The Utkuhikhalingmiut or for short the Utku was an Eskimo settlement in Northwest Canada. The author of Never in Anger (Jean L. Briggs) made an anthropological visit to the Utku during the summer of 1963. The Utku of course are very different from the average American citizen, so it was a big change for her to go to a foreign place. The Utku people believed in not being angry people and controlling ones temper. The problem here is that, for as long as people have been around, there have always been tempers and angry people. The definition of anger is, "A strong feeling of displeasure or hostility." Anger is more than just emotion. Anger involves every part of a human in general. Anger involves the body, the mind and the will of a person. Anger is the reaction of an event that has taken place. Anytime someone find's a situation or topic unfair, there is no doubt that it stimulates there brain into a negative or angry feeling. The Utku must have felt some anger over certain situations that evolved, whether or not they showed that anger. Despite the Utku Eskimo belief in controlling ones temper, they still felt and expressed there anger.
The religious aspect of everyday Eskimo life had an enourmous affect on how Eskimos controlled there anger and there everyday living. The Utku became an Anglican society, and used the bible as an example for everyday life. Inuttiaq would preach, "Satan wants us (piyuma)," "but god, who loves (naklik) us as a father, will protect us as long as we pray regularly and don't get angry (ningaq, urulu), steal, or lie." (Briggs 1970: 52) Inuttiaq and the Utku people followed the bible, but used it in a unique way. Inuttiaq used the bible as an example on how to act, and if he felt that something wasn't how he wanted it, he may tell the people that god wants it done differently. The reason behind Inuttiaq's preaching came from a European Catholic priest and the Eskimo deacon Nakliguhktuq.
