Polynesian Cultures (Area)

Anthropology 447

MWF 08:30-09:20
Dr. Alan Howard
Department of Anthropology
University of Hawai'i
2424 Maile Way, Porteus 346
Honolulu, HI 96822
Tel (808) 956-7573
Fax (808) 956-4893
Email ahoward@hawaii.edu

This course aims at providing an understanding of contemporary Polynesian societies and cultures by examining the historical contexts in which they have developed and changed. Among the topics to be discussed are: the impact of economic change, issues of environmental degradation, changing health patterns, political developments, the consequences of contemporary migration, changes in housing and issues of cultural identity. These topics will be explored against a background of traditional Polynesian cultural patterns, including: land tenure, kinship and political organization; myth and religion; socialization and child-rearing.

Readings concerning contemporary issues will be assigned from selected journal articles; background readings will be drawn from Developments in Polynesian Ethnology, edited by Howard and Borofsky.

Students will be required to prepare a series of brief reports on topics to be discussed in class. Grades will be based on these reports, a midterm and a final examination.

Guidelines for Papers

1) Panel presentation papers: Write a 4-6 page paper to:

- summarize the main points

- bring in relevant background from the general reading assignment

- compare with the situation in Rotuma, as appropriate

- include your thoughts on the topic.

Include proper citations in your paper, and a list of references at the end.

Citation form: (author date:page; e.g., Firth 1990:27-28)

References form: as in bibliography provided.

Papers are due on the day of the panel presentation. If you miss a panel session in which you are a participant you will be penalized one grade if you turn in your paper by the next class session and one additional half-grade for each subsequent class session delay.

2) Response papers: Write a 1-2 page paper to express your reactions to the topic as presented by the members of the panel. Bring in perspectives from the background readings, and from lectures, as appropriate. Papers are due one week following the panel presentation with a late penalty of a half-grade for each class session thereafter. In computing your course grade, your lowest two scores on the response papers will be omitted.

The final exam will be a take home essay, 4-6 pages, to be turned in between 12 noon and 2 pm on December 20. The essay will draw on general readings, topics addressed by panels, and Rotuman case study presentations. Students will be allowed to choose among a set of questions to address.

Course Schedule and Syllabus

READING LIST FOR ANTH 447 (POLYNESIAN CULTURES)
 

Aug 26 Introduction to Course

Aug 30 Nomads of the Wind

Background reading: Kirch, Patrick (1984)

Polynesian societies and ecosystems. In The Evolution of Polynesian Chiefdoms. Chapter 2, pp. 17-40.

Sep 13 Environmental Issues (Group A)

Background reading: Kirch, Patrick (1984)
Changing environments. In The Evolution of Polynesian Chiefdoms, Chapter 6, pp. 123-151.

1. Davidson, Janet (1984)
The Prehistory of New Zealand, Chapter 3, pp. 30-44.
[PACC DU423.A55 D379 1987]

2. Bayliss-Smith, Tim et al. (1988)
The island landscape. In Islands, Islanders and the World, Chapter 2, pp. 12-43. [HMLTN/PACC DU600.I75 1988]

3. Dahl, Arthur Lyon (1984)
Oceania's Most Pressing Environmental Concerns. Ambio 13(5-6):296-301. [QH540.A52; also, this issue is in PACC under same call #]

4. International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War and the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research (1991)
French testing. In Radioactive Heaven and Earth, Chapter 9. [HMLTN RA 569.R28 1991]

5. Danielsson, Bengt (1983)
French Polynesia: Nuclear colony. In Politics in Polynesia Vol. 2, edited by Ahmed Ali and Ronald Crocombe, pp. 193-228.
[HMLTN/PACC JQ5995.A2 P66]

6. Brookfield, Harold (1981)
Man, environment, and development in the outer islands of Fiji. Ambio 10(2-3):59-67. [QH540.A52]

Sep 20 Economics (Group B)

Background reading: Bertram, I. G. and R. F. Watters
(1985) The MIRAB Economy in South Pacific Microstates. Pacific Viewpoint 26(3):497-519. and
(1986) The MIRAB Process: Earlier Analyses in Context. Pacific Viewpoint 27(1):47-59.

