Reading Notes: Eskimo Folk-Tales, Part B

(Eskimo Family from World Atlas)

Hi guys!

So these notes will be about the Eskimo Folk-Tales, part B. Just as an overview of all of the stories, they are fairly violent. I was actually shocked at how many people died. There were many gruesome stories about killing women, men, and eating people. Compared to part A this was different, but even part A had some violence.

One story that really shocked me was The Wife Who Lied. Link Here

....um..... okay.... buckle up because this one is rough

So, a woman was raised by a tribe of people who eat other people, but she was taken away to be a wife at a young age. Like she left the people eaters, got a new mans, and a big happy family. I mean I would be grateful as heck at this point, but she was not. She wanted to go home.

Obviously, the only way to go home is to start a war. She put mittens on her feet and went back home so they believed she had not been taken care of. Her home tribe got really mad at her husband's tribe. So, when all the men left for hunting her home tribe went and killed all the women except three that hid. The home tribe stuck the dead women's bodies through long poles in the ground.

At this point I was shook.....like what even. How common was this? Anyways, the end is pretty simple and just as gruesome. The husband's tribe finds out that the wife lied and said she was being mistreated. They started a war and then killed the wife. Her death was pretty gruesome. If you are curious I suggest reading the story.

Moral of the story: DO NOT LIE

I will not be retelling this story. If I did, I would try to make it less violent for sure!

Bibliography:

Eskimo Folk-Tales, Part B by Knud Rasmussen. Retrieved from Mythology and Folklore UN-Textbook