Violence in the Yanomamo Community

In the Yanomamo culture, killing is a common occurrence in the villages, and the likelihood is high that one will know a murder victim. The rules and consequences, as different as they may seem, also share similarities with the Western culture.  For the Yanomamo, killing often stems from women, jealousy, blood revenge, and infidelity.  These are also very similar catalysts in the Western culture as many battles have stemmed from such issues.  In the Yanomamo community, when kinsmen are killed revenge will then be sought, which leaves many in the killers community at risk as the raids often harm whomever they come into contact with. The consequences of killing however differ as the Yanomamo’s gain a fierce reputation if they quickly retaliate, often triumph in marriage and reproduction, and deter future violence. For the Western culture, the consequences of murder are imprisonment, loss of privileges, and a negative reputation.

The process of revenge killings includes the leader of the village determining if such revenge should be sought. If so, an attack consisting of 10 to 20 men will set out to raid the killer’s community, which often takes several days to get there.  Prior to such raid however women will eat the ashes of the murdered individual in order to help strengthen the efforts of the one’s performing the raid. After the killings are complete, the killer then performs a Yanomamo ritual known as the Unokaimou, which helps to protect the individual from supernatural harm.  Through these raids many lives are lost. Anyone in the village can be attacked and most men that are killed are killed in these raids. For those that assume the Unokais status, others will know who they are; they are looked at in a positive manner for their tendency to be violent and forceful. The Unokais in comparison to the non-unokais find more success in reproduction and marriage as they are better able to find mates.  This however could be due to their reputation and ability to force another into marriage.  As one can see, gaining the status of a Unokais comes with far greater benefits than those of the non-unokais, therefore men often choose this route over the other.

For those in the Yanomamo culture, kinship is the central force of all things that exist; when this is compromised, revenge killings then take place. Political structure, social status, and marriage and reproduction all directly correspond to kinship.  The political structure is set up to have a leader of the village who ultimately decides if revenge killings are to take place.  These leaders often have many kinsmen in their village as a result of previous marriages between others, which then lends itself to the likelihood that ones kin will be killed and revenge will be sought. For the Yanomamo, social status changes as a result of becoming known as a Unokais.  They are looked at as fierce and brutal who will quickly seek revenge for attacking a kinsmen.  On the opposite end of the spectrum, non-unokais are looked at as cowards who do not have the strength to perform a raid to seek revenge. As far as marriage and reproduction is concerned, their new social status as a Unokais helps to further their success in these areas.  Men are able to find mates more so than non-unokais, however as mentioned earlier, it is most likely because of their reputation and ability to take one by force.  Reproduction for the Unokais is then almost double than those non-unokais, which also stems from their ability to find mates. For the Yanomamo, kinship is the main source for all things connected to revenge killings.  In each village, the likelihood of one’s kin being killed is high, which leads to the eventuality of revenge being sought.

Although the act of killing is often something that someone does not set out to do nor want to do, it doesn’t take away from the fact that it happens.  Many killers that have killed will most likely say that they didn’t want to do it, but were compelled for some reason or another.  This alone shows how necessary laws are in order to properly handle these situations in a swift and just way.  Without such laws, our political system would be backlogged by individual case reviews and individual consequences.  Without a general system to handle such acts, we would see upheaval in the community as many would interpret some cases to be treated better than others.  Having set laws that handle situations such as killings helps to create a balanced system by ensuring that there are set guidelines as to how an issue will be decided.