1. van der Grijp, Paul. (1993)
Islanders of the South: Production, kinship and ideology in the Polynesian kingdom of Tonga. [HMLTN/PACC HC 686.G75 1993]

2. Halapua, Sitiveni (1982)
Fishermen of Tonga; their means of survival.
[HMLTN/PACC SH 319.T6 H34]

3. Ward, Gerard (1993)
South Pacific futures: Paradise, prosperity, or pauperism? The Contemporary Pacific 5(1):1-21. [PACC DU1.C665]

4. James, Kerry (1993)
Cutting the ground from under them? Commercialization, cultivation, and conservation in Tonga. The Contemporary Pacific 5(2):215-242. [PACC DU1.C665]

5. Lieber, Michael (1994)
More than a Living: Fishing and the Social Order on a Polynesian Atoll. [HMLTN/PACC GN 671.C3 L54 1994]

6. Lockwood, Victoria (1990)
Welfare state colonialism in rural French Polynesia. In Contemporary Pacific Societies, edited by V.S. Lockwood, T.G. Harding and B.J. Wallace, pp. 81-97. [HMLTN/PACC DU28.3 C66 1993]

7. O'Meara, Tim
The cult of custom meets the search for money in Western Samoa. In Contemporary Pacific Societies, edited by V.S. Lockwood, T.G. Harding and B.J. Wallace (1990), pp. 135-155.
[HMLTN/PACC DU28.3 C66 1993]

8. Helu-Thaman, Konai (1993)
Beyond hula, hotels and handicrafts: a Pacific Islander's perspective on tourism development. The Contemporary Pacific 5(1):104-111. [PACC DU1.C665]

Rotuma:

Jan Rensel (1994)
For Love or Money: Interhousehold exchange and the economy of Rotuma. Ph.D. Dissertation, Dept. of Anthropology, University of Hawaii. [HAWN AC1.H3 no. 3017]

Sept 27 Social Change (Group C)

Background reading: Howard, Alan & John Kirkpatrick (1989). Social Organization, Chapter 3, DPE, pp. 47-94.

1. Maaka, Roger C.A. (1994)
The New Tribe: Conflicts and continuities in the social organization of urban Maori. The Contemporary Pacific 6(2):311-336. [PACC DU1.C665]

2. Ravuvu, Asesela (1987)
Fiji: Contradictory ideologies and development. In Class and Culture in the South Pacific edited by A. Hooper, S. Britton, R. Crocombe, J. Huntsman & C. Macpherson, pp. 230-242.
[HMLTN/PACC DU17.C56 1987]

3. Overton, John (1993)
Farms, suburbs, or retirement homes? The transformation of village Fiji. The Contemporary Pacific 5(1):45-74. [PACC DU1.C665]

4. Morton, Keith (1987)
The atomization of Tongan society. Pacific Studies 10(2):47-72. [PACC DU1.P38]

5. Hooper et. al. (1992)
Migration and Health in a Small Society. Chapter 6. Development and change on the atolls: 1967-1984. pp.86-103.
[PACC DU424.5 T65 M54 1992]

6. Hooper et. al. (1992)
Migration and Health in a Small Society. Chapter 9. Values, social structure, and change in Tokelauan society: the atolls. pp. 174-202. [PACC DU424.5 T65 M54 1992]

Rotuma:
Alan Howard (1991)
Reflections on Change in Rotuma, 1959-1988. In Fatiaki, A. et al. Rotuma: Hanua Pumue (Precious Land). Suva: Institute for Pacific Studies, University of the South Pacific.
[HMLTN/PACC DU600.R6 R67 1991]

Jan Rensel (1991)
Housing and Social Relationships on Rotuma. In Fatiaki, A. et al. Rotuma: Hanua Pumue (Precious Land). Suva: Institute for Pacific Studies, University of the South Pacific.
[HMLTN/PACC DU600.R6 R67 1991]

Oct 4 Hierarchy and Politics (Group D)

Background reading: Marcus, George (1989)
Chieftainship, DPE, Chapter 6, pp. 175-209.

1. Sissons, Jeffrey (1994)
Royal backbone and body politic: Aristocratic titles and Cook Islands nationalism since self-government. The Contemporary Pacific 6(2):371-396. [PACC DU1.C665]

2. Firth, Raymond (1969)
Extraterritoriality and the Tikopia Chiefs. Man 4:354-378. [GN1.M25]

3. Campbell, Ian (1992)
The emergence of parliamentary politics in Tonga. Pacific Studies 15(1):77-97. [PACC DU1.P38]

4. James, Kerry (in press)
Princes and Power: Rank, Title, and Leadership in Contemporary Tonga. In Chiefs Today: Traditional Pacific Leadership and the Postcolonial State. Geoffrey White and Lamont Lindstrom, eds.

