1 THE CURTAIN WITHIN: THE MANAGEMENT OF SOCIAL AND SYMBOLIC CLASSIFICATION AMONG THE MASSET HAIDA Marianne Boel scher M.A., Georg - August - Universitat Gottingen, 1978 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology @ Marianne Boelscher 1985 Simon Fraser University April 1985 All rights reserved. This thesis may not be reproduced in whole or in part, by photocopy or other means, without permission of the author. APPROVAL NAME : Marianne Bbl scher (Boei scher) DEGREE : Doctor of Phi 1 osophy TITLE OF THESIS: The Curtain Within: The Management of Social and Symbolic Classification among the Masset Haida EXAMINING COMMITTEE: Chairperson: Gary Teeple ARY LEE STEARNS 1SENIOR SUPERVISOR IAN WHITAKER NOEL DYCK WILLIAM W. ELMENDORF EXTERNAL EXAMINER PROFESSOR EMERITUS UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN, MADISON DATE APPROVED : 1/f/fd' PARTIAL COPYRIGHT LICENSE I I hereby grant to Simon Fraser University the right to lend my thesis, project or extended essay (the title of which is shown below) to users of the Simon Fraser University Library, and to make partial or single copies only for such users or in response to a request from the library of any other university, or other educational institution, on its own behalf or for one of its users. I further agree that permission for multiple copying of this work for scholarly purposes may be granted by me or the Dean of Graduate Studies. It is understood that copying or publication of this work for financial gain shall not be a1 lowed without my written permission. Title of Thesis/Project/Extended Essay The Curtain Wlthin: The Management of Soclal and Symbolic Classlflcation among the Masset Haida Author: (signature) Marianne Boel scher April 2, 1985 (date) I ABSTRACT : Title of Dissertation: THE CURTAIN WITHIN: THE MANAGEMENT OF SOCIAL AND SYMBOLIC CLASSIFICATION AMONG THE MASSET HAIDA The Haida conceive of their own social and mythical worlds as ambiguous, as having more than one reality, hence open to more than one interpretation. Accordingly, the symbols of social relationships, and those of the rapport with the natural and supernatural world are con- tinuously renegotiated and mani pul ated in social discourse, used for social and political ends in negotiating legitimacy over status and property ownership. Using the theoretical models of action theory and practice theory, this thesis deals with the management of traditional meanings among the Masset Haida. It is based on data collected, mainly through participant -1 observation and interviewing, during 23 months of fieldwork with the Nasset Haida in 1979-1981, and on the evaluation of published ethnographic and ethnohi storical sources on the Haida . The traditional values of Haida society and the social action surrounding them are analysed as centering around the organization into matrimoieties and matrilineages; individual rank operating within the J i -- - -" neaqs a set of kinship categories invoking group membershi p and status as we1 1 as complementary fi1 iation; marriage "rules"- creating d alliances with other ups; andestateof the 1ineages, in- particular names and totemic crests,The rhetoric surrounding group membership and boundaries, rank euphemized as "iespect", kinship I categories, marital alliancesj names and crests, carries conscious sy~b~!sc load. In this context it is shown that the meanings of the "rules" and classificatory schemes associated with them which are cited in public discourse cannot be understood in terms of their internal logic alone. Instead, their flux and conscious mu1 ti plicity of meaning can be grasped only ifseen in connection with the social processes involved in their production. The ambiguous and f1exi ble interpretation of the social world is - - ---- --- -_I_ shown to be parallel to and conceptually connected with the mu1 tiple real ity of the mythical world. , the Trickster-Transformer , stands --C---A..-. I...----- - --as ~~sr-fQI?.&tllr-aoral maroinalitv. I40re,over, the idea of transformations between animal, human and supernatural being states is connected to the logic and practices of sorcery, which again involve human agency. To Naani Emma and to Tcinni Adam "Adjii hlngee uu yaats gingaan uu eidanguee. Dal ang 7isdaahl uuu st' aa .ang damaan hl kwangwaan. Dalang st'aadee guudaans gyanuu dalang tlagee 7isaaguaa." (This world is the same as the edge of a knife. When you are walking, watch your steps. If you don't watch your steps, you will fall off the earth.) - Haida proverb "One of the great joys I have gotten out of the Northwest Coast is the feeling I have that these people looked at the world in a very different way than we do. They weren't bound by the silly feeling that it's impossible for two figures to occupy the same space at the same time." (Bill Reid 1975: 46). ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS From its initial conception t o the finished product, many people have he1 ped in the preparation and writing of this thesis, whom I would like to acknowledge at this point: For financi a1 support between 1978 and 1982, I thank the Canadian Department of External Affairs for providing me with the Government of Canada Award for Foreign Nationals. The award permitted me to come to Canada and pursue my doctoral studies, and ultimately made this disserta- tion possible. Simon Fraser University awarded me the President's Research Grant Stipend during the fall of 1979. Thanks are also due to R. C. Brown, Dean of Arts, for helping out with some travel funds during field-research. I must thank my parents, Anna and Bernhard B& scher, for their finan- cial and emotional support throughout my years of graduate school and r'esearch. They will be pleased to finally see this finished product. Warm thanks are a1 so due to my husband, Ron, for his companionship during the final part of fie1d-work, and for his to1 erance and practical he1 p during the long process of writing up. He also assisted in drawing the figures. In years to come, I will thank our daughter, Jessica, who has been my field-work companion since birth, for putting up with a desk that was taboo and a part- time mother. The person who, as academic advisor and friend, assisted most of all in the long and tedious process of writing this thesis is my Senior Supervisor, Dr. Mary Lee Stearns. She carefully criticized numerous drafts of chapters. I also wish to express warm appreciation for the many hours of discussion of my and her data; moreover, she generously made her own field-work data, in particular her demographic records, available to me; the latter formed the I basis for my analysis of Haida marriage in Chapter V, Her ow published works on the Haida have served as stimulation for my own writing. For his critical reading of my dissertation, and for encouragement during the final months, I also wish to thank Dr. Ian Whitaker, member of my Graduate advisory committee, and Dr. Steve Sharp, who read and commented on an earlier draft. It must be mentioned, however, that any errors of fact or interpretation in this work are my responsibility. For stimulating discussion and thoughts, I am indebted to the students and faculty attending the Sociology and Anthropology Department's Graduate Seminars, and to the students of my Northwest Coast Indian courses at Simon Fraser University and Car iboo Col 1ege. A lengthy and fruitful period of field-work which forms the basis of this thesis was spent at Masset on the Queen Charlotte Islands between the fall of 1979 and the fall of 1981. I wish to express my gratitude to Dan and Ursel Bowditch, formerly of New Masset, for providing room and board upon my arrival in the field. I also thank Dr. George Deagle, M.D., for sharing ideas and knowledge about the Haida people, and Dr. J. Enrico, Linguist, for some lessons in Haida. Finally, but most importantly, I would 1 ike to express my gratitude and appreciation to the Haida people of New and Old Masset for their hospi- tal ity, for sharing information and ideas, and for letting me become part of it all. Particular mention is due to the Masset Band Council which gave me permission to carry out my field-research. My most important teacher of the "old Haida ways" was Emma Matthews: Haw7aa for all the hours of story- telling, for remembering deceased loved ones and distantly related ones, and for accepting me into your household. I thank her daughters, Vesta I Helmer and Phyllis Bedard, for sharing food, knowledge and friendship, and for letting me become part of the wide network of kinship; and the many grand-children, old and young, for their hospitality, friendship and company. Warm thanks are also due to Adam Bell and the late Ruth Bell for welcoming me into their house, for sharing many stories, and for instruc- tion in speech-making. Their son, Lawrence Bell , spent many hours interpreting and translating terms and texts. Other people who provided information and hospital ity were: Emily and the late El i Abrahams; Mathias Abrahams; Victor and Primrose Adams; Kenneth Bell ; Frank and Sheila Coll ison; Alfred and Rose Davidson, Florence Davidson, Claude and Sarah Davidson; Amanda Edgars; Ethel and the late Peter Jones; Willie Russ Sr. and Flora Russ; Reno and June Russ; Ida Smith; Carrie Weir; Grace Wilson; Winnie and Ernie Ye1 tatzie. Haw7aa to you a1 1 . -X- TABLE OF I CONTENTS ~RELIMINARY PAGES -Page Approval Page ....................................................... ii Abstract ............................................................ iii Dedication .......................................................... v Quotation ........................................................... vi Acknowledgements .................................................... vii Table of Contents ................................................... x List of Tables ..................................................... xiii List of Figures .................................................... xiv Transcription of Haida Phonetics .................................... xv Kin Term Abbreviations and Symbols .................................. xvi CHAPTERS TI.