While watching this video, I could not help but relate it to the subsistence patterns and through this; I will incorporate the discussion of foragers. Nanook used what he killed and he took care of his family, he built them an igloo and protected them as a father would. He harvested fish and hunted a small seal to feed his family and would teach his children how to fish with a pole, he used a plain stick, and he did not have any fabric or anything on the pole. He would also kill their food with his teeth and was very humble in that way. The second cultural term that I found very noticeable in this silent film is cultural adaptation, he raised his children to adapt to the type of environment that they are raised in and Nanook shows how to be efficient. Through cultural adaptation, he is exploiting resources to be more efficient and through this film, it is showing his adaptation to his environment and the type of lifestyle in which he is living in. Through my personal views of this movie, I can see where the stereotype of Eskimo comes from. I really enjoyed the film however; I saw that there was a division in gender roles where the mom takes care of the children while the father makes the home or catches the food. I feel bad for them because if food is scarce, there is not much that the parents can do and some eventually die from lack of food. I thought it was so cool how Nanook made a window out of a sheet of ice and used snow to reflect the sun into the home. I wish I were as creative as Nanook and Nyla. However, I will never chew my husband’s boots to warm them up for him; I may love him but that will never happen.
Director: Robert J. Flaherty; Filmed: Arctic Circle;
Impact: first praised film in the cinematographic history and impacted the perspective of the Great White Snow
Impact: first praised film in the cinematographic history and impacted the perspective of the Great White Snow