5. Franco, Robert (in press)
A King and 10,000 Matai: Chiefs Today in Tonga and Samoa. In Chiefs Today: Traditional Pacific Leadership and the Postcolonial State. Geoffrey White and Lamont Lindstrom, eds.

6. Macpherson, Cluny (in press)
The continuity of chiefly authority in Western Samoa: Some thoughts on its persistence. In Chiefs Today: Traditional Pacific Leadership and the Postcolonial State. Geoffrey White and Lamont Lindstrom, eds.

7. Meijl, Toon van (in press)
The Re-emergence of Maori Chiefs: "Devolution" as a strategy to maintain chiefly authority. In Chiefs Today: Traditional Pacific Leadership and the Postcolonial State. Geoffrey White and Lamont Lindstrom, eds.

Rotuma:
Alan Howard (1966)
The Rotuman District Chief: A Study in Changing Patterns of Authority. Journal of Pacific History l:63-78. [PACC DU1.J68]

Alan Howard (1989)
The Resurgence of Rivalry: Politics in Post-Colonial Rotuma. Dialectical Anthropology 14:145-158. [HX550.A56 D53]

Alan Howard and Jan Rensel (In Press)
Ritual Status and Power Politics in Modern Rotuma. Chapter for a book on Chiefs in Modern Oceania, edited by Geoffrey White and Lamont Lindstrom.

Oct 11 Child rearing and Character Development (Group A)

Background reading: Ritchie, Jane and James (1989). Socialization and character development. In DPE, Chapter 4, pp. 95-135.

1. Borofsky, Robert (1987)
Making History. Chapter 3, pp. 74-105.
[HMLTN/PACC GN671.C6 B67 1987]

2. Baker, Thelma (1986)
Changing socialization patterns of contemporary Samoans. In The Changing Samoans: Behavior and Health in Transition, edited by Paul Baker, Joel Hanna and Thelma Baker, pp. 146-173.
[HMLTN/PACC GN57.S257 C45 1986]

3. Ochs, Eleanor (1982)
Talking to children in Western Samoa. Language in Society 11:77-104. [P41.L34]

4. Ritchie, Jane and James (1979)
Growing Up in Polynesia. Chapter 6, pp. 60-71.
[HMLTN/PACC HQ792.P75 R7]

5. Ritchie, Jane and James (1981)
Child rearing and child abuse: The Polynesian context. In Child Abuse and Neglect: A cross-cultural perspective, edited by Jill Korbin, pp. 186-204. [HV713 .C3819]

6. Levy, Robert (1970)
Tahitian adoption as a psychological message. In Adoption in Eastern Oceania, edited by Vern Carroll, pp. 71-87.
[HMLTN/PACC GN482.C37]

7. Levy, Robert (1973)
Tahitians: Mind and Experience in the Society Islands. Chapter 13, pp. 430-469. [HMLTN/PACC DU870.4 L48]

Rotuma:
Alan Howard (1970)
Learning to Be Rotuman. New York: Columbia Teachers College Press. [HMLTN/PACC DU600.H68]

Oct 18 Gender relations (Group B)

Background reading: Hereniko, Vilsoni (1995).
Woven Gods, Chapters 1-4, pp. 1-64. [HMLTN/PACC GN671.F5 H47 1995]

1. Ralston, Caroline (1993)
Maori women and the politics of tradition: what roles and power did, do, and should Maori women exercise. The Contemporary Pacific 5(1):23-44. [PACC DU1.C665]

2. Besnier, Niko (1994)
Polynesian gender liminality through time and space. In Third Sex, Third Gender: Beyond sexual dimorphism in culture and history, edited by Gilbert Herdt, pp. 285-328. [HQ71.T57 1994]

3. James, Kerry (1994)
Effeminate Males and Changes in the Construction of Gender in Tonga. Pacific Studies 17(2):39-69. [PACC DU1.P38]

4. James, Kerry (1983)
Gender relations in Tonga, 1780 to 1984. Journal of the Polynesian Society 92:233-244. [PACC GN2 .P7]

5. Huntsman, Judith and Antony Hooper (1975)
Male and female in Tokelau. Journal of the Polynesian Society 84:415-430. [PACC GN2 .P7]

6. Mageo, Jeannette (1992)
Male transvestism and cultural change in Samoa. American Ethnologist 19(3):443-459. [GN1.A53]

7. Gailey, Christine W. (1987)
State, class and conversion in commodity production: Gender and changing value in the Tongan Islands. Journal of the Polynesian Society 67-80. and response by Kerry James to this article in JPS 97(1):31-48 (1988). [PACC GN2 .P7]

Oct 25 Religion (Group C)

Background reading: Shore, Bradd (1989).
Mana and Tapu, DPE, Chapter 5, pp. 137-173.

