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Anthropos Institut
Anthropos Institut
Review
Author(s): Christine Paulsen
Review by: Christine Paulsen
Source: Anthropos, Bd. 98, H. 1. (2003), pp. 246-247
Published by: Anthropos Institut
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/40466180
Accessed: 24-10-2015 17:11 UTC
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246 Rezensionen
98.2003
Anthropos
This content downloaded from 141.216.78.40 on Sat, 24 Oct 2015 17:11:19 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
Rezensionen 247
ErklrtesAnliegendes Verfassersist es, mit sei- consistentwitha viewthatwarwillbe absentamongan-
nemWerk"Vorurteile frodergegenbestimmte Stoffe cientunsegmented foragers, although spontaneous group
bzw. Pflanzenund v. a. gegenfremdeKulturenund violencecouldoccurin situations of unusualresource
ihrekulturintegrierenden
Mittelabzubauen",sowie"bei andpopulation concentration.
den Lesernein Interessezu wecken,sich nhermit "WarlessSocietiesandtheOriginofWar"is an ex-
fremden Kulturen zu beschftigen
und sich auf deren ercisein the"traditional" anthropology of war,synthe-
Denkweiseneinzulassen"(10). Vermutlich drftedie sizingold-time social structural (ch. 2) and ecological
Lektredes Buches,wennberhaupt, hchstens zum (ch. 3) approaches.Kelly places more faiththanI
Konsumvon "Halluzinogenen fremder Kulturen" ani- would in the accuracyof HRAF statistical codings.
mieren,wobeiJanzing derMeinungist,diesersei eine He givesnotevena nod to recentefforts to interpret
Formdes "interkulturellen
Austauschs" undtrage"zu collectiveviolenceas symbolic performance. His tight
einemgewisseninterkulturellenVerstndnisbei" (88). arguments vary from to
heavilyempirical logically
manalleindie Auswirkungen
Dies wird,betrachtet des deductive to theoretically speculative. Examples:Kelly
Drogentourismus,die derAutoran andererStelleselbst carefullypresents ethnographic reports on varioustypes
erwhnt(96, 101),wohleinfrommer Wunschbleiben. of interpersonal violencein non- warmakingsocieties,
ChristinePaulsen in theprocessilluminating theissue of violenceand
gender,andrefuting thecommonly expressedassump-
tionthatin simplersocieties,menfightoverwomen
Kelly,RaymondC: WarlessSocietiesandtheOr- and/or reproductive success.His long,logicaldiscussion
igin of War. Ann Arbor:The University of Michi- oftheimplications offoodstoragerestson a coupleof
gan Press,2000. 192 pp. ISBN 0-472-06738-9. Price: examples,and givesthisfactora military significance
$ 19.95 thatdoes notseemsupportable frommyownreadings.
The thesisof thisslimbutdenselypackedbookis His "literal"interpretation of rockpaintings as records
thatwar has clearcharacteristics whichdistinguish it of actualmilitary encounters, whileconsistent withhis
from otherforms oflethalviolencesuchas homicide and theory, willnotlikelypersuadescholarswhostudysuch
capitalpunishment, primarilythatofthesubstitutability graphics.
of intendedvictims,and groupliabilityfor offense Morecentrally forhis argument, he showsconvinc-
and groupresponsibility forrevenge.These features, ingly,empirically, that"unsegmented foragers" lackthe
and war,are typically (notuniversally) absentin "un- conceptand practiceof revengebeyondthe closest
segmented" foraging societies,characterized by social individual involved, butpresents littleevidencethatcol-
organization limitedto familyand bilateralkindreds, lectiverevengeactuallypowerscontinuous conflicts-
oftenexogamousmarriage without marriage payments, thatitis themotor ofwar- inothersocieties. Thereis an
mobility and fluxin local groupcomposition, and low if-then method here,assuming thatactionsmechanically
population density.Comparative ethnographic statistics, followoutof broadfeatures of socialstructure, a view
case studies,
archaeological data,andtheory all indicate probablyinfluenced by Kelly's previousbook on the
thatwardevelopedoutofa largely warlessworldwithin arch-segmental warriors, theNuer.My own readings,
thepast10,000yearsor so. in contrast, regularly showstructure bentor bypassed
The book has fourchapters, interlinked essays on by strategizing agents, and that revengeis an idiom,
specifictopics.Chapter1 is focusedon issuesraisedby regularly invokedbut onlyexceptionally sufficient to
Fabbro's 1978 article,and to a lesserextentKnauft's precipitate or adequately explainan attack.
1988piece,on peacefulsocieties.Carefully siftingthe Another areaofdisagreement is regarding theimpact
ethnographic reports, Kellydemonstrates thatsocieties ofWestern contact onindigenous warfare. Kellydirectly
withoutwar are not necessarily withoutinterperson-addressesthisissue regarding theAndamanIslanders,
al violence,thatdifferent sortsof violenceare not andrejectstheidea thattheir"warlike" character could
present or absent together. Chapter 2 is about social be attributed to exogenous factors. Instead, he invokes
structure,sortingout reportsof foragersand a few concentrated foraging resources, a comparatively high
othersbycharacteristics andcorrelates of unsegmentedpopulation density, and,as islanders, circumscription.
organization, considering exceptions, and establishing Certainly suchconditions cancontribute toorevencause
thecentral pointthata certain kindofsocietygravitates war.Buthisdismissalofcontactfactors is theoretically
to avoidance,reconciliation, or at mostindividualized naive,restricted to therejectedpossibility thatdiffer-
but
killing, not war. Chapter 3 is about a "transitional" ences in depopulation due to introduced disease might
case,theAndaman Islanders,unsegmented foragers,but have unbalancedpopulations and resources.The fact
seemingly war-prone. KellyarguesthatcharacteristicsthatAndamanpeoplewerehostileearlyon to visitors
of thepopulation's relationship to its naturalenviron- fromthesea does notprecludethatearlierWestern or
mentled to spontaneous indiscriminate violenceover local sea-travelers taughtthemto fear.For me, what
trespassbetweenBea and Jarawatribes,and limited jumpsoutfromtheincludedhistorical quotations is the
violencebetweenlocalgroupswithin a tribe, butwhich questforWestern goods, and the differential distribution
endedwithreconciliations. Chapter4 takeshis devel- ofWestern favor.Descriptions of fighting betweenBea
opedtheoretical perspectivetothearchaeological record andJarawagroupsfallsquarelywithin established pat-
on interpersonal violence,arguingthattheevidenceis ternsoftribalzonerivalries, whileKelly'sinterpretation
98.2003
Anthropos
This content downloaded from 141.216.78.40 on Sat, 24 Oct 2015 17:11:19 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions