Anthropology 251

Dr. Jane Granskog

ADAPTATION AND ECONOMICS

I. A. TYPES OF SOCIETIES: The categorization of societal types is based principally on the means of extracting energy from the environment (form of adaptation) and the corresponding degree of complexity in socio-political organization. The historical emergence of different types of society corresponds to attaining increasing control over the relevant physical environment (ecosystem). Two major cultural transformations have been critical to the emergence and variable form of indigenous societies in South America (and throughout the world): (1) the Neolithic Revolution (which led to the emergence of agricultural societies including the Chibcha and other militaristic chiefdoms in Northern part of S. America" as well as the irrigation civilizations best exemplified by the Inca Empire in the Andes (along with the emergence of "classical" forms of peasantry); and (2) the Industrial Revolution (expansion of capitalism and colonialism which has profoundly affected the form and persistence of variable mixes of peasants and proletariats today) The major societal types and their characteristics are as follows:

1. GATHERING AND HUNTING (FORAGING) SOCIETIES: small mobile population; usually a band level of social organization (35-50 people or less, get together on an intermittent basis); egalitarian (i.e., equal access to resources and prestige) in emphasis, prestige and authority based on personal qualities (achieved); age and gender basis for division of labor; no permanent leaders or full-time specialists (shamans often the only part-time specialists); the family performs all major functions in society; a status economy based on reciprocity as the main form of economic exchange; operate independently though they may have established trading relations with surrounding more sedentary groups. In S. America, at the time of the conquest, there were 4 types of foragers, depending on char. of environment:

a. Canoe foragers - Chilean archipelago -- shellfish gatherers, marine life, include Chono, Alacaluf and Yaghan; small family clusters.

b. Plains and pampean hunting bands of Patagonia, Argentina -- focus on guanaco and rhea as major food source; char. larger groups, patrilineal bands (larger--up to 100+ w/ arrival of horse in Patagonia became predatory horse nomads, hunted wild cattle etc.). Includes Ona (Shelknam and Haush) of Tierra del Fuego; pampas--Tehuelche, Puelche, Querandi and Charrua -- most numerous and best known (est. total 36,000). Defeat of Indians in 1883, opening of S. Argentina along w/ migration of Chilean Araucanians into area -- have been absorbed into "gaucho" culture. Very similar features to N. Amer. plains Indians. Also includes Indians of Gran Chaco, most were strongly matrilineal - Mataco, Toba, had foraging + subsistence; some became horse nomads.

c. Forest foragers -- portions of E. Brazil (highlands), enclaves around headwaters of Amazon Basin; basic strategy, defensive retreat from outsiders, has resulted in extermination. Include Siriono of Bolivia (Yuqui, a branch of these), ones that Holmberg studied, most well known, said to have small matrilineal bands, practiced couvade; Guayaki (Ache) of E. Paraguay, matrilineal bands of about 20, rarely stay longer than a day in any one place; Nambicuara of S. Mato Grosso (enclave in region of more complex groups. hunt, fish, practice some subsistence during rainy season, more stationary groups; Macu of area between main rivers, north of Amazon, nomadic hunt.-gatherer, fish, no canoes. Little info on any of them

d. Aquatic nomads, canoe people in swampy areas- Guato of upper Paraguay River, now extinct; Yaruro, Orinoco tributaries, emphasis on fish, river animals; grow some maize now, semi-nomadic, local units, matrilineal/matrilocal families.

2. NONLITERATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETIES: begin with the domestication of plants and animals (i.e., the Neolithic Revolution, occurred independently in at least 7 different regions around the world, earliest estimates, about 12,000 - 15,000 B.P.). Sedentary populations (100-500 per community not unusual, may be up to 1000+); family forms more diverse, often extended; larger kin groups are the key basis of social organization; beginnings of specialization (e.g., crafts) and the development of the concept of property (emphasis on use rights to kin group holdings); polygyny becomes important in some horticultural societies wherein women do most of subsistence work; division of labor by gender becomes more pronounced with the beginnings of ascribed statuses present; most matrilineal societies are horticulturally based. They usually exhibit a tribal level of organization, although some are ranked "chiefdoms"; are independent from societies surrounding them, and are economically integrated through reciprocity and redistribution. Spread of capitalism (forces for "modernization" or "development") has lead to the incorporation of many of these societies within the larger state and the correspondent peasantization and/or proletarianization of such groups.