1. Hanson, Allan (1987)
Polynesian religions: An overview. In Encyclopedia of Religion, edited by M. Eliade, pp. 423-432. [HMLTN REF BL31.E46 1987]

2. Armstrong, Jocelyn (1990)
Christianity and Maori ethnicity in the South Island of New Zealand. In Christianity in Oceania: Ethnographic Perspectives, pp. 237-258. [PACC BR 1490.C47 1990]

3. Gordon, Tamar (1990)
Inventing the Mormon Tongan family. In Christianity in Oceania: Ethnographic Perspectives, pp. 197-219. [PACC BR 1490.C47 1990]

4. Kaplan, Martha (1990)
Christianity, people of the land, and chiefs in Fiji. In Christianity in Oceania: Ethnographic Perspectives, pp. 127-147. [PACC BR 1490.C47 1990]

5. Mageo, Jeannette (In Press)
Continuity and Shape-Shifting: Samoan Spirits in Culture History.

Chapter for a book on Spirits in Culture, History, and Mind, edited by Jeannette Mageo and Alan Howard.

6. Gordon, Tamar (In Press)
They Loved Her Too Much: Interpreting Spirit Possession in Tonga.

Chapter for a book on Spirits in Culture, History, and Mind, edited by Jeannette Mageo and Alan Howard.

7. Besnier, Niko (In Press)
Heteroglossic Discourses on Nukulaelae Spirits. Chapter for a book on Spirits in Culture, History, and Mind, edited by Jeannette Mageo and Alan Howard.

8. Feinberg, Richard (In Press)
Spirit Encounters on a Polynesian Outlier: Anuta, Solomon Islands. Chapter for a book on Spirits in Culture, History, and Mind, edited by Jeannette Mageo and Alan Howard.

Rotuma:
Alan Howard (In Press)
Speak of the Devils: Discourse and Belief in Spirits on Rotuma. Chapter for a book on Spirits in Culture, History, and Mind, edited by Jeannette Mageo and Alan Howard.

Nov 1 Health and Welfare (Group D)

Background reading: Kunitz, Stephen (1993)
Historical and contemporary mortality patterns in Polynesia. In The Anthropology of Disease, edited by C.G.N. Mascie-Taylor, pp. 125-166. and
Hooper et. al. (1992)
Migration and Health in a Small Society. Chapter 12. Health problems of Polynesians: A historical perspective. pp. 243-263.

1. Macpherson, Cluny and La'avasa Macpherson (1987)
Towards an explanation of recent trends in suicide in Western Samoa. Man 22:305-30. [GN1.M25]

2. Hanna, Joel, David Pelletier and Vanessa Brown (1986)
The diet and nutrition of contemporary Samoans. In The Changing Samoans: Behavior and Health in Transition, edited by P. Baker, J. Hanna and T. Baker, pp.275-296. [HMLTN/PACC GN57.S257 C45 1986]

3. Chambers, Anne and Keith S. Chambers (1985)
Illness and healing in Nanumea, Tuvalu. In Healing Practices in the South Pacific, edited by Claire Parsons. pp. 16-50. [HMLTN/PACC GN670.H43 1985]

4. Hooper, Antony (1985)
Tahitian healing. In Healing Practices in the South Pacific, edited by Claire Parsons. pp. 158-184. [HMLTN/PACC GN670.H43 1985]

5. Baker, Paul and Joel Hanna (1986)
Perspectives on health and behavior of Samoans. In The Changing Samoans: Behavior and Health in Transition, edited by P. Baker, J. Hanna and T. Baker, pp.419-434. [HMLTN/PACC GN57.S257 C45 1986]

6. Parsons, Claire (1983)
Developments in the Role of the Tongan Healer. Journal of the Polynesian Society 92:31-50. [PACC GN2 .P7]

7. Hooper et. al. (1992)
Migration and Health in a Small Society. Chapters 13-17. pp. 264-388. [PACC DU424.5 T65 M54 1992]

8. Duff, Alan (1993)
Maori: The crisis and the challenge. [PACC DU423.S6 D84 1993]

Rotuma:
Alan Howard (1979)
The Power to Heal in Colonial Rotuma. Journal of the Polynesian Society 88(3):243-275. [PACC GN2 .P7]

Jan Rensel and Alan Howard (In Press)
The place of persons with disabilities in Rotuman society. Medical Anthropology Quarterly (submitted).

