Literature Review #4

 

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Citation: Law, Samuel, and Laurence J. Kirmayer. “Inuit Interpretations of Sleep Paralysis.” Transcultural Psychiatry, vol. 42, no. 1, Sage Publications, 2005, pp. 93–112, doi:10.1177/1363461505050712.

Summary: This paper examines the sleep paralysis phenomena in Inuit culture. The Inuit's rich culture seems to really be strongly influenced by dreams and there is many unique vocabulary in the Inuit language related to sleep. In the paper there were two sets of interviews. The first one is with the younger generation and the second one is with the younger generation. After the author describes the interviews, we can examine the similarities and differences of beliefs and how a cultural transition may have impacted the newer generations beliefs in sleep paralysis.

Author(s):  Give some information on the author(s).  What makes him/her/them knowledgeable on the topic? 

Samuel Law is an associate professor in the department of psychiatry at the University of Toronto. He has also written another paper related to dreams and dream interpretations. Laurence J. Kirmayer is a Professor and also a Director of the Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry.

Key terms.  Define at least two key terms or key concepts used in the piece. A key term in this paper is  "umangirniq" which is the Inuit's word for sleep paralysis. Another key word is “shamanism” because this is the major difference in belief between the younger generation and older generation. The older generation embraced the belief in shamanism and believed that it is the major cause of sleep paralysis.

Three Quotes: Give three quotations pertaining to your topic, with page reference.

“Although there were a few mixed references to both biblical ‘devils’ and shamanistic entities, there was a nearly complete shift from the elders’ shamanistic cosmology to the younger generations’ Christian references to supernatural forces. This is not surprising given the profound influence Christian missionaries and the Church have played in the arctic in the last century” (Law & Laurence, 106)

“everyone was liable to uqumangirniq, as ‘It was part of life,’ and it was ‘absolutely not’ possible to cure: ‘[e]ven if you don’t want to uqumangirniq there is nothing you can do about it,’ because ‘[w]e are always going to dream'’”(Law & Laurence, 103)

“For contemporary youth, sleep paralysis was interpreted in terms of multiple frameworks that incorporated personal, medical, mystical, traditional/shamanistic, and Christian views, reflecting the dynamic social changes taking place in this region.” (Law & Laurence, 93)

Value: The value of this paper is that it examines an interesting case where cultural beliefs shift and the changes impact sleep paralysis interpretation and hallucinations. Here we can see how the new generation's belief in modernism and Christianity has influenced their experience and belief in sleep paralysis. I also want to analyze these different subjective stories from the interviewees with different theoretical frameworks.