PHYLLIS MORROW
University of Alaska Fairbanks
This paper explores relationships between women's actions (and their consequences) in traditionally told stories and direct moral instructions given to women. Central Yup'ik qulirat, like Inuit stories from other areas, include many images of women and women's lives. Stories feature girls who are disobedient, young women who are too particular about their choice of suitors, model women who save scraps of food and are mindful in their actions, and frightening women who bring about the destruction of entire communities. Such stories convey moral content and traditional knowledge indirectly - it is up to those who listen to make connections to their own lives. Women also learn from more direct traditional teachings and advice that apply to many aspects of their lives, from menstruation to childbirth, marriage to aging. Elders typically transmit these in the form of exhortations and warnings. The paper will focus on the women's concerns that emerge from traditional teachings and tales, and the ways that indirect and direct forms may complement or expand upon each other as women think about what they hear in relation to their experience.