In South America, this classification is best exemplified by tropical forest horticulturalists; primary indigenous, indep. groups still present. Are characterized by slash & burn farming, riverine fishing and hunting. Basic settlement pattern, typically villages of 100-200 (some up to 1,000-2000 tho, along Amazon proper where resources permitted larger settlements); often one large circular communal hut (e.g., shabono, Yanomamo); larger settlements S. of Amazon often had central men's hut surrounded by huts w/ women & children (Mundurucu, N. Kayapo -- Xingu River area). Divide groups based on lang. and geography. Are 3 major widespread languages: (1) Arawakan --mostly N. of Amazon, most diversified culturally and in geog. distribution - includes Guana of Gran Chaco); (2) Cariban - N. of Amazon in general area of Guianas, known for pattern of warfare and cannibalism; (3) Tupian (Tupi-Guarani) - very widespread S. of Amazon, also characteristic of E. Brazil. Highlands (Shavante, Bororo, Tupi, Kaingang)

As is characteristic of T.F. societies, kinship is the major principle of organization with a predominance of patrilineal societies, pattern of male dominance expressed in ritual and social relations (men's houses); area is also famous for existence of couvade

3. PASTORAL SOCIETIES: usually nomadic (need for grazing lands) or semi-sedentary, larger population, tribal level of organization based on kin groups; achieved status with egalitarian emphasis may be present; economic forms of exchange usually emphasize reciprocity and redistribution; usually patrilineal with emphasis on activities of men; individual tribal groups may exhibit symbiotic relationships with surrounding sedentary farming (peasant) communities, and become more sedentary peasants. In S. America, herding (llama and alpaca, aborig., sheep & cattle afterwards) were combined w/ subsistence farming (maize, kidney beans, squash, chili peppers quinoa,white potato). Best example, Chilean Araucanians of S. Andes (includes 3 divisions -- Picunche (N), Mapuche (central), and Huilliche (S)). Mapuche developed a military & political organization. that enabled them to resist Spanish domination longer and more successfully than any Indians in Americas, avoided being absorbed within Spanish colonial encomienda system--subdued and placed on reservations, end of 19th century. Aboriginal pop. Estimated at 500,000-1,500,000. Now mostly intensive agriculturalists.

4. AGRICULTURAL SOCIETIES: traditionally different from horticultural societies in the use of the plow and knowledge of advanced farming techniques; increase in specialization; historical development of peasantry with onset of urbanization and emergence of the stratified (i.e., unequal access to resources and prestige) state; concept of private property (women viewed as property), with increasing ascribed and achieved status differences between families; development of the class system with extreme distinctions in status and power (peasants, subordinate rural cultivators used to support an urban state organization); non-kin based forms of association become important; women's visible role in subsistence activities declines, monogamy replaces polygamy, and patrilineal patriarchal family forms become more prevalent. Major mechanisms of economic exchange include reciprocity, redistribution and market exchange.

Summary Definition: A peasant society is a rural agricultural part-society whose members are villagers with their own strongly embedded sets of tradition who are simultaneously intricately tied economically, politically and socially to a larger urbanized society.

There are a number of characteristics peasants share: (a) transitional position between dispersed, isolated, self sufficient tribal communities --societies that are small scale, isolated, homogeneous, "traditional", self sufficient, subsistence oriented, w/ multiplex ties) and societies that exhibit full integration in market economies --large scale, heterogeneous societies, "modern", interdependent, participation in global market economy, and with emphasis on simplex ties/ role specialization); (b) partial participation in market economy w/ correspondent problems of risk in market particicipation vs preserving non-market basis of survival; (c) subordination, underdog position, domination/exploitation by outside larger society; (d) internal differentiation between peasants of diff. socio-economic status w/ correspondent possible exploitation. Second emphasis common to definitions of peasantry focuses on characteristics of the peasant farm household: (a) emphasis on farming; (b) significance of non-market criteria for land allocation; (c) emphasis on family labor; (d) emphasis on household production, non-profit orientation re: capital accumulation; (e) subsistence basis of livelihood. Peasants are locally oriented, tied to the land, particularistic, and politically defensive whereas proletariats are free of locality and land, sell their labor on the market, are universalistic and look to association on an international scale. According to Wolf, we can understand peasant societies best if we can look at the various ways in which they allocate their resources (above that which is the absolute minimum needed for survival, i.e. the caloric minima) in order to insure their survival. This is also a means for distinguishing among the wide variety of peasant types that exist because the way in which these socio-historically derived funds are manifested (in qualitative and quantitative terms) depends on the cultural context w/in which they are found. There are three general funds that concern peasants: (a) Replacement fund (R.F.) - the minimum above the caloric minima that the peasant needs in order to maintain his/her economic position, including equipment and materials needed for consumption and production; this is not necessarily based on practical conditions but depends on the socio-historical conditions present and the number of alternatives available. (b) Ceremonial fund (C.F.) - resources needed to insure social position within community as a "human being"; are surpluses in excess of R.F. needed for non-productive pursuits; is not determined totally by face to face relationships w/in community but also by external markets and relationships with larger society (L.S.), e.g., fiestas, rituals to maintain social position. (c) Fund of Rent (F.R.) - peasants' means of production are subject to superior forces (usually by larger society), are resources above caloric minima and R.F. that peasants must pay in form of rent, labor, money, (e.g., taxes) goes along w/ subordinate "underdog" position. Unlike the RF and CF, the FR is NOT a symmetrical exchange; it is an asymmetrical/vertical exchange, derived in part from peasants' lack of control over means of production; it is a major source of profit for the ruling group. F.R. is the most critical factor in analyzing peasant society and determining its variable characteristics; it is also less variable than the RF or CF and more closely tied to ecological characteristics, the means of production.

