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Knowledge, Power, and the Individual in Subarctic Hunting Societies
Author(s) -
Ridington Robin
Publication year - 1988
Publication title -
american anthropologist
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.51
H-Index - 85
eISSN - 1548-1433
pISSN - 0002-7294
DOI - 10.1525/aa.1988.90.1.02a00070
Subject(s) - subarctic climate , autonomy , ethnography , power (physics) , sociology , environmental ethics , social psychology , psychology , anthropology , geography , political science , archaeology , law , philosophy , physics , quantum mechanics
Northern Athapaskan and Algonquian hunting people balance individual autonomy and the interdependence of community living. For many, knowledge and personal autonomy represent personal power. This article argues that culturally constructed knowledge both empowers and informs subarctic people. Their knowledge may be viewed as a form of social theory. A survey of the literature on subarctic ethnography suggests that social scientists have informed and empowered their own theoretical understanding through an understanding of the native thoughtworld.