How useful do you find Nisa's account for understanding the life of much earlier Paleolithic people? What evidence of contact with a wider world can you find in her story?
I find it very useful--experience is the best way to convey emotions or feelings. For example, Niva would enjoy receiving food from strangers--considering that was the only thing those people had in the Paleolithic era--no toys, technology, etc. The fact that she didn't really know any other people except for her nomadic family made contact and interaction with others much more valuable--considering we, as humans are always exposed to the social interaction from the Internet, phones, and population.
What does her account indicate about San attitudes towards sex and marriage? How might you compare those attitudes with those of contemporary society?
From Niva's account, San marriages seem a lot more sacred when it comes to sex--it didn't seem like Niva wanted to commit to sex until she full understood the concept of love. Compared to our contemporary society, sex in the Paleolithic era was a lot more patient because we live in an exponentially growing society where we want everything instantly (by nature, we are lazy)--due to the technological advances in transportation and social media.
How does Nisa understand God, or the divine? How does she understand the purpose of the curing rituals in which she took part?
Nisa views God as a cruel and unfair deity due to her husband passing away--although I'm sure everyone has their own input on spiritual loss--some people are just lucky or privileged. It seems like Niva didn't really understand the purpose of the healing rituals because she seemed so conflicted about it--the N/Um would either heal or destroy. In her own experience, she felt so unstable--yet the story didn't really give us a clear ending.
How would you describe Nisa's overall assessment of San life? Do you find in romanticized, realistic, or critical? What evidence from the passages supports your conclusions?
I would really describe her San life as heavily reactive based-- considering she didn't even know anybody or anything about her culture and had to solve problems based on intuition. She was heavily nomadic. I find this account very realistic--considering that she did not have books or a phone to help her interact with the outside world before her. For example, when Niva receives food she gets so excited because it's something new to experience, compared to our contemporary where food is a norm, but we get excited when we hear new music, buy video games, and buy make up.
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