ABSTRACT
In this chapter, Cook suggests that conflict resolution on Margarita Island, Venezuela, is an oxymoron, because conflict originates at the same time that it is resolved. In native communities on the Island, the conflict-resolution and generation process occurs via extensive use of nonviolent yet often cruel forms of informal social control such as gossip, song dueling, ostracism, and witchcraft. A formal authority structure also exists to deal with conflicts. Cook also stresses the importance of belonging to a social network, describes network fission and fusion, and analyzes the role that the social networks play in cycles of conflict resolution and recreation.
