Native Exhibitionism

I enjoyed how Cannibal Tours (Denis O’Rourke) both subtly and explicitly showcased the exploitation of the native people of Papua New Guinea. There was some very poignant moments in this film that seemed to almost happen by themselves, but really spoke to how ridiculous the whole situation is. One of these moments was when the cameraman was speaking to a native man and an American tourist slowly crept into frame, trying to grab a shot of the native. I just love how the tourists are taking pictures of them simply for being a native. The awkwardness of the tourist seemed to create a moment of mutual distain between the cameraman and the native towards the tourist, and in larger part the circumstances surrounding the sudden western infatuation with the ‘primitive way of life’ in Papua New Guinea. It is as if these tourists are living out a fantasy of taking a picture for their own personal national geographic magazine. Haraway would say that their intentions are the same as this magazine (if not fostered by it), “the people of the third and fourth worlds are portrayed as exotic; they are idealized; they are naturalized and taken out of all but a single historical narrative[..]”(89) The tourists were all trying to capture a shot which they saw as essentially native or exotic, similar to what the images of national geographic offer its viewers.

I remember seeing the native take being paid after being photographed, and it seemed like such juxtaposition-- as in why does he actually need it. The native’s facial expression even demonstrated this, not evidently showing any real motivation or happiness towards the money, seeming that he just needed it to live because that’s the new way of life. It seems like currency has also brought with it the depersonalization of labor, however, in this case, the depersonalization is on a much larger scale, since the native lives are essentially their labour -- being the object of the touristic gaze. I remember when the Italian tourists said they enjoyed viewing this ‘primitive lifestyle’, but that eventually technology and our forms of government will civilize them, as if the western way is the eventual evolution of any society, which is wrong and very ignorant to say. I think the underlying uneasiness of the entire film is how tourists treat these people as a commodity and an exhibition to be photographed. Unfortunately the native’s naiveté towards this new found ‘celebrity’ allows them to be taken advantage of. If any of us were being photographed for essentially being different or inferior we would be appalled, and wouldn’t stand for it.

I do understand that these people represent life in the old hunter gatherer sense, but to be put on display in such a way really doesn’t sit with me too well. The natives seem stuck in the hunter gatherer way of life, but are forced to earn money by essentially being a human freak show, or an exhibit in a museum—displaying ‘the old way of life’. If they need money to live then they are embracing our way of life and should adopt other aspects of it (if they choose to). They seem stuck with our quest for money, one of the least appealing aspects of our life, yet left without any amenities that currency can provide (ie medicine, better housing etc). Not only does the money they earn do little for them, but they barely understand it, obvious when one of the natives questioned where all the tourists get their money from, asking them if their government gives it to them. They are inadvertently being colonized by our way of life, and leaving theirs behind. In their lives before money or contact with the western world, there must have been at least a better sense of culture and purpose. It is obvious that currency has already impacted their way of life a great deal, since the natives were complaining that tourists don’t buy enough of their goods, showcasing their dependency and reliance on the currency. I doubt they had such complaints before this westernization. Before solely catering towards tourists, I’m sure their culture was more concerned with actual problems such as shelter and nourishment. They are relying on money to feed themselves as opposed to their traditional methods, leaving behind their traditional way of life for a fractional western substitute. The western impact is essentially making this culture cannibalize itself to a point where it will eventually not be alien enough for tourists to want to see; and then what will become of these natives?