The steel axe

The document we read showed us how seemingly small, insignificant object, rituals or discrepancies in a culture can actually play a big role in said culture, and can be crucial aspects for newcomers to know. For example, in the case of the Yir Yoront, an Aboriginal group residing on the west coast of Australia, the introduction of a single technology, the steel axe, completely disrupted their entire social fabric, structure, and hierarchy. The stone axe, which was the axe the Yir Yoront used before the steel axe, was a symbol of power, responsibility, and manlihood. Axes were crucial in the trading links with other societies; axes had myths and stories attributed to them. Their entire society was built around the stone axe. However, when foreign missionaries introduced the steel axe, all of it came undone. Since steel axes came from missionaries, the Aborigines formed closer, unorthodox relationships with the "white man" that did not sit well with their traditional trade relationships. Steel axes were also easily available to both men and women, and thus stone axes began to lose their value as a symbol of manlihood. Steel axes had no myths or legends attributed to them, and thus the axe began to lose its value as a cultural symbol. The result of this was a complete crumbling of the Yir Yoront's social system. The missionaries' purpose with bringing the steel axe was not to cause harm to the Yir Yoront, but to help them, to give them better tools to help better achieve goals they had set for the Yir Yoront. However, they had no idea that replacing the stone axe would have such a devastating effect.

Looking at this from a modern day perspective, given the increasing globalization of the planet it seems unlikely that the introduction of a single object could bring down an entire culture. However, as global engineers, we still need to be aware of such cultural objects when working with different cultures.