ABSTRACT
The foundations of village society—subsistence agriculture, the matrilineage, communal labor, the age-grade system and the a-tywin custom—all continue to dominate and define villagers' lives. The age-grade system and the custom are more than just a way of organizing labor for agriculture; they also define personhood for villagers, channel access to authority and status, and provide the basis for village judgments of respect and moral worth. The physical isolation of the village means that villagers have few choices outside of the established patterns. Life in Etyolo resembles a complex and serious game. Migrants who hope to remain in the village must follow the rules of this game; rules which are both inherently conservative and very different from the urban rules which townspeople must learn. To an increasing extent, younger migrants serve as brokers or middlemen in villagers' dealings with the outside.
