[thechat] Re: Potlatch, was: 4 or 5 pounds of meat each

[Andrew Forsberg]

>"It produced 400 to 500 pounds of meat shared by more than 100 people a few
>days later in Nenana."
>
>When I'm REAL hungry (like that time I went from '79 to '82 without eating)
>I could maybe eat two pounds of meat. But 4 to 5? How long IS a potlatch?

I was kinda impressed too. Perhaps the weight was of the animal
itself? not the meat -- granted they do say 500 pounds of meat.

It's a pity the idea of a potlatch has fallen out of favour in the
modern western world. Hosts and parasites are such a lovely source of
analogy. Is anyone else a fan of Michel Serres? I think I've re-read
'Rome: The book of foundations' about 4 times. His book 'The
Parasite' saved me from a potentially dull and uninspiring undergrad
degree.


Cheers
Andrew

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