Multispecies myths. Interspecific myth and experience in the Amazon

Abstract

Mythical narratives, in their Amerindian styles, fascinated anthropological reflections in different directions. A classical starting point, proposed by Lévi-Strauss, appoints in these narratives the recognition of the indissolubility of interspecific experiences as feature of human lives. This paper describes how the Mebengokré people of eastern Amazon produce multiple relations with the turtles. Having as a starting point a mythical narrative, in sequence it will introduce hunting techniques used to hunt turtles, a specific music learned from the turtles, and the ritualistic practices associated with these. The description of these relations’ role in the reciprocal production of humans and animals, both at practical and semiotic levels, will highlight how a complex web of interspecific influences emerges. Such description will be, in sequence, contextualized in the contemporary debates about human and non-human relations in the production of shared Worlds. Finally, the paper will discuss specific forms in which diverse subjectivities build up a common becoming. This becoming appears as a resonance between shared Worlds, as dissolution of interspecific borders and epistemological dichotomies. In this way, the described Amerindian myth will emerge as a reflection on interspecific relations.

Keywords: Myth; Amerindian; Multispecies; Turtles; Becoming