Among the Northwest Coast Indians (Tlingit, Haida, and others), potlatches traditionally are lavish community gatherings marking important events, such as funerals or marriages. In celebrations that often last many days, sumptuous meals are served; legends about clans and ancestors are sung and enacted with dances, masks, costumes, and drums; totem poles are often raised; and gifts are presented to all guests. Through this custom, cultural ties are renewed and strengthened.

Using details from historical potlatches, and skillfully weaving in legends about animals and spirits revered by Natives-Raven, Grizzly Bear, Salmon, Frog-Mary Beck creates a compelling account of the potlatch ceremony and its place in a community's celebration of life, death, and continuity.

About the Author
Mary Giraudo Beck has lived Ketchikan, Alaska, since 1951, when she married a third-generation Alaskan. Besides rearing a family, she taught literature and writing courses for thirty years at Ketchikan Community College, a branch of the University of Alaska. Mary has an abiding interest in the Native culture of Southeast Alaska and a commitment to recording its oral literature. Previous works include two books, Heroes and Heroines in Tlingit-Haida Legend and Shamans and Kushtakas: North Coast Tales of the Supernatural, essays on Native mythology, and articles on travel by small boat to towns and Native communities in Southeast Alaska.

Reviews

"Beck presents a compelling account of the potlatch ceremony and its place in one community's celebrations of life . . . she weaves in legends and gives a good picture of the Tlingits beliefs and a view of how their society worked and survived."

-Debbie Carter, Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

"Mary Giraudo Beck's Potlatch is a rich anthropological history of the ceremonies of giving celebrated by the native peoples of Alaska, Canada, Washington, and Oregon. Using the tradition of storytelling, and help from Raven, her books brings to life these gatherings."
-Elliott Bay Booknotes

Book Information
ISBN 9780882408200
Author Mary Giraudo Beck
Format Paperback
Page Count 128
Imprint Alaska Northwest Books
Publisher Graphic Arts Center Publishing Co