The Inuit of Greenland: Doing Area Studies on the Compromise between Reciprocity and Utility

Abstract

It has been pointed out that the concept of the relationship between humans and nature held by Greenlands Inuit, in comparison with Alaska and Canada, contains a strong utilitarian perception that seeks to maximize, and which exists in compromise with, a reciprocal attitude towards nature. However, almost no work has been done to unravel the process in which, so to speak, such a mixture was created. This paper summarizes the joint research that posed the question why such a relationship between humans and nature, which is a compromise between reciprocity and utilitarianism, was formed. We focused our attention on three factors that have been addressed in previous research only partially and have not been examined thoroughly enough: A. fusion with Christianity, B. the processes of modernization and secularization, and C. the cultural and social role of elders in the Inuit society.

??
???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????/???????????????????????????????3???????????????