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Etudes
entireNorthwestCoastofCanada.Somescholarsassumethatvariationsinpot-
latchesinthispartofCanadaaretheresultofdifferencesinthesocialstructure,
includingrank,successionandmarriagepattern(ROSMAN,A.,RUBEL,P.,1971:
128).However,allpotlatchesemploycomplexsymbolismandincludetheirown
variationsofsinging,dancing,distributionofgoodsandhostingafeast.Eachso-
cietyalsonamespotlatchceremoniesdifferently;forinstance,theTlingitcallsit
Xu’ixwhileKwakiutlP!Esa.Formeansofcommunicationwiththewhitepeople,
theNativesadoptedtheChinookpatshatl(BECK,M.,1993:6).Thisessaywillbe
entirelydevotedtotheanalysisofKwakiutlpotlatching.Theceremony,which
wassubjectedtoexaminationbyvariousanthropologists,wasmisunderstoodby
manywhitepeopleand,therefore,misrepresentedinthecolonialtimes.
InthispaperIanalysethecolonialmisconceptionsofpotlatchesandcontrast
themwiththeNativeunderstandingofthisevent.Thus,boththecolonialand
postcolonialperspectivesarereferredtointhefirstpartofthisarticle.Theex-
aminationofthelegacyofthecolonialeraiscrucialtounderstandtheemergence
ofthefalseimageofpotlatching,whichwaspresentinCanadiancolonialdis-
courseandhadlittleincommonwiththeceremoniesheldbyKwakwaka’wakws.
Thepostcolonialanalysiswhichfollows,basedontwoinstancesoflifewriting,
showsthecontemporaryaboriginalwaysofre-readingandre-writingofthehis-
toryofCanadian-Nativerelations.
Beforeproceedingtothebodyoftheessay,themeaningofpotlatchshouldbe
explained.Potlatchingmeansgiving,andthispracticewasatonepointpresent
ontheentireCanadianNorthwestCoast.Understandingofthepotlatchiscom-
monlylimitedtoaceremonyoraformofcelebrationwhichisheldonspecific
occasionsandcommemoratessomeuniqueeventsinthelifeofapersonand
acommunity.Thecentralplaceisgiventothedistributionofgiftstoguests,as
paymentforwitnessingtheoccasion(WHEELER,D.,1975).However,thepotlatch
hasalwaysbeenfarmorethanjustaceremony,asithasalsobeenameansof
governance.Beforethewhitemenintroducedandimposedtheirlawsonthe
FirstNations,aboriginalsgovernedthemselvesthroughthesystemofpotlatch-
ing.Moreover,peoplehavebeenpotlatchingforcenturiestosaywhotheyare,
whotheirancestorswere,andwheretheycomefrom,aswellastoshowtheir
respectforalllivingthingsintheworld,andtheirrelationshiptotheland.Ad-
ditionally,potlatchwasalsoaverypowerfuleventduringwhichthespiritworld
wasreflectedintheformsofclancrests(MILLER,B.,2010).E.RichardAtleo,
theHereditoryChiefofAhousaht,whilereferringtothedistributionofgifts,de-
finedpotlatchasalife-givingconceptofgenerosity.Generosity,hesays,equals
life,whilenotgivingissynonymouswithdeath.Moreover,heclaimsthatthe
ceremonyisallaboutbalance,becausewhenyougivesomethingyouknowthat
inthefutureyouwillalsoreceiveagift(ATLEO,Ei,2009)i
