Carving in a Jah Hut community : tradition in tension
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Date
1978-12
Authors
Couillard, Marie-Andree
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Universiti Sains Malaysia
Abstract
This thesis concerns itself with the changing community
of Kampung Kol, a Jah Hut village in Pahang, West Malaysia.
The data have been organised with specific reference to carving,
an activity which was introduced as a means of subsistence
twenty years ago. Carving was chosen as a focus because it
embodies the transformations occuring in the community. Some
of these changes are analysed in relation to the ideological
and socio-economic context. The thesis consists of an introduction,
two parts and a conclusion. The introduction has two
chapters while the two sections have three chapters each.
Chapter one is an attempt at locating the Jah Hut in their
historical-cultural context. It is done by presenting their
linguistic and cultural affiliations, as well as the recent
history of the village. Chapter two deals with the craft of
carving a It includes the technicalities of apprenticeship,
the process of carving, the tools and the woods used.
Chapter three aims at providing the religious background
so as to understand what is meant by a bes or illness-causing
spirit, since the majority of the carvings today reportedly
represent such beings. Chapter four offers a brief review of
the art of curing, with a description of the benisoy gelap,
the curing ceremony in which the sepili, or rough little effigies of the ces are usedG These serve to exorcise the illnesscausing
spirits from the body of the sick person. Chapter
five attempts to establish the extent to which there is a
relationship between the sepili and the modern carvings. It
also points out that both in the process of carving and in the
process of identifying the figures, there is a manipulation of
the oral tradition which brings about a tension between two
kinds of carvers. The first have been named orthodox carvers,
because they adhere more closely to the prescriptions of earlier
carvers, and the second are the unorthodox ones, who freely
create new spirits and new stories. The tension, however, is
symptomatic of changes occuring at a deeper level in the community.
These changes are described in Part Two, in the context of the
socio-economic significance of carving.
Description
Keywords
Community of Kampung Kol