Feasts: Archaeological and Ethnographic Pespectives on Food, Politics, and Power

4. Of Feasting and Value: Enga Feasts in a Historical Perspective (Papua New Guinea)

4 Of FEASTING AND VALUE ENGA FEASTS IN A HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE (PAPUA NEW GUINEA) Polly Wiessner Papua New Guinea is at once the land of feasting and the land of political intrigtle ,1 and the two are intertwined. VirtuaJly every event of importance is accompanied by feasting. and during feasts an array of strategies are played out. The strong political orientation of Papua New Guinea societies no doubt contributes to the fact that over 800 different languages are spoken in this small island nation of some three and a half million inhabitants. A meaningful classification of feasts by the sociaL economic. or political designs they entertain is difficult to frame, particularly for the western highlands of Papua New Guinea where many personal or group projects unfold under the umbrella of feasting, no matter what the proclaimed purpose of the event. Nonetheless. since feasting is a composite event in which certain conditions. so115 Polly W1Essner cial behaviors, and provisioning activities coalesce to form the final occasion, a breakdown of feasts by their components is useful for understanding when and why certain strategies are deployed. Here I will briefly outline the essential components of feasting. suggest some possible archaeological correlates of each, and mention some of the social and political strategies they facilitate. Then. drawing on an ethnohistorical study of feasting and exchange among the Enga of highland Papua New Guinea, rwill outline the complementary role of secular and sacred feasting in the development of the great ceremonial exchange networks of Enga and go on to tocus on the role of feasting in the construction of the value and meaning of things. The Enga case illustrates: (I) how material goods are differentially valued in the context of feasting; (2) how the natural properties of things valued affects the course of production and competition; and (3) how cultural constructions of value are constantly tested against the realities of the surrounding world. When contradictions occur. as they did in Enga. feasting can be called on to revalue goods and redirect the course of change. COMPONENTS OF FEASTING Of what is feasting composed? First, feasting requires the aggregation of people. Aggregation in and of itself does not require feasting, though it is greatly facilitated by it; if no food is available. crowds must disperse before long. Aggregation should be detectable in the archaeological record. for example through the presence of unusually large sites or a diversity of styles in artifacts found at a given site. Second, feasting involves food sharing and food distribution. Food sharing appears to have its roots in the parent-child relationship and thus can be a way of expressing affection and extending familial behavior ro distant or non-kin in order to bond larger groups (Eibl-Eibesfeldt 1989). By contrast. food distribution. which often requires returns at a later date, creates temporary imbalance berween donors and recipients and permits the construction of inequality. Food sharing and food distribution during feasting may be inferred in the archaeological record from faunal distribution or the collection of food remains ii'om a broad catchment area at one place. Sharing is more likely to leave remains at the site than food distribution. where a good portion of the food may be carried away from the distribution site. Third. most feasts are held for a specific occasion: w appease ancestors. initiate youth, marry. bury the dead. pay compensation, or assemble a labor force. The goal of feasts may be inferred from the presence of certain archaeological features or artifacts. Fourth, feasting usually involves some form of display. whether this is display of food. objects. individuals. or groups. Artifacts or structures constructed fOr display include special vessels. platforms. graves, or houses. 116 ENGA FEASTS IN A HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE Fifth, and very importantly, feasting requires abundance. A party where the food does not go round or runs out is not a good party. Abundance is perhaps the single most important factor in determining which strategies can be played out during a feast. Mere sufficiency permits a limited array of strategies: abundance furnishes many more. [n foraging societies and simple horticultural societies, conditions of abundance may be difficult to achieve or to time, so thai feasts take place when food is available, constraining political strategies. Depending on what is consumed in a feast or how food is presented, abundance may be more or less archaeologically visible. Finally, since feasts are about the consumption of abundance, they place...