Becoming Tangata Whenua: An Investigation into Witi Ihimaera's Construction of a (Post)Colonial Maori Identity
Author
Vangsgaard, Sofie
Term
4. term
Education
Publication year
2021
Submitted on
2021-08-19
Pages
48
Abstract
This thesis examines how author Witi Ihimaera constructs a (post)colonial Māori identity in his semi-biographical novels The Matriarch (1986) and The Dream Swimmer (1997) against the backdrop of colonisation’s legacies and the Māori renaissance in a bicultural Aotearoa/New Zealand. Based on close reading, the study employs an interdisciplinary framework that combines etic theories of identity (Erik H. Erikson’s psychosocial development, Anthony Giddens’s reflexive self, Edward Said’s Orientalism, and Homi K. Bhabha’s hybridity) with emic models of Māori identity (Mason H. Durie and Carla A. Houkamau & Chris G. Sibley). The analysis shows that Ihimaera constructs his Māori identity by working through a split, conflictual, and enduring colonial legacy. That identity is articulated through five key aspects: whakapapa (genealogy), wairuatanga (spirituality), tōrangapū Māori (Māori politics), whanaungatanga (kinship and reciprocity), and whakahī (pride). Through this construction, he contests orientalist discourse, resists ongoing marginalisation, and questions the notion that the society is “post-colonial” in the sense of being beyond colonialism. The thesis thus demonstrates how Māori literature operates as a site for negotiating indigenous identity and for reclaiming tangata whenua (people of the land) status.
Dette speciale undersøger, hvordan forfatteren Witi Ihimaera gennem sine semi-biografiske romaner The Matriarch (1986) og The Dream Swimmer (1997) konstruerer en (post)kolonial māorisk identitet i lyset af kolonisationens eftervirkninger og den politiske Māori-renæssance i et tosproget Aotearoa/New Zealand. Med udgangspunkt i nærlæsning anvender studiet en tværfaglig teoretisk ramme, der forener etiske perspektiver på identitet (Erik H. Eriksons psykosociale udvikling, Anthony Giddens’ refleksive selv, Edward Saids orientalisme og Homi K. Bhabbas hybriditet) med emiske modeller for Māori-identitet (Mason H. Durie samt Carla A. Houkamau og Chris G. Sibley). Analysen viser, at Ihimaera skaber sin māoriske identitet ved at arbejde sig igennem en splittet, konfliktfuld og vedvarende kolonial arv. Identiteten artikuleres gennem fem nøgleaspekter: whakapapa (slægt/afstamning), wairuatanga (spiritualitet), tōrangapū Māori (māorisk politik), whanaungatanga (familiale og gensidige relationer) og whakahī (stolthed). Gennem denne konstruktion udfordrer han orientalistiske fortællinger, modstår fortsat marginalisering og problematiserer forestillingen om, at samfundet er “postkolonialt” i betydningen hinsides kolonialisme. Specialet viser dermed, hvordan māorisk litteratur fungerer som et sted for forhandling af indfødte identiteter og for at genkræve status som tangata whenua (folk af landet).
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