Nov 8 Art in Social Context (Group A)

Background reading: Kaeppler, Adrienne (1989).
Art and Aesthetics, DPE, Chapter 7, pp. 211-240.

1. Mané-Wheoki, Jonathan (1995)
The resurgence of Maori art: Conflicts and continuities in the eighties. The Contemporary Pacific 7(1):1-19. [PACC DU1.C665]

2. Donner, William (1992)
It's the same old song but with a different meaning: Community and ethnicity in Sikaiana expressive culture. Pacific Studies 15(4):67-82. [PACC DU1.P38]

3. Kaeppler, Adrienne (1980)
Polynesian music and dance. In Musics of Many Cultures, edited by Elizabeth May, pp. 134-153. [SINC ML 3545.155 1986]

4. Mead, Hirini (Sydney) Moko
Tribal art as symbols of identity. In Art and Identity in Oceania, edited by Allan and Louise Hanson, pp. 269-281.
[PACC N7399.7.A78 1990]

5. Jones, Anna Laura (1992)
Women, art, and the crafting of ethnicity in contemporary French Polynesia. Pacific Studies 15(4):137-154. [PACC DU1.P38]

6. Sinavaiana, Carolyn (1992)
Comic theater in Samoa as indigenous media. Pacific Studies 15(4):199-210. [PACC DU1.P38]

Rotuma:
Alan Howard (1992)
Symbols of Power and the Politics of Impotence: The Mölmahao Rebellion on Rotuma. Pacific Studies 15:83-116. [PACC DU1.P38]

Nov 15 Polynesian Humor (Everyone)

Background reading: Hereniko, Vilsoni (1995)

Woven Gods: Female Clowns and Power in Rotuma

Nov 22 Migration (Group B)

Background reading: Chapman, Murray (1991)

Pacific Island movement and socioeconomic change: Metaphors of misunderstanding. Population and Development Review 17(2):263-292.

1. Shankman, Paul (1990)

The Samoan exodus. In Contemporary Pacific Societies, edited by V.S. Lockwood, T.G. Harding and B.J. Wallace, pp. 156-170. [HMLTN/PACC DU28.3 C66 1993]

2. Marcus, George (1990)

Tonga's contemporary globalizing strategies. In Contemporary Pacific Societies, edited by V.S. Lockwood, T.G. Harding and B.J. Wallace, pp. 21-33. [HMLTN/PACC DU28.3 C66 1993]

3. Macpherson, Cluny (1992)

Economic and political restructuring and the sustainability of migrant remittances: the case of Western Samoa. The Contemporary Pacific 4(1):109-135. [PACC DU1.C665]

4. Macpherson, Cluny (1985)

Public and private views of home: Will Western Samoan migrants return? In Mobility and Identity in the Island Pacific, edited by Murray Chapman, pp. 242-262. [HMLTN/PACC AS741.P3 v. 26 no.1]

5. Ravuvu, Asesela (1992)

Security and confidence as basic factors in Pacific Islanders' migration. Journal of the Polynesian Society 101:329-342.
[PACC GN2 .P7]

6. James, Kerry (1991)

Migration and remittances; a Tongan village perspective. Pacific Viewpoint 32(1):1-23. [PACC AS741.P3]

7. Hooper et. al. (1992)

Migration and Health in a Small Society. Chapter 7. The migrants and their communities. pp. 104-144. [PACC DU424.5 T65 M54 1992]

Rotuma:

Jan Rensel (1993)
The Fiji Connection: Migrant involvement in the economy of Rotuma. Pacific Viewpoint 34(2):215-240. [PACC AS741.P3]

Alan Howard and Jan Rensel (1994)
Rotuma in the 1990s: From Hinterland to Neighborhood. Journal of the Polynesian Society 103:227-254. [PACC GN2 .P7]

Nov 27 Polynesians Abroad (Group C)

Background reading: Alan Howard and Jan Rensel (Manuscript)

The transnational Rotuman community: Issues of identity and adjustment.

