited to attend a potlatch ceremony. Being invited in and given the responsibility to bear witness to a historic event marked at the potlatch, to become an oral historian on behalf of the band, was a great honor. It helped me to truly understand the power and validity of oral culture.
To find a primary oral culture in the world today is a great challenge. However, our Coastal First Nations groups are an example of traditional oral culture that continues to thrive.
REFERENCE:
Walter, Ong. “Orality and literacy.” The technologizing of the word, TJPress, London (1982).
I enjoyed your post and your description of First Nations and their traditional knowledge in comparison to the “philosophies” shared by Ong. I have spent a brief amount of time on first nations reserves and I know enough to leave my value systems behind (ie. Vegetarian diet, date book and planner). You clearly have a strong understanding of how to embrace traditional learning styles and consider the best ways to accommodate your students in the classroom environment.
You mentioned the use of rhythm and repetition within traditional forms of learning. This reminds me of how effective “ear worms” are in present day. Ear worms are the songs with tunes that get “stuck in your head” once you hear them . I also like your explanation of how characters become bigger than life throughout the development of the story being told. Your examples highlight the importance of understanding the Oral values of traditional languages. I hope never to meet the wild woman in the Dzunukwa stories!
It is hard to imagine that the potlatch ceremonies that you describe were banned in 1951, and that 7000 years of oral culture and tradition were nearly destroyed. I have been following the Martin Aboriginal Education Initiative as best I can and spend time discussing the importance of cultural education of Aboriginal and Inuit communities with my daughter, who is focusing her studies in this area. Not only does language play a valuable role in supporting the traditional knowledge but it also represents a way of caring for each other. It is difficult for southern educators to ever fully understand cultures that are not their own. However by caring and acknowledging these differences, this creates a better learning environment (Lewthwaite & McMillan, 2010). We must hope that the upcoming reforms in education will appreciate the oral literacy traditions of these culture rich communities.
Lewthwaite, B., & McMillan, B. (2010). She can bother me, and that’s because she cares”: What Inuit students say about teaching and their learning. Canadian Journal of Education, 33(1), 140–175.
Hi Tina,
It was really nice to read your post. It is uplifting that despite the horrors the aboriginal community has suffered, they have managed somehow to survive and tell their stories. It is a real gift that technology and media offer new avenues for storytelling and community building as well. Are you familiar with ImagineNative Film and Video Arts Festival? (http://www.imaginenative.org/home/)
I thought a lot about oral cultures and indigenous peoples as I read through Ong. I actually read the critique pieces first and admit they coloured my view. I felt superiority to the Other and Orientalism as I was reading his text, but at the same time, I couldn’t deny that a lot of what I was reading matches up with my own observations here in the Arabian Gulf. My observations may be considered invalid by some, as they are not scientifically measurable, but they are what I see, though admittedly through my own lens.
I live in Oman, where I interact with Omanis. This is an exception in this part of the world, where dogma and culture largely (but do not always) separate expats from locals. I begrudgingly accepted a lot of what I read, if only because it seems to be a “residually oral culture” as Ong calls it, if not still an oral culture in practice figuring out how to integrate new technologies (in other words, how to become literate without losing their traditions). One issue is that education is not connected to democracy as we have read, and being a teacher here is irreconcilable with many principles of education. As one of our readings noted, education is not necessary to gain literacy, and when that is taken out of the equation, it needs to be acknowledged that education is merely a tool of social control by a society’s elites (as the aboriginal people also know well).
Oman is a special place. I’ll comment further elsewhere where relevant about its reverence for the mystical, fear of black magic and embrace of traditional medicines and ceremonies. The use of chants and other oral utterances and edicts are perceived to have great power, consistent with oral cultures. If I say anything objectionable in front of any conservative friend, I will be asked to ‘undo’ it by uttering something else with greater power. Prayers are another matter entirely, but I do not get involved in religious matters and am very careful about respecting traditions and beliefs, many of which are tribal customs. For oral people, the tendency to brand their own bodies surprised me. No tattoos, but anything from tribal family identity to appendicitis to an oral curse on your family might be treated with branding or traditional medicine on the body.
Calling people ‘primitive’, though – and I hear this on a daily basis – is not only upsetting, it is inaccurate. It reeks of cultural hegemony judging other people on their own land (this is a pretty British place, by the way). The technology has already arrived in oral societies such as this one – it is best to leave people to figure out how to deal with the disruption on their own. The total penetration of mobile phone users in Oman is about 173% (there are more mobile phone subscriptions than the total population).[1] Technology influences every aspect of relationships and storytelling, but it is being integrated. My only concern is how government-mediated the transition will be. Social control is very strong and governs all aspects of life, the degree to which I cannot discuss fully online. Suffice it to say that the tools at hand are really not the issue.
Julia
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Sources:
Ong, Walter. (1982.) Orality and literacy: The technologizing of the word. London: Methuen.
[1] http://www.refworld.org/pdfid/502a0c500.pdf
Hi Tina;
Your post has been very informative. “The First Nations people are a terrific example of having evolved from a primary oral culture yet whose traditional ways of sharing stories and history continue. However, rather than using words, which can be altered, the First Nations record and share their stories of the past through dance.” I have watched our First Nations’ events at the college with a feeling that there is an invisible wall between us. I am unable to understand the oral language and didn’t realize that the dancing held so much meaning. The drum beats and the footsteps seemed to this outsider as almost monotone (not the best wording). I didn’t much variation.
“While individual bands have their own stories and historically significant characters, there are some common threads that run between them.” Would this sharing of themes be due to survival in similar natural environments? I realize there are quite a few First Nations communities across Canada, and for that matter across North America; do you think they have ever attempted to trace their oral histories back to see if they are related (as we would say ‘distance cousins’)? Academics most likely have tried to research this but to do so from within the culture(s) would provide different insights. Governments have historically grouped them all together but maybe there are distinct communities. Technology need not be state of the art to advance the knowledge gained and shared which I would hope promote understanding.
It seems all cultures, even European, have stories similar to “Dzunukwa, the wild woman of the woods who captures and eats children”. Hansel and Gretel, and Little Red Riding Hood come to mind. I wonder what the connection might be. Who, if anyone, I wonder first developed the act of storytelling to teach? With proper use of technology some student in 100 years may be researching this very topic based on the data collected and preserved.
Thanks again
Terry