Horned versus Teethed and Other Modalities of Animal Association in the Inuit Imagination
For the Inuit, animals have always been not only an irreplaceable source of food but also a limitless source of inspiration in all domains: natural history, hunting, symbolism, cosmology, ecology, aesthetics, and rituals. Animals are not considered distinct entities but are instead perceived systematically in relation to one another, following several modalities. Some are seen as equivalents on the earth/sea axis, these spaces being considered distinct but nonetheless complementary. Others constitute doubles: on the basis of various shared characteristics, one animal can substitute for another. Lastly, in a diversity of cultural registers, certain animals are paired in recurrent series following the same logic. The Inuit imagination is incredibly fruitful when creating nonhuman entities, but, as far as animals are concerned, adheres very scrupulously to their zoological identity as established by empirical knowledge.