Ghost images.
14 Sep 2010 Leave a Comment
My friend sent me a link on facebook, which was so good I added as a favorite on my own page and on the Library’s page. It has old photos of tribes and their members from all over the North American continent, from Inupiaq and Yupik to Seminole and Sauk & Fox. Some of the photos are old old old, of people looking tired out and shocked. Some are newer, in color, of people looking like they enjoy their electric range and pink davenporte. Yet others are of famous people, like Maria Tallchief dancing on outrageously long ballerina legs, and Ira Hayes looking like a stalwart World War II hero.
The very oldest pictures are what I liked best. There are sets of photographs of Pacific Northwest coastal people, sepia toned and faint, which look like they may be pictures of ancient magicians (and I guess they are). They look exactly like photos of the soul, of which people who have never been photographed are said to be afraid. Well, I think they might be right. It’s nothing to be afraid of, of course, as the soul moves too quickly to catch, but it is a capturing of a fleeting image and freezing it in place. The recording of singing, dancing, and other ritual activity is strictly forbidden by some tribes, and severely mistrusted by others, because of the possibility of killing the ritual. If it’s recorded, it can’t ever evolve, it’s just stuck that way. I doubt, however that any of these people thought it was stealing their soul. They look like they feel it’s important to preserve their images.
Some pictures have comments about the subjects, how they look sad or something. Mostly, I don’t think they look sad, just old. It’s hard to grin when you’re over 100 years old–your friends and family are gone now, and you’re probably bone tired. There are plenty of happy folks, too, as they are often photos taken at home or trying out the new motor car or picnicking on the beach after the seal hunt. Hard to look gloomy lined up next to huge Olympic Peninsula seals. Also, the twin Cayuse babies Tox-e-Lox and Alom-pom are listed under their Jones names, Emma and Edna. I like it best when both of their photos are shown, the normal one and the crying one. I guess those two are sad because they’re so young.
