Life Of The Mundurucu In Brazil

The Mundurucu were located in the Brazilian area just below the equator. Their living conditions were primitive yet functional. They resided in small village communities of about 50-100 people. Each village consisted of several dwelling houses for women and young boys, and a men’s house which was inhabited by males of around 13 years or older. The dwellings were made up of a rectangular hut with walls made of tawari tree, roofs of palm thatch, and doors of bamboo. They had no windows, simply a small gap between the walls and roof that extended all the way around the hut. The men’s house, or eska, was very open having no walls, but a roof that extended from the ground up. The men slept in hammocks underneath the roof. In addition to their living quarters, a small, completely enclosed chamber called the karoko, was connected to the eska. This room was where the sacred instruments played only by the men were stored. The men’s house was always built on the outside circle of the village, while the dwellings were built around the inside. Several reasons exist for this setup. The women and children are kept warm in the chilly damp nights and safe in the inner circle of the village. The men being on the outside provides protection for the village and the openness of their house allows them to stay on guard for …show more content…
In our industrial culture today, many of the ways we obtain resources can be extremely harmful to the environment and can destroy future resources that we could have gained if we had gone about getting the first ones in a different way. The Mudurucu hunted the wildlife, but never eliminated or endangered it. They cut down the rainforest for their garden, but always left enough for it to grow back and be used again by future generations. This style of living, although simple, was a very efficient way to preserve their