Simet, Jacob L
Description
The subject of this thesis is the 'persistence of tabu
(shell-money)' among the Tolai of New Britain. This tabu is
made from little shells of a family (Nassarius) which are
abundant in the seas of Indo-China and the Pacific.
Before the arrival of Europeans on the Gazelle Peninsula,
the Tolai acquired these shells from distant places and
manufactured them into tabu. The shells were strung onto
strips of rattan. These strips were joined into strings and
then packed into coils or baskets....[Show more] The express purpose of
tabu in the coils or baskets was ritual exchanges. At some
ceremonies, this tabu was distributed in small amounts to
everyone who attended. These small pieces then became the
'monetary' tabu. They circulated for a short while as
'money' but then they were 'trapped' and taken out of
circulation by many individuals, who hoarded them away
again in coils or baskets for future rituals.
Today the Tolai still acquire the shells from distant
places and bring them to the Gazelle Peninsula for
manufacture into tabu and it is still important to the
cultural life of the Tolai. It continues to perform a
monetary role, but only to a lesser degree due to the
introduction of modern cash. The importance of tabu for the
Tolai today lies in its 'ritual' role.
As a 'ritual object', tabu embodies many cultural 'desires' and 'ideals' and in this sense represents 'human society'
itself. It is used in ritual as a 'dominant symbol' with
many layers of meanings. These meanings are activated in
presentations. In each presentation, a different meaning or
set of meanings is activated. The meanings activated in
these presentations become statements. These statements
express desires, intents and emotions. Many of these
desires, intents and emotions relate to three cultural
values: property ownership, kinship and identity. The
statements cannot be uttered by word of mouth because they
are socially disruptive, undesirable, humiliating and even
dangerous (when they relate to spirits). They can only be
made through the ritual presentation of tabu. In this sense
tabu is a medium of communication about matters which are
culturally Tolai and this is an important factor in the
persistence of tabu today.
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