1. Janes, Craig (1990)

Migration, Social Change, and Health: A Samoan community in urban California. [PACC F870.S17 J36 1990]

2. Maureen Fitzgerald and Alan Howard (1990)
Aspects of Social Organization in three Samoan communities. Pacific Studies 14(1):31-54. [PACC DU1.P38]

3. Macpherson, Cluny (In Press)

Seiuli sits under the window: A Samoan migrant solution to the limitations of urban residential housing in New Zealand. In Housing and Social Change in the Pacific, edited by Jan Rensel and Margaret Rodman.

4. Franco, Robert, Simeamativa Aga, D. Thomas Keene (In Press)

From houses without walls to vertical villages: Samoan housing transformations. In Housing and Social Change in the Pacific, edited by Jan Rensel and Margaret Rodman.

5. Hooper et. al. (1992)

Migration and Health in a Small Society. Chapter 10. Social characteristics of the migrant communities. pp. 203-220.
[PACC DU424.5 T65 M54 1992]

6. 8. Hooper et. al. (1992)

Migration and Health in a Small Society. Chapter 11. Tokelauan institutions and assimilation in the migrant communities. pp. 221-240. [PACC DU424.5 T65 M54 1992]

Dec 6 Identity (Group D)

Background reading: Hau'ofa, Epeli (1994)

Our Sea of Islands. Contemporary Pacific 6(1):147-161.

1. Hereniko, Vilsoni (1994)

Representations of cultural identities. In Tides of History, edited by Kerry Howe, Robert C. Kiste and Brij Lal
[HMLTN/PACC DU28.3 T53 1994]

2. Howard, Alan (1990)
Cultural paradigms, history and the search for identity in Oceania. In Cultural Identity and Ethnicity in the Pacific, edited by J. Linnekin and L. Poyer, pp. 259-279.
[HMLTN/PACC GN662.C77 1990]

3. Stevenson, Karen (1992)

Politicization of la culture Ma'ohi: The creation of a Tahitian cultural identity. Pacific Studies 15(4):117-135. [PACC DU1.P38]

4. Macpherson, Cluny (1984)

On the future of Samoan ethnicity in New Zealand. In Tauiwi: Racisim and Ethnicity in New Zealand, edited by P. Spoonley, C. Macpherson, D. Pearson and C. Sedgwick, pp. 107-127.
[PACC DU422.5 T38 1984]

5. Dominy, Michelle (1990)

Maori sovereignty: a feminist invention of tradition. In Cultural Identity and Ethnicity in the Pacific, edited by J. Linnekin and L. Poyer, pp. 237-258. [HMLTN/PACC GN662.C77 1990]

6. Sinclair, Karen (1990)
Tangi: Funeral rituals and the construction of Maori identity. In Cultural Identity and Ethnicity in the Pacific, edited by J. Linnekin and L. Poyer. pp. 219-236. [HMLTN/PACC GN662.C77 1990]

Rotuma:
Alan Howard (1977)
Rotumans in Fiji: The Genesis of an Ethnic Group. In M. Lieber (ed.), Exiles and Migrants in Oceania. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press. [GN663.E9]
 

Dec 7 Polynesian Futures

Background reading: Borofsky, Robert and Alan Howard (1989)

Looking ahead, DPE, Chapter 9, pp. 277-291.
 

