Cochrane, Big Men and Cargo Cults

Before starting with my summary, some definitions:

"Cargo Cults"
Apparently the first usage of the term "cargo cult" comes in 1945 describing it as a "disorder":

A native, infected with the disorder, states that a great number of ships loaded with ‘cargo’ had been sent by the ancestor of the native for the benefit of the natives of a particular village or area. But the white man, being very cunning, knows how to intercept these ships and takes the ‘cargo’ for his own use (https://www.anthroencyclopedia.com/entry/cargo-cults).

I think most anthropologists consider the term inappropriate. Within anthropology, "movement" seems preferable. This is because within anthropology we reserve the concept "cult" for an accepted and specialized branch within a religion (e.g. Cult of Mary refers to followers of Mother Mary within Catholic church, and within Ndembu religion there are groups of hunters who have unique rituals to honour the spirits that they hunt with and for). "Cargo" does not, the sources tell me, cover the breadth of aspirations within these movements. Adherents wanted more than material goods.

Vailala Madness

Papuan Gulf territory is in red; adjacent to the Gulf of Papua.

Williams described the 'Vailala Madness' among 'natives' of the Papuan Gulf territory 1919-1922:

Predictions circulated about the return of ancestral spirits on ghost steam ships carrying desirable cargo. Enthusiasts abandoned the traditional male initiation ceremony and destroyed ritual artifacts, mimed Australian tea parties at flower-bedecked tables, and took up marching, drilling, and ecstatic dancing (https://www.anthroencyclopedia.com/entry/cargo-cults).

Marching Rule

Also known as Maasina Rule. It occurred on the Solomon Islands. Local

In this summary, I use the version in Lessa & Vogt's Reader in Comparative Religion in which Lessa & Vogt provide an introduction. So to start with, I summarise Lessa & Vogt's introduction:

In 'Cargo Cults', prophets foretell the imminent return of ancestors or coming of cargo

Cargo cults are nativistic movements found in Melanesia. These movements typically possess:

Prophets who play a central role
The prophets establish contact with supernatural forces (conceived of either in terms of traditional religion or Christianity)
the prophets foretell the return of the ancestors or the coming of European goods ("cargo")
Daily activities cease (fields and gardens left to ruin); pigs are slaughtered.
A new moral code is preached "so that the spirits will find the people worthy of cargo" (453)
"When cargo fails to appear, the people blame the Europeans who are withholding it, or more frequently, their own inadequacy in doubting the prophet's word" (453).

For Cochrane, Cargo Cults must be understood in relation to "Big Men"...

"Cochrane's analysis focuses on two key Melanesian concepts" (434). First, Big Men:

are traditional leaders of Melanesian soc.
they have reputations as feast-givers, warriors, and ritual knowledge.
must be the "leader, protector, and provider of his faction"

...and "Rubbish Men"

Second, "Rubbish Men" are "lazy indolent individuals who possess no magical, ritual, economic, or political power.

European contact reduced Melanesians to Rubbish Men

European contact made Melanesians feel like Rubbish Men, but Europeans refused to act as Big Men i.e. refused to act as generous benefactors.

Having finished my summary of Lessa & Vogt's introduction, I now begin with summarising Cochrane's writing, where he begins with a critique of Firth's understanding of Cargo Cult

Others have overlooked the importance of the Big & Rubbish Man concept

Firth writes that "cargo cults" emerge where Melanesian people lack the technology, natural resources, and political power to achieve their desires; so they draw on non-technical methods. But this overlooks the specifically Melanesian features of "Cargo Cults" [namely, Big Men and Rubbish Men].

Background context of 'cargo cults' was the decimation of the Big Man system

After first contact, Melanesians increasingly categorized Europeans as Big Men. But the Europeans did not:

eat with them [the Melanesians] or enter into reciprocal relationships, they did not uphold all the traditional customs, and they made far greater demands on the time of people than the traditional "big men" had done. In every field of activity where the natives and the white men met the Europeans were superior. Natives were unable to establish their manhood in relationships with Europeans. European contact completely destroyed the power and status of traditional "big man".

All the movements were triggered by increased European contact. Those places where cargo cults occurred the contact was neither intense [like in the colonial capital cities] or minimal [like in the mountainous areas].

Cargo cults only occurred in areas where there was a pre-existing 'big man' system. Without a big man system, the Europeans were not categorized as Big Men. Also if the Europeans acted as big men--where they were "able to discharge all the obligations of a traditional "big man""--no cargo cults would ensue.

Cargo cults only occurred in societies:

with small numbers; i.e. less than 200 [one can find societies in Melanesia and Australia with only several hundred and sometimes only dozens of members]. "Infanticide was practised to ensure that the population of the group did not outrun resources".
with continuous warfare; forming larger political entities would require the cessation of warfare; but warfare was a part of life, so societies remained small. the [hilly] topography of Melanesia enabled easily defendable enclaves.
with no institutional political system; [politics was inseparable from other parts of social life]

The warfare was was necessary to prove one's manhood" like gardening, warfare was thought to be good and necessary"

The war provided high mortality rates and therefore a high turnover of leaders.

Whites brought