Characteristics of peasant societies/communities in S. America

While during aboriginal times, peasants were part of the irrigation civilizations of the Andes, major characteristics today are equally a result of colonial practices. System of encomienda (large land grants given to Spanish "hacendados", required tribute by peasants) and repartimiento (work levy system, community based, both resulted in corporate community organizations) used especially in Andean highlands. Primary examples are from Andes -- represented by Quechua/Quichua and Aymara speaking groups in Peru (about 50% of pop.-- 9 million + 60 nations in Peruvian Amazon w/ pop of 100,000) and Bolivia (majority of pop, 3 million & 1 million respectively; lowland, 30 nations, 150,000).

Usually (but not always) the primary identification of peasants is with the village (rather than the family, kin group or caste). Social control mechanisms within the community are frequently used to settle disputes (preserve harmony) and insure a sense of unity against the encroachment of the outside. The extent to which villagers will form corporate groups often depends on the normative force (attitudes of villagers coupled w/ traditions) and the state superstructure w/in which they operate. Wolf (1957, 1966: 86, 93) distinguishes the importance of two types of peasant community: the closed corporate community (MS-P-H); and the open peasant community (often characterized by MS/SS-D-H/V ties).

a. The closed/open corporate community - found in Middle America as well as the Andes. It is characterized by a number of features: (1) community rights and jurisdiction over the use of resources, strict restrictions on transfer to outsiders, communal land tenure; (2) restrictions on membership in community to those who are born and raised in the community, endogamous and territorially based; (3) forced participation in community religio-political activities, support of community Saints (L. Am.) and work projects for maintaining community facilities which help to redistribute wealth among members (is homogeneous in make-up w/ a strong emphasis on egalitarianism -- "we are all poor, equal and humble"); (4) closed to outsiders and outside influence -- fights off change and innovation as potential threats to internal order that it needs to maintain; (5) is characterized by a stable "traditional" (paleotechnic) technology using predominantly marginal lands. Historically it is the offspring of the dualization of society into a dominant entrepreneurial sector and a dominated sector of peasants; land available to peasants' subsistence was often limited so as to be able to use the community as a labor reserve; corporate community organization became an effective defensive strategy against the demands of the L.S. With encroachment of capitalistic markets (neotechnic order), community can't control impact of outside, increasing internal differentiation between peasants creates factionalization and results in the breakdown of the corporate organization and the inevitable demise of the corporate community. This, of course, is not always the case (problem of West. bias in interpreting the effects of modernization).

Bastien's study of Kaata, (subgrp of Qollahuaya Andeans) an Aymara community in Bolivian highlands just north of Lake Titicaca is a good example. Note emphasis given to rapport established w/ Carmen and Marcelino Yanahuaya, leaders (ie., pasado runakuna ) of community via participation in civil/religious hierarchy; significance of mountain metaphor which links and unites distant communities--keystone of Andean culture.

b. The open non-corporate peasant community - found throughout the Third World, differs from above in that: (1) there is no communal jurisdiction over the resource base; (2) membership in the community is unrestricted; and (3) wealth is not redistributed among members (heterogeneous in make-up, internal differentiation in socio-economic statuses present). In many cases, such communities are already participating in capitalist markets (w/ cash crops and wage labor) and the neotechnic order.