Emic vs. Etic Perspective

This week the discussion was based on three prompt questions asking about thoughts on Adam Gaudry’s “Metis-ization of Canada,” the exploration of a metaphor or character from Mesoamerican mythology, and a current world scenario with arguing etic and epic perspectives.

Answering the first question, the students explained that the interesting thing to them in the article, “Metis-ization of Canada” was that it was written from an emic perspective as Adam Gaudry is Metis, and that he is opposing the two etic perspectives presented by Jenifer Reid and John Ralston Saul on the subject of Louis Riel. They discuss how this makes the article an interesting read because Gaudry demonstrates how the etic perspectives are historically inaccurate and quite biased, and are an idealization according to the etic perspective rather than fact. They discuss that the take away from the article can be how important the emic perspective is in understanding a group of people and in helping to prevent or expose inconsistencies in history when it is written by etic writers. One student in response to the other pointed out that Gaudry favoured James Tully’s book Strange Multiplicity: Constitutionalism in an Age of Diversity because it was an unbiased and historically accurate view even though Tully is neither Metis or Aboriginal meaning that his would be an etic view. This exposes the nuances of emic and etic perspectives and that neither is only right or only wrong.

For the second question one student chose to analyze the Eagle metaphor and describes the eagle representing the city of Tenochtitlan, the Snake in its beak representing a petty ruler of another city, and the Cactus it was perched on representing the desert land Tenochtitlan was founded on. The student focuses in on the eagle and additional symbolism it holds, they explain that the eagles ability to fly near the sun and hunt on earth lead to the belief that it could travel between the two realms Ka and Kab. They explain that the eagles association with Ka lead to the association with the sun which it is sometimes argued to represent the sun itself. They explain that the connection to the sun makes sense for the Aztecs in their founding myth because they were an agricultural society and therefore are heavily reliant on the sun. The student then poses the question of what the snake would represent and whether it could possibly be the underworld if the eagle is the sun and the cactus is the land.

The other student chose to discuss the feathered serpent known to the Aztecs as Quetzalcoatl and to the Maya ad Kukulkán for the second question. They discuss how Quetzalcoatl was known as the bringer of maize and god of wind to the Aztecs and  Kukulkán was the god of winds and rain as well as being known as the creator of the world and mankind. They connect these characters with the local landscape by explaining that maize was a vital food source for both the Aztecs and the Maya so it was important for them to worship the god that provided for them.

For the third question, one student discusses the conflict of etic and emic perspectives through the interpretation of the Ancient Greek myth of Pandora’s Box, they discuss how the box was open to release all of the evils of the world and one thing remained etched within and that was hope. They discuss how the etic view of Western society would think positively of the myth because they value the idea of hope and overcoming evils. They discuss how the emic perspective may differ in that hope being in a box of evil may reflect a negative view of hope.

The other student chose to discuss Chinese medicine, they discuss how the etic view could see approaches and beliefs as fantasy whereas the emic approach would see certain magic as true. They explain that judging certain medicinal methods of the Tang Dynasty by modern day Western beliefs and standards would not be an accurate way of understanding the people of that time and how their beliefs and situations were.

I think this discussion did good job of exploring the etic and emic perspective struggle when approaching myths, it is important to consider the emic perspective to hopefully gain a more accurate understanding of the intricacies of the myth and the time period; the etic perspective however, is not automatically a bad perspective, I think the most efficient way of analyzing a myth would be to acknowledge both the etic and the emic viewpoints.

Discussion Sources

Adam Gaudry, “The Métis-ization of Canada: The Process of Claiming Louis Riel, Métissage, and the Métis People as Canada’s Mythical Origin,” Aboriginal Policy Studies 2, no. 2 (2013): 76.

Church, Frederick. Opened Up a Pandora’s Box. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Opened_up_a_Pandora%27s_box.jpg.

Hesiod. The Poems of Hesiod: Theogony, Works and Days, and the Shield of Herakles. Translated by Barry Powell. California: University of California Press, 2017.

McGarry, Renee. “Eagle.” Mexicolore, July 10, 2010. https://www.mexicolore.co.uk/aztecs/flora-and-fauna/eagle.

Quetzalcoatl Picture: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Quetzalcoatl