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University ofHawai'i Graduate School One Person, Two Worlds? Two Persons, One World? Cultural Identity Through the Eyes ofNew Zealand Born Samoans by MaryK. Chun A Research Paper in Partial Fulfillment ofthe Requirements for a Master's Degree in Pacific Islands Studies -r£ft6.tlJQ W~9>U3. 'f -£.Gl \nf KMZW~ ~MN nA-iE-I?- . May 2000 Abstract The purpose ofthis paper is to examine the cultural identity ofNew Zealand born Samoans by analyzing interviews conducted with several individuals in the Auckland area. My research is concerned with the factors that shape their cultural and personal identity, such as their fluency in the Samoan language, their adherence to Samoan cultural practices and values, and their family life. They expressed in detail their perceptions ofthe Samoan culture, how they managed to function and adapt in two different worlds. The process ofmigration has brought about a transformation ofthe fa 'a Samoa (the Samoan Way), and the degree ofadherence to it by migrant parents affects the next generation's perception ofthe Samoan culture. Surrounded by non-Samoan influences, young Samoans born in Aotearoa will inevitably choose to abandon, modify, hold on to, and/or return to thefa 'a Samoa as it fits within their lives and goals. Another factor in the formation ofcultural identity, the concept ofopposition, is analyzed in this paper. One ofthe most difficult processes ofcultural adjustment for the New Zealand borns is the treatment and stereotyping they experience from their own Samoan born counterparts. This intra-group opposition greatly affects the cultural orientation and selfidentity ofmany young Samoans. This research paper shows how the fa 'a Samoa is changing in the hands ofthe new retainers born in New Zealand, forming hybrid and unique versions ofthe "traditional fa 'a Samoa" in order to fit their new way ofliving in a non-Samoan environment. IV Table of Contents Abstract iv List ofTables vi Introduction.................................................................................................................. 1 Chapter 1: Samoan Migration and the New Zealand Borns' Experience 10 Chapter 2: Two Views on Culture 18 Chapter 3: The New Zealand Born Perspective ofthe Fa'a Samoa 23 Chapter 4: Looking for a Samoan Identity 47 Chapter 5: The Opposition and the New Zealand Borns' Reactions 55 Conclusion 64 Appendix 67 References 68 v List of Tables Table 1: New Zealand Born Pacific Islander Population, 1996 12 Table 2: Population ofSamoan Ethnicity Resident in New Zealand, 1986-1996 13 Table 3: Languages Spoken by Birthplace, 1996 34 VI Introduction "... I had a lot ofEuropean friends and I didn't quite fit into the European way - the lifestyle and stuff - and then, I didn't quite fit into the Samoan way ofdoing things because my parents were very hard line on that. They wouldn't, they didn't teach us how to speak Samoan. So all I learned was from my friends and that, about Samoan culture and that. And because I couldn't speak Samoan and most ofmy family could - even my cousins - it was sort ofisolated in that way, so I didn't quite belong in either worlds." - Lise "Well, when you're born here, you're told you're Samoan by your parents, but when you go to school and when you're growing up from New Zealand - facing you is New Zealanders. And when you go home, it's a different world. Like, you're expected to live by what way our parents brought back from the islands. So, it's like ... you know, live a life outside ofhome and live the island life in the house. So you had two personalities in a sense." - Rose "At times I do, especially when I go to Samoa - when we visit home - because what you see there is nothing to what you're used to. You think that you're traditional, but when you go there you begin to learn that halfthe things your parents have told you, you know, the things your parents told you is really like halftruths about your culture because there are some things which are very, very extreme Samoan ... Yeah, I do get caught up when it's real fa 'a Samoa. That's when I begin to doubt, 'Well, maybe I'm not really Samoan. I'm just a New Zealand sort ofversion of it." - Mata Do you ever wonder about where you belong and how you came to be there? Or, maybe you already believe that you belong to something, but are not quite sure how you fit into it or what part you play? Have you ever felt caught between two worlds or felt that you were two different people functioning in one world? Which world do you belong to? Which world do you actually identify with and how did you come to that identity? Do you reject, modify, or constantly fluctuate between those two worlds? I asked these questions ofseveral New Zealand born Samoans, and the responses I received were surprising and enlightening. The replies above are just a few ofmany made by my informants when asked whether they felt caught between two worlds - being ethnically Samoan, 1 but born in New Zealand. They detailed how they perceived the Samoan culture, how they functioned in two very different worlds, and how they viewed the stages ofadaptation they underwent. It is the personal accounts from young Samoan people themselves which are absent in the literature. I have found those insights extremely valuable to my own understanding of cultural identification and change for the Samoan people. Because ofthis, you will be hearing a great deal oftheir voices throughout this paper as we look into the personal and cultural identification ofNew Zealand born Samoans. The purpose ofmy paper is to document how a first generation ofNew Zealand born Samoans perceive themselves culturally, and what factors produce and shape that identity. I will do this by examining their attitudes toward the Samoan language, cultural practices, family life, and values. I will further examine and analyze what I believe to be an additional factor in the formation ofcultural identity - the concept ofopposition. This is not an opposition that is necessarily between the dominant society and the immigrant community, but an opposition that involves members ofthe same ethnic group (Anae 1995). I will be specifically looking at the responses ofNew Zealand born Samoans to the treatment and perceptions oftheir Samoan born counterparts because oftheir foreign birthplace and adaptation to a western environment. These opposing views and splits between members ofthe same ethnicity I found to be another decisive influence on how New Zealand-Samoans have come to perceive their cultural identity and in turn, how that identity continues to affect their socialization. Cluny MacPherson, in his paper about ethnic and cultural identity ofSamoan migrants in New Zealand, suggests that, "... [they] showed little inclination to set aside Samoan values and institutions in favour ofthose ofthe host community. Samoan migrants exhibited a strong sense 2 ofethnic identity and a pride in that identity ..." (1995:3). According to this statement, Samoans consciously attempt to keep their language, customs, and values; not necessarily because ofan aversion to the host community's institutions, but due to the familiarity ofthe Samoan way ofliving, which is calledfa 'a Samoa. It is this tight grip on the culture encompassed by thefa 'a Samoa that has kept their indigenous language and way oflife alive, even after the infiltration ofthe western value system within the Samoan islands. Yet I believe we are now witnessing a transition within the fa 'a Samoa in New Zealand, in which the children ofSamoan immigrants are "reinterpreting" what is or, for that matter, what is not passed down to them as they attempt to function within a non-Samoan cultural setting. New cultural practices are continuously developing, and it can never be said that the evolution or maturity ofthe Samoan culture is complete. In the same way, neither can it be said that the end point ofSamoan cultural identity has been attained. So what is the fa 'a Samoa becoming ifone takes the view that culture is always in transition? Can it be calledfa 'a Samoa ifa child is reared with influences and values other than what is traditionally considered Samoan in Samoa? Ifone takes the opposing view that the fa 'a Samoa can never change, then many children in New Zealand that are Samoan by ethnicity would not be considered truly Samoan culturally because they were raised with more non-Samoan influences and a radically alteredfa 'a Samoa. This is where the interesting transition and development ofthe Samoan identity occur, and it is at this intersection that this study examines the cultural perceptions and factors that have led the New Zealand-Samoan young people to their particular attitudes and beliefs. The level at which an individual such as a Samoan is able to participate within his or her culture depends on conditions such as the degree ofexposure, the kind ofencouragement, 3 opportunities for interaction, and the opposition experienced toward the culture by non-Samoans and Samoans alike. All these influence the acquisition ofone's cultural identity. In this paper, I will discuss several factors which affect the construction and retention ofboth cultural identity and personal identity, such as language use, home environment, social environment, church involvement, local community activities, and extended family involvement. Descriptions of home life and parental influence are essential in this research in order to understand Samoan cultural identity and social adjustment. I will also examine the idea ofopposition within the same ethnic group as important in understanding the process ofdeveloping and evolving cultural identity and for the maintenance ofthe Samoan culture by New Zealand born Samoans. Anthropologist Edward Spicer has emphasized the concept ofopposition as a mechanism utilized by a "persistent identity system" (1971).