responses to grievance behavior: extended cases in a fishing community¹

Recent work in anthropology of law has focused on the dispute settlement process and the factors influencing choice of one form of settlement over another. This paper questions this focus and suggests alternative categories through which law as a process can be examined. Analysis of cases collected by the author in an Atlantic fishing community indicated that for many cases no settlement process could be identified, although some involved a lengthy “cooling” period during which the alleged offense was discussed and subtle responses to it were made. Some cases were successfully handled in this way; others developed into full‐blown disputes; still others continued in process for several years and did not appear headed for any clear settlement. Through analysis of these case materials, three issues are raised for discussion: (1) the concept of dispute settlement as a primary focus; (2) the traditional concept of a case, in which “a” dispute is aired or presented in public and a decision made which terminates the dispute; (3) the importance of time as a variable in the handling of disputes. It is suggested that the focus on settlement reflects our bias toward viewing disputes as short‐range encounters in relationships which lack a past and future. In contrast, the concept of a case as a response to grievance behavior provides a more complete picture of the ways in which conflicts are handled in different types of relations and of the ways in which disputes develop, or are avoided. In particular, the development of the grievance‐response process through time and the variations in pattern of development for different social relations with different time dimensions are discussed .