Media and the Korowai

The Korowai tree house is a popular tourist attraction

 

Media

a.       In terms of media there are two main sources which are tourism and pop culture

                                                              i.      Tourism

1.      The tree houses of the Korowai are an impressive site because they were all made by hand. The tree houses serve to be a popular tourists site

2.      The tree houses are by no means permanent facilities. They usually last about 5 years

3.      The Korowai live in the trees because it helps them to avoid mosquito swarms (biological needs) and to avoid the evil spirits that roam the ground (sociological).

                                                            ii.      Pop culture

1.      The Korowai are known to be one of the few remaining tribes that actually practice cannibalism.

a.       To the Korowai, cannibalism serves as a form of justice. The tribesmen that are dying of sickness are believed to have been cursed by a witch in the tribe. Once the victim of the spell whispers the name of the supposed witch, his family is bound by law to kill the witch and eat him so as to kill the evil spirit

b.      In a news report, 60 Minutes traveled to Papa New Guinea to observe the korowai. Because they were interpreting the Korowai culture strictly in terms of Western thought, they portrayed the tribe as almost animalistic and horrific people. Many anthropologists to this day contest this report saying it has ill effects on the tribe.

2.      In the 1960’s-70’s, many scientist went to the region of Papa New Guinea to research a disease called Kuru. This disease was found to prevelant amongst the Fore people of Papa New Guinea who also practice cannibalism (in particular eating the brain). These people then began showing symptoms of a rare but fatal disease known as Kuru.

a.       Kuru is a form of spongiform encephalopathy which deteriorates the brain. As the disease progresses, the brain gradually develops holes and white spots along the surface of the brain (almost identical to a sponge).

b.      Symptoms of this disease are uncontrollable shaking, confusion, lethargy, and insomnia.

                                                                                                                                      i.      There is still confusion as to how exactly Kuru occurs, however, it is believed to occur from a brain prion (a protein) that is misshapen. This protein has the ability to influence other proteins to misshapen and essentially change their function to degenerate the brain.

c.       While it is not confirmed that the Korowai suffer from this disease, it is believed that they may suffer from it and are susceptible to it do to their practice of cannibalism.

d.      In terms of pop culture, there is an obsession with zombies and the origins behind a “zombie outbreak”. This has led to many writers to believe that a disease (identical to kuru) would be cause of a zombie outbreak.

                                                                                                                                      i.      As such many games such as “Dead Island” base their outbreak as starting from a tribe that practiced cannibalism. The disease then spread out into the city and mutated thus turning those affected into “zombies”.

                                                                                                                                    ii.      While highly fictional, many can see the effect of pop culture on the portrayal of the Korowai. Rather than reporting the truth, producers manipulate traditions and cultures in order to make money.

                                                                                                                                  iii.      By doing this they hurt the tribes reputation and cast a negative stigma on those who live in the tribe. 

Tribesman affected by Kuru

Effect of Kuru on the brain

The Smithsonian

2006 Sleeping with cannibals. Electronic document

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/cannibals.html 10/24/2013

The National institute of neurological disorders and stroke
2013 Kuru Information Page. Electronicc Document
http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/kuru/kuru.htm 10/25/2013