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| Hopi Kachina Dolls |
These dolls, who represent various kachinas, are given to young children to educate them in their beliefs and teach them about the world. The kachina are dressed just like men would dress in the different Hopi ceremonies around the year. Both representing the actual spirit who is called upon in the ceremonies. It is interesting to me how important education of the younger people seems to be among the Hopi. In recent years, because of Western influence a lot of the Hopi youth are in kind of a limbo between two cultures. This is why it is so important for them to teach their world view and values to the younger generation.
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| Hopi Girl |
I started of by asking Dr. Buckley about the discrepancies between the legend and archaeological evidence or scientific theory about the origin of these people. He confirmed something that we have talked a bit about already, that a big part of the oral traditions of Native Americans is to shape and form and identity. Whether or not the history is 100% factual is not exactly the point. Just as many scholars debate whether or not every part of the Bible (for example the Book of Job) or other religious texts is factual or just symbolic and moralistic.
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| Hopi Snake Priest |
We, as Western thinkers have a very different set of values. We value fact and evidence, and these legends are not so much meant to tell a story that is factual. The Hopi and others teach and learn a way of living by these stories and that is what is important to them. Actually most Native American cultures give trust more in their oral histories than they do in other sources. The history was passed down from father to son, while outsiders don't present the same level of credibility because they come from outside of that ancestral line.
All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed my chat with Dr. Buckley and learned a lot about Native American history and culture that I could never have learned by reading a book all day. (You just can't ask questions to a book.) The Hopi are a fascinating people and admirable in their values and lifestyle. I hope that after having studied them these past few weeks I will be able to emulate and learn from this wonderful culture.
I thought it was interesting that you mentioned how we, as western thinkers, have a very different set of intellectual values, even beyond what it means to be a good person, etc. It's not about the Hopi people, but you might be interested in a book called A Radical Hope by Jonathan Lear. I think I've mentioned it before, so I won't go into detail here, but I feel like you might like it.
ReplyDeleteI just think it is interesting that even outside of issues of morality, etc., we have different values that structure how we think about what we do. It seems like the way the Hopi value legend and ritual would paint the way they understood really everything else in their life. I wish that there were a way to not only experience other cultures, but to truly do so through the eyes and minds of those involved, removed from our own cultural ides.
Thanks Lauren. That was kind of my half-formed idea that I was trying to say. Your words gave it concreteness. Moral values vs Intellectual values. Good one.
ReplyDeleteYour post reminded me of something we covered in child development. We were talking about different types of intelligence tests and other measures of social achievement. The main point was to open our eyes to how subjective a supposedly objective intelligence test is because it measures intelligence values of a particular culture. People who do not share the same educational outcomes or values do not do well, not because of lack of intelligence, but because they value other things and process information differently.
ReplyDeleteI had an interesting thought while posting the previous comment. Our blog is a little microcosm of this. What our instructors value is different from what would be valued for a blog in "the real world" (the deffinition of the real world could be debated to no end). This shapes our perceptions and our performance. Not necessarily because we are incapable of real world bolg posts (though in my case that may be true) but because we are part of a mini culture that values something else
ReplyDeleteman i had this all written earlier and I am still doing it now!
ReplyDeleteI have noticed that for many cultures in comparison to ours. For example our culture is very skeptical and doubting until proven otherwise while within the Hispanic culture they put more value on faith. It is interesting also about ancestral knowledge. Maybe we don't have that as much in our culture because all of our ancestors came from other countries and this creates some kind of divide? Or maybe it is something else? I also wonder why their cultures diversify. Is it exclusively from oral knowledge outside influence? I have noticed how "liquid"/up to change or updates as Dr. Burton puts it, oral knowledge is.
I think it is really interesting how different people can think about things just from growing up in different cultures. I mean, the underlying values, opinions and bias of a person are greatly influenced by their personal experience and cultural heritage. This goes for moral and intellectual values. It is so strange to me to think that we are all so influenced by our communities, cultures and times that our core values can be intrinsically different, even when our spirits have common ancestry. We are all human, but we definitely do not all think in the same way, or perceive the world through the same lens.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Morgan, our beliefs and values are influenced by and differ depending on where we have grown up or where we live. In many cultures, the stories told by ancestors and family members hold more value than proven facts. Perspective plays a huge role in what societies believe to be truth and how knowledge is passed along.
ReplyDeleteAnd whether or not they think there is a Truth. I learned about this doing my interview, so stay posted, but the interesting part was that things were good or not good but true was irrelevant
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