A man becomes infatuated with his sister, neglecting his wives and children. He kills his sister’s husband, hoards food for her, and lets his family starve. Suspicious, his elder wife discovers the affair and the murder. She avenges by killing the sister and, with her co-wife, later kills their husband, ending his betrayal and restoring balance.
Source:
Kaska Tales
by James A. Teit
The American Folklore Society
Journal of American Folklore
Vol.30, No.118, pp. 427-473
October-December, 1917
► Themes of the story
Family Dynamics: The narrative centers on complex familial relationships, including a man living with his two wives (who are sisters) and his illicit relationship with his own sister.
Love and Betrayal: The man’s infatuation with his sister leads him to betray his family, resulting in deceit and treachery.
Revenge and Justice: The elder wife, upon discovering her husband’s actions, exacts revenge by killing his sister and, eventually, the man himself, restoring a sense of justice.
► From the same Region or People
Learn more about the Kaska people
A man lived in one place with his two wives, who were sisters. The elder had four children, and the younger none. In another place not far away lived his sister, who was married to a brother of his wives. The man always killed plenty of marmots, and the family were well provided for. After a time he brought home no marmots, and the family began to be hungry. He had become enamoured of his sister, who was a young girl, and he visited her constantly. He killed his sister’s husband (brother to his wives), cut his body open, and defecated inside. He brought all the meat to his sister, and none to his family, for he wished them to starve to death. He claimed that he had bad luck and could get no game.
► Continue reading…
Sometimes he was away as long as five nights, and returned without anything. The women managed to live by snaring ground-squirrels. They noticed that their husband was always fat and contented-looking, and he never slept with them. They became suspicious, and one day the elder wife followed him. When he was out of sight, she ran; and when in sight, she lay and watched. She took advantage of the nature of the ground, and followed him until §he saw him enter his sister’s camp. She hid and watched until she saw him leave the camp for the purpose of visiting his marmot-traps. He was dressed in new clothes, while, when he came home to them, he always wore old ragged clothes. When he was out of sight, she approached the camp, and, in passing by the place where they got water, she saw the defiled body of her brother lying there. She entered the camp, and saw much meat there. She said to her sister-in-law, “Oh, you are well off! Your husband must be a good hunter, for you have plenty of meat on hand. Our husband cannot get anything, and we are starving.” Her sister-in-law then cooked some liver for her, although there was an abundance of good meat in the camp. After eating, she said to her sister-in-law, “I think you have many lice in your head. I will louse you before I go.” The girl accepted the service, and laid her head in the woman’s lap. After lousing her a little while, the woman took the two bone scratchers which were suspended by a string around the girl’s neck, and with one in each hand ran them into the girl’s ears and killed her. She pounded up some dried meat, and filled the girl’s mouth and nostrils with it. Then, taking a pack of the best meat and fat, she went home, and fed her children with fat. When the man returned to his sister’s camp, he found her dead, and was very sorry. He took his pack of marmots to his own camp, where he said to his wives, “I have had good luck this time, and have brought you some meat; but you must make a camp for me some distance away, as I want to be alone. If I sleep with you, my bad luck may return.” His real reason was that he might be alone, and thus be able to cry without being noticed. The women made a camp for him a little ways off, arranged everything nicely, and put a block of wood under his pillow. That evening they fed the children with some roots. One of them cried for fat; and the women, fearing their husband had heard it, said, “It is roots the child means. How could he know about fat? He has never been used to eating it.” Their husband went over to his camp, and they could hear him crying. After a while he fell asleep, and they could hear him snoring. The two women then went over and clubbed him to death on the head. Before he died he cried, “You have killed my sister, and now you kill me!” (This is why men sometimes take a fancy to their sisters, and even cohabit with them. Had not this man in mythological times become enamoured of his sister, men would not do so now.)
The elder sister now proposed that they should go to where their late husband’s brother lived, and tell him what had happened. He was unmarried and lived alone. The younger sister was afraid, saying that he would kill them; but at last she agreed to go. They gathered all their meat together, and took all the marmots from the traps, and made a cache of all. Then they burned the body of their husband and departed. When they drew near their brother-in-law’s camp, the elder sister said, “I am not afraid. I don’t care if he kills me. I shall go and see him.” She went into the camp, carrying her baby on her back, and told the man of the killing of his brother and sister, giving him full details. He said to her, “You have done right. My brother did evil, and acted like a dog.” The woman told him that her sister was afraid, and remained some distance away with the children. He said, “Tell her to come in. She need not be afraid. I do not blame you for what you have done.” She went into camp with the children, and the two sisters became the wives of their brother-in-law.
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