Paper short abstract:

This paper, based on ethnographic research among schoolchildren in indigenous rural southern Chile examines the projections of their future selves as adults via drawings and narratives. The material reflects continuity and innovation in a context where tradition and modernity increasingly interplay.

Paper long abstract:

This paper, based on ethnographic research among schoolchildren in indigenous rural Chiloé, southern Chile, examines the projections of their future selves as adults through drawings and group narratives.

When asked to take part in a project on their idea of their future, the children (aged 4 to 13) of the island of Apiao expressed their vision both via narratives and drawings. The material produced reveals both continuity and innovation and reflects on the one hand the importance of family values, embedded in the agricultural activities, and on the other the wish to overcome tradition and embrace a new, modern ideal. The ideal of 'modernity' transforms the schoolchildren's expectations and desires, while tradition shapes their daily lives. This paper seek for the children's point-of view and analyses the interplay of traditional life, safely experienced through strong kinship ties and local values, and aspirations and visions of an unknown future that would imply a clean break with the experienced patterns. The ethnography will be analysed with reference to the strong changes that are currently occurring on the island, such as the recent arrival of centralised electricity and the consequent interest in modern, electronic equipment and industrially-produced items. This phenomenon is particularly relevant in a small, isolated community of indigenous people that feel cut out from middle-class, Chilean lifestyle and its opportunities.