Dec 12 Final Exam 12-2

Issues and Questions for Discussion

Aug 30 Nomads of the Wind

1. What were the best things about this film? What were the worst things about it?

2. Did you find anything about the film to be misleading? If so, what and why?

3. What impressions does the film convey about Polynesian peoples?

4. What changes would you have advised the producers to make if you had been given the opportunity?

Sep 13 Environmental Issues

1. How susceptible are Polynesian island ecosystems to human impact?

2. What types of human activities changed the pristine environments prior to European contact?

3. What sorts of environmental problems are associated with economic development?

4. What environmental effects have been reported as a result of nuclear testing in French Polynesia?

Sep 20 Economics

1. What has been the impact of money on island social life?

2. Are Polynesian economies viable in the modern world?

3. What kinds of development would be appropriate for Polynesia?

4. Is Polynesian culture compatible with a modern economy?

Sep 27 Social Change

1. Which aspects of Polynesian culture have changed the most?

2. How has urbanization and migration to cities affected Polynesian societies?

3. What are the main problems brought about by social change?

4. How well are Polynesian peoples coping with the changes taking place in their societies?

Oct 4 Hierarchy and Politics

1. In what ways has the nature of chieftainship changed from earlier times?

2. To what extent have Polynesian societies democratized?

3. What kinds of problems have resulted from the democratization of Polynesian polities?

4. What has been the political legacy of colonialism in Polynesia?

Oct 11 Child Rearing and Character Development

1. What are the main things Polynesian parents try to teach their children?

2. In what ways do Polynesian socialization practices differ from middle class American practices?

3. What are the effects of multiple parenting and adoption on Polynesian upbringing?

4. Are Polynesian parents too harsh and abusive?

Oct 18 Gender Relations

1. How differentiated are gender roles in Polynesian societies?

2. What are the essential features of maleness? of femaleness?

3. How are gender roles and concepts of gender being affected by cultural change?

4. What roles do transvestites play in Polynesian societies, and how are those roles changing?

Oct 25 Myth & Religion

1. In what ways did traditional Polynesian religious beliefs reflect a distinctive world view?

2. What impact has Christianity had on Polynesian societies?

3. What roles do spirits play in contemporary Polynesian societies?

4. How does possession by spirits reflect strains within Polynesian societies?

Nov 1 Health and Welfare

1. How do Polynesian healing practices reflect their traditional theories of health and illness?

2. What are the main health problems among contemporary Polynesians? What does this tell us about the kinds of problems confronting Polynesians today?

3. What accounts for the high levels of violence noted in some Polynesian populations?

4. What effects are changing diets and activity patterns having on Polynesian populations?

Nov 8 Art and Society

1. What kinds of changes have taken place in Polynesian art forms over the past century?

2. In what ways do artistic productions and performances serve political causes in Polynesian societies?

3. How is tourism affecting art forms in Polynesian societies?

4. In what ways do art forms serve as symbols of ethnic identity?

Nov 22 Migration

1. What have been the main economic effects of outmigration on home islands?

2. In what ways have dependence on remittances from relatives abroad affected Polynesian societies?

3. What have been the social consequences of increased population flows from and to home islands?

4. What kinds of problems have developed on home islands as a result of the dispersal of Polynesian populations to foreign lands?

Nov 27 Polynesians Abroad

1. What factors have determined the destinations to which Polynesians have emigrated?

2. What have been the main problems encountered by Polynesian migrants in foreign lands?

3. Describe the strategies and practices Polynesians have employed in adapting to new environments?

4. How successful have Polynesians been in adapting to foreign environments?

Dec 6 Identity

1. In what ways has the construction of Polynesian people's sense of cultural identity changed over the past century?

2. What kinds of identity issues have emerged as a result of intermarriage with non-Polynesians? as a result of living abroad?

3. What kinds of symbols (and activities) are being used by contemporary Polynesians to assert their cultural identities?

4. What are the political implications of asserting cultural identities in modern Polynesia?

Comments

Videotapes: We used exerpts from our own videotapes from fieldwork to illustrate topics for several weeks. Vilsoni Hereniko's videotape of a clown performing at a "Rotuman Wedding," and "Samoan Heart," about two contemporary Samoan artists from a video series distributed by "Pacific Islanders in Communication, "were very effective. We also began the course by showing the first episode of the Nature program, "Nomads of the Wind," which generated a lively discussion about representation.

Student panel presentations: The first time we taught this course we assigned specific readings to individual students, five or six to present on a given day. The second time we characterized the reading list as a "starter list" and assigned the TOPICS to the panels as groups, leaving it to them to decide among themselves how to cover the topic and who would present what. It worked much better to allow them this element of choice, and the presentations really came across as a coherent panel. Some students still stayed within a sort of "book report" frame, but others explored topics in depth, reading all of the suggested readings and bringing in additional sources. In the evaluations the students said they got a lot out of giving the panel presentations (they noticeably improved over the course of the semester), but they were somewhat less favorable about listening to their fellow students.

upload:1/97

oceania | academic programs | people | outreach | resources | publications
news & events | about the center | contact | home | text only site

© 2005, UHM, Center for Pacific Island Studies. | Site Credits