Blood Revenge and Kinship

The Yanomamo rules regarding killing are very complicated. It does differ from western culture but only in general. The Yanomamo regard killing as a more political act than anything. For example, it mirrors  the western culture thought of a deterrent system of capitol punishment. Where it differs is when the killings that the Yanomamo commit raise their stature of the individual within the community. In western culture being known for killing someone does not usually raise the stature of the individual. In the Yanomamo, being Unokais, is someone who is very respected and with that respect they are able to have their choice of mates.

   The Yanomamo are very spiritual and ceremonial in the act of revenge killings. When a headman had been killed by a raiding party, the body was made into ashes and stored in tiny gourds. The ashes would be consumed by the women in the village and this was done in a ceremony to build their men into frenzy. The raiding party of the Yanomamo is small and is made up of all men. The raiding parties target village is always about a four day walk from their village. The eve of the attack, the men make an effigy of the warrior they want to kill. However, the men usually end up killing whoever they see first. Whatever warrior takes part in the killing must go back and take part in a ritual cleansing (Unokaimou).

    The main benefits of becoming Unokais in the Yanomamo are increasing your stature within the community. The Unokais are less likely to have other villagers solicit their wives. In a kinship of Unokais they are less likely to be a victim of abuse, or to be looked down upon. The non-Unokais do not have the same privileges as the Unokais of the village. Although they do not participate in violence, they are however subjected to have their wives or women in the family have unwanted advances by Unokais. Being non-unokais sometimes will bring mockery and belittlement from other tribesman.

 To participate in revenge killings shows other members of the tribe that the individual is willing to fight for his kinsman and for his rights. This person is elevated within the society as a person who must be respected. A tribe that is known for revenge killings will less likely have any other tribe try to attack them. They are able to hold order through there reputations of killings. The Yanomamo is a transient community, their membership changes because of migration, emigration, and fissioning. Unokais who were once tribal members could find themselves in opposing villages. Yanomama revenge raids can be seen as prominent men inciting killing raids for their own personal benefit rather than an act of kinship honor. The kinship dynamic in Yanomamo villages contain paternal decent groups. There are male and female of all ages that are all related through their father’s line. These members must find marriage partners through other paternal line, mainly in their own village. The most prominent men in the tribe know as "Pata" (Big Ones), usually have polygynous marriage. They can have a half a dozen wives and many children.

   We need rules and laws in any society for it to function. Any given society can have its own laws that govern them, depending on their certain situation. There however, should be laws that help those that can't protect themselves or are forced to participate in actions which they do not find moral to just protect themselves and their family. In the article, Jacoby's study it mentions an interesting point. The article says, “even in societies with law and formal judicial systems and that justice everywhere has an undeniable element of retribution". With that, the Yanomamo's reaction to revenge does not seem too far away from our system; the only difference is that members of the community are responsible for carrying out justice. The laws that we have in place today help us govern ourselves without individual action of justice. Laws are very important in any society to establish order, if justice is sought out by individuals, like the Yanomamo, it will be a never ending cycle of individuals seeking revenge.