Adam Fertig
Dr. Krishnan
Honors Colloquium
20 February 2017
Inuit: The Culture in the Cold The Arctic circle is a frozen tundra and has some of the harshest living conditions in the world. However, the extreme cold, and never ending snow and ice does not stop the Inuit from living there. The Inuit are offered mistaken for Eskimos. They are a migratory culture, moving around to survive. The Inuit are a group of people whose culture is shaped and changed around the goal of surviving the harsh conditions of the northern parts of North America. The environment in which the Inuit live is in Alaska, Northern Canada, and Greenland. The temperatures here are very cold. The average temperature in the winter months is -30 degrees Fahrenheit and 37-54 …show more content…
Like the saying goes, “It takes a village to raise a child.” The elders also felt they had another responsibility to keep the village safe. “If hunger and natural disasters hit the settlement, it was expected that the elderly would 'go walkabout' and surrender their lives to the elements. It was important not to be a burden on the rest of the community” ("The Inuit's view of life – traditions of the Inuit culture."). The Inuit also did not believe in property rights. They had a “what is mine is yours” mentality. Everything besides clothing and hunting gear was shared. There is also little class structure in the Inuit culture. Some people had higher status, but they were not superior. Shaman or Angakoks were able to control the spirits, so this gave them more power. Also men who are good at hunting and fishing held higher status. Where as women who were fertile and could sow had higher status. The believe in bilateral kinship relations, which means both relatives on the father and mother’s side were …show more content…
Like most cultures they have become more modern. Their modes of transportations have changed from dog sled, and hand built boats to ATVs and snowmobiles. Many of them don't even live in igloos anymore, they live in houses. Their diets have even changed. Before they mainly only ate meat, but now they have begun eating food bought from a store. Most Inuit still eat traditionally, the food is just bought instead of caught. With the introduction of hunting laws this changed their way of life some. The hunting laws in Canada are less strict for Inuit, there are still limits but less than the average Canadian ("Modern VS Traditional Life."). They even buy their clothes in stores now instead of making them. They have even adopted televisions and video games into their lives. Even the child go to schools within their communities now. Not all Inuit have changed their way of life as dramatically as others, but the changes can be clearly
Dr. Krishnan
Honors Colloquium
20 February 2017
Inuit: The Culture in the Cold The Arctic circle is a frozen tundra and has some of the harshest living conditions in the world. However, the extreme cold, and never ending snow and ice does not stop the Inuit from living there. The Inuit are offered mistaken for Eskimos. They are a migratory culture, moving around to survive. The Inuit are a group of people whose culture is shaped and changed around the goal of surviving the harsh conditions of the northern parts of North America. The environment in which the Inuit live is in Alaska, Northern Canada, and Greenland. The temperatures here are very cold. The average temperature in the winter months is -30 degrees Fahrenheit and 37-54 …show more content…
Like the saying goes, “It takes a village to raise a child.” The elders also felt they had another responsibility to keep the village safe. “If hunger and natural disasters hit the settlement, it was expected that the elderly would 'go walkabout' and surrender their lives to the elements. It was important not to be a burden on the rest of the community” ("The Inuit's view of life – traditions of the Inuit culture."). The Inuit also did not believe in property rights. They had a “what is mine is yours” mentality. Everything besides clothing and hunting gear was shared. There is also little class structure in the Inuit culture. Some people had higher status, but they were not superior. Shaman or Angakoks were able to control the spirits, so this gave them more power. Also men who are good at hunting and fishing held higher status. Where as women who were fertile and could sow had higher status. The believe in bilateral kinship relations, which means both relatives on the father and mother’s side were …show more content…
Like most cultures they have become more modern. Their modes of transportations have changed from dog sled, and hand built boats to ATVs and snowmobiles. Many of them don't even live in igloos anymore, they live in houses. Their diets have even changed. Before they mainly only ate meat, but now they have begun eating food bought from a store. Most Inuit still eat traditionally, the food is just bought instead of caught. With the introduction of hunting laws this changed their way of life some. The hunting laws in Canada are less strict for Inuit, there are still limits but less than the average Canadian ("Modern VS Traditional Life."). They even buy their clothes in stores now instead of making them. They have even adopted televisions and video games into their lives. Even the child go to schools within their communities now. Not all Inuit have changed their way of life as dramatically as others, but the changes can be clearly