Réfléchir avec les Wayana : ethnographie d'un peuple autochtone du Brésil

Description

This ethnography describes the lifestyle of a hunter-gatherer people in the Brazilian Amazon in the 1960s. This portrait highlights the ingenuity of the Wayana people at that time in exploring and exploiting their environment and distributing its resources. They had devised immutable rules of conduct, but these were always applied with discernment. They had implemented a birth control policy that kept the population at a constant level, thus requiring the same resources. This society functioned in an orderly manner without any positions of authority. Social order was ensured by respect for tradition. This was codified in stories kept alive through discussions, ritual meetings, ceremonies, and the world of the afterlife, explaining the origin of the universe and the presence of evil, suffering, and death. All of these practices allowed individuals to live peaceful and satisfying lives.