The Whale Rider Essay

The degree in which Aboriginal identity is explored within King’s short story is bold, yet contains subtleties pertaining to the mindset of the younger generation. While identity on the mothers behalf is clear and unaltered by societal

The film “Whale Rider” is an example of gender discrimination. It is a story about a girl, Paikea, who wants to be the new leader of her tribe. Paikea Apirana is the female protagonist of the film. She is an 11 year old girl, who was born into the Whangara patriarchal tribe. But Maori tradition states that only a male can carry the knowledge and be the leader of the tribe. Because of this, her grandfather, Koro the current leader, does not allow her to join in the leader training. She never gives up. And finally, she becomes the first female leader of the Maori tribe.

As predicted the stadium was packed full, leaving a handful of places to sit up front near the band and cheerleaders. She gave Capri that look, the rightful glance that screamed ' I told you so.' She would have been more mad, but she happened to like the marching band for the most part, so sitting by them was not as terrible as it is for most. Plus, Alix Hale just asked her out on a date, how could she let herself be brought down. Not to mention the greasy intoxicating smell of something fried and fattening beckoning her to spread all her money on one morsel of food to shove down her throat.

Killer whales are one of the most fascinating displays of ocean life. The killer whale has characteristics that are important to its survival in the ocean. It is interesting to know that killer whales have a plentiful diet. It is astounding to see how killer whales behave in the ocean. I plan to tell you about the killer whale, its characteristics, its diet, and its behavior in the ocean as well as the predation of the orca.

Rawiri plays an important role in the novel which helped unfolding the events, ranging from minor to significant ones. He relates the events in the ‘Whale Rider’ as the role of the narrator, allowing the readers to form judgements and learn about things such as the Maori way of life and the characters through his eyes. He also give us his insights as he highlights themes and issues mentioned, like racial discrimination. Besides that, he is the one who sees the many signs of Kahu’s destiny as the leader of the tribe, piecing up a complete picture of her eventual rise as the leader. Additionally, he is her guardian, always protecting and looking out for her. With his carefree personality, he often provides comic relief especially in times of

My animal is the Northern Right Whale. I have chosen this animal because they are very adorable and majestic animals and I wouldn’t think that a whale would be endangered because of how big they are. But my report is going to be about where it is from, what it eats, what is its ecosystem and what animals are in its ecosystem, and etc. Northern Right Whales originated in North Atlantic Ocean.

Another aspect of the film that Niki Caro explores is the way the power and control affects the lives of anyone in a given society. In the film, Pai’s grandfather Koro exerts his power over Pai by informing her that she will never be leader of the tribe due to her gender. Throughout the film he continuously tells her that she is the reason that the tribe may be at its final downfall. Even though she did nothing wrong, her being female makes her grandfather feel let down. Koro is in charge of everything that the people of the tribe do on a regular basis. He is the person who makes all of the decisions and controls all events. The presence of his power makes him seem like more of an intimidating figure who can control the lives of others.

Just as a candle cannot burn without fire, people cannot live without a spiritual connection. Having a spiritual connection to one’s ancestor’s can be a powerful ability. The connection between the real world and the spiritual is a thin line, so when people are able to communicate, it means that these people are special. Paikea’s spiritual connection to her ancestors is what starts the rebirth of the destruction of the Maori culture. Paikea is the rebirth of the Maori tribe, its culture, and she is the future of equality. In Campbell’s “The Four Functions of Myth”. Campbell’s four functions of myth are found in the film, Whale Rider, as Pai discovers her sense of self as she reinvents the Maori tribe’s perspectives of the creation myth to heroically

In the Whale Rider, Nani Flowers is a stronger role model than Koro. She always advocated for Kahu, and continuously stood up against Koro’s traditional beliefs about women. Secondly, Nani Flower was forgiving and altruistic towards everyone, even with Koro, in spite of his rigid attitude with Kahu. In contrast, Koro was blinded by tradition, thus making Kahu feel as if she was not good enough for Koro simply due to the fact that she was a girl, a factor she could not control. Therefore, Nani Flowers is evidently the better role model.

In the film 'Whale Rider', by Niki Caro which follows the journey of a young girl named Paikea Apirana and her struggle for acceptance as a leader of her Māori iwi, and especially her grandfather. An important character in this film is Pai herself. This character has significant importance as she is used to portray numerous important ideas and themes throughout the film. Pai helps me to understand and appreciate that women can also be leaders that are equal to men if they have the right attributes. The director Niki Caro uses numerous different film techniques to convey this idea, such as; the camera shots and camera angles when Pai is giving her speech to Koro, the use of camera angles and props in relation to the dialogue when Pai if fixing the motorboat engine, and the use of props when Pai is teaching herself to use the Taiaha.

The school that Kura, Riripeti, and the rest of the children attend is one that has been colonized by the English. At this school, the children’s native language of Maori, is banned on all school grounds; English, being the only acceptable language to be spoken. The Maori children are forced to forget their native Maori identity, learn and accept their given English names and ultimately assimilate under the current English ruling.

Have you ever thought about why killing whales is so bad? Whaling is a cruel and inhumane process of killing whales and should be ban worldwide for good. To start, the whales people are killing off help keep our ecosystem going and without them most fish will die by 2028. Also, whaling isn’t legal in most places and over 1,500 whales are killed illegally through the year. Finally, the whaling process causes certain whales for example the Minke Whale to go more vulnerable than they already are.

“From the 1970s, a major cultural shift known as the ‘Maori Renaissance’ created a context for the emergence of a Maori perspective in New Zealand filmmaking.” The New Zealand feature film, Ngati is considered to be a product of the ‘Maori Renaissance’ and it remains a noteworthy film today for being the first film directed a Maori, namely Barry Barclay. This essay seeks to examine the racial representations of Maori and Pakeha, the historical context of the late 1940s and the Maori identity in Ngati. Barclay’s film is unlike previous films such as The Romance of Hinemoa, The Te Kooti Trial and Rewi’s Last Stand which was based on a dominating Pakeha perspective. The release of Ngati signalled a turn of tables in favour of Maori as they were able to present Maori and Pakeha representations, the historical context of the late 1940s and Maori identity from their perspective.

The article, Stereotypical Constructions of the Maori ‘Race’ in the Media, written by Melanie Wall (1997), can be summarised as an article focusing on the effect the colonisation of New Zealand had on the Maori as a population. It mainly focuses on the way Maori have been imagined as the stereotypical ‘Black Other’. It speaks of the perpetuation and (re)formation of Maori identities, including the way Maori are constrained by their ‘Black Other’ stereotype within New Zealand. The article talks about representations of race through ‘identity images’, the effect of the Maori Renaissance (in particular its effect on identity formations), and Maori Stereotypes in the Media.

The following paper examines the history and religion of the ancient Maori people. It is my belief that exploration of traditional belief systems and ritualistic practices will lead to a greater understanding of the Maori culture in present-day New Zealand. The objective of the paper is to illustrate the Maoris’ unique perception and spiritual connection with their natural environment.