ABSTRACT
This article re-analyses field data and former interpretations on the circulation of industrial goods among Wajãpi people in the Brazilian state of Amapá. The relation focused here is that of initiator-followers. Interlocutors in the field explained the acquisition of some goods by implying there is always an initiator who is followed by other in buying certain articles. I have formerly described this dynamic by associating Wajãpi explanations to discussions that state the existence of two ways of goods circulation among Lowland South American Indigenous peoples, one leading to magnification processes, another to kinship-making and symmetrical relations. This article re-examines initiator-followers process in the light of interpretations of Amerindian socialities that forgo notions of ownership and control. I suggest that the initiator of an action temporarily occupies a position of “salience”.
KEYWORDS:
Wajãpi; Amazonia; merchandise; Amerindian politics; consumption