Eng 257M & Hist 288 Learning Community

Fall 2007

last updated 11/29/07

 

 

Think/Write Questions

Think/Write Directions

1. Identify a way in which the values of Pacific Islanders conflict with Western values.  Do you think this difference could explain some of the issues facing Pacific islanders today?

2. What stereotypes against Pacific Islanders or Westerners (i.e. haole, palagi, pakeha) do you think are most prevalent today?  How do you think these stereotypes could be overcome?  

3. What do you think is most important in defining one’s identity?  Is it ancestry, place, or experiences?

4. Do you think one’s cultural identity is easier to define when contrasted with another?

5. For those who are doing Service Learning. Why did you choose SL?  What do you hope to learn from this experience?

6. For those who participated in the loko i'a (fishpond) service project on Saturday (8/25 or 11/17). Mai maka'u i ka hana; maka'u i ka moloa. (Don't be afraid of work; be afraid of being lazy.) Ma ka hana ka ‘ike. (In working one learns.) How did your work at Waikalua Loko help you understand either or both of these 'olelo no'eau?

Think/Write #1 is due on WebCT by 11:59 p.m. on Wed (8/29). Please read all posted Think/Writes before class on Fri (8/31).

7. How has "Tales of the Tikongs" helped you to see at least one of our course themes (i.e. identity, assimilation/alienation, culture conflict, colonialism/post-colonialism, storytelling, importance of place) in a new way?

8. Regarding "Tales of the Tikongs," what is true in this comical depiction of a fictional place?

All students must choose a "Tales of the Tikongs" question (either #7 or #8) for Think/Write #2, which is due on WebCT by 11:59 p.m. on Sun (9/9). Please read all posted Think/Writes before class on Wed (9/12).

9. What is history and how is it, or should it be, transmitted?

10. If you could invite only one native author to a conference to discuss islander identity and how it should be represented to the rest of the world, which of the following authors would you choose to invite: Epeli Hau'ofa, Vilsoni Hereniko, or Patricia Grace? Why?

11. Do you think classifying Pacific islanders into cultural categories (Melanesia, Micronesia, Polynesia) adds to or distracts from our understanding of them?

12. Do you think classifying Pacific islanders into cultural categories (Melanesia, Micronesia, Polynesia) adds to or distracts from their understanding of themselves?

13. For those who are doing Service Learning. Describe your duties and responsibilities at your SL site. What new information are you learning and/or skills are you acquiring from this SL experience?

14. For those who participated in the "Get the Drift & Bag It!" coastal cleanup on Saturday (9/15). What did you learn about yourself, KCC, and the larger community from your experience of helping to clean Queen's beach?

Think/Write #3 is due on WebCT by 11:59 p.m. on Wed (9/19). Please read all posted Think/Writes before class on Fri (9/21).

15. Considering that the Pacific navigators and European discoverers were voyaging into the same unknown waters at different periods in history, which do you admire the most? Why?

16. Considering the role of ethnocentrism, how accurate and useful are the journals and images of early European explorers?

17. To what extent did both Europeans and/or Pacific islanders incorporate the perceptions of "the other" into their own cultural framework?

18. How does the "First Contact" video challenge or reinforce common stereotypes?

Think/Write #4 is due on WebCT by 11:59 p.m. on Wed (10/3). Please read all posted Think/Writes before class on Fri (10/5).

19. Considering either a specific trade (e. g. sandalwood) or a specific place where trade occurred (e. g. Hawaii), do you think there was exploitation of one side over the other or was the interaction mutually beneficial?

20. For those who are doing Service Learning. Share specific SL experiences that stand out in your mind.  Why do you think they made such an impression on you?

21. How representative is Hiram Nihoa of the cultural conflict that was occurring in Hawaii during his lifetime?

22. What is added by having both Hiram Nihoa and Saul Bristol as narrators? What would be lost if the Saul Bristol section were omitted?

Think/Write #5 is due on WebCT by 11:59 p.m. on Fri (10/19). Please read all posted Think/Writes before class on Wed (10/24).

23. For those who participated in the lo'i kalo (taro patch) service project on Saturday (10/20 or 11/10). How did your taro patch experience complement what you're learning in this class? Did you learn any lessons that go beyond the study of history or literature (i.e. work, community, the learning process)?

24. Why do you think Christianity became so firmly imbedded in the various Pacific islands?

25. What insights about Christianity in the Pacific islands are provided from reading Tales of the Tikongs and/or Ka'a'awa?

26. To answer this question you need to read two articles posted on WebCT: “The Westward Voyage” and “Hawaiian Missionaries in the Marquesas.” After reading Ta'unga and Kauwealoha's accounts of their missionary experiences, do you think their Christian perspectives are similar to the perspectives of other foreign missionaries, or do they offer a unique islander perspective?

27. What were the forces -- religious, political, economic, military, or cultural -- that led to unification of the kingdoms of Tahiti, Hawaii, and Tonga?

28. The military victories of Pomare II, Kamehameha I, and Taufa'ahau allowed them to unify their kingdoms. What were some of the benefits of unification? Did the ends jusfify the means?

29. Did the advantages of unification outweigh the disadvantages?

Think/Write #6 is due on WebCT by 11:59 p.m. on Wed (10/31). Please read all posted Think/Writes before class on Fri (11/2).

30. How has All I Asking for Is My Body helped you to see at least one of our course themes (i.e. identity, assimilation/alienation, culture conflict, colonialism/post-colonialism, storytelling, importance of place) in a new way?

31. What, for you, is the most important conflict in this book (i.e. cultural, generational, economic, social, class, ethnic)? How is this conflict revealed? Is it resolved in any way?

32. How well does Kiyo resolve the conflicts in his life? Does he achieve "freedom"?

33. What is the role of sporting events such as boxing? Why do the young men want to participate? Why does the plantation encourage this?

All students must choose an All I Asking for Is My Body question (#30 thru #33) for Think/Write #7, which is due on WebCT by 11:59 p.m. on Sun (11/11). Please read all posted Think/Writes before class on Wed (11/14).

34. Campbell said: “The history of the partition of the Pacific islands does not fit very well the idea of predatory European imperialist nations grasping for every speck of available land.” Do you agree with his assessment?

35. Were Gordon’s “Native” policies in Fiji better in the long run than those enacted in other British colonies?

36. How did the history and impact of colonization in Micronesia differ from what happened in Polynesia and Melanesia?

37. For those who are doing Service Learning. How has this SL experience impacted you as a person and as a student of Pacific Islands history and literature?

Think/Write #8 is due on WebCT by 11:59 p.m. on Sun (11/25). Please read all posted Think/Writes before class on Wed (11/28).

38. (Continuation of class activity)  Using your own private time machine what place and time would you visit in order to:  a) spend some time there for personal enrichment or b) try to change the course of history for the better?  You can assume that once there you will be able to enter into the mainstream of life, in whatever way you wish.

39. What new insights have you acquired as a result of taking this course?  The areas you could address are history, literature or the learning community experience.

40. For those who participated in the Kaniakapupu service project on Sunday (12/2). What did you learn about the site, the volunteers who maintain it, and Hawaiian history by helping at Kamehameha III's summer home in Nu'uanu?

Think/Write #9 is due on WebCT by 11:59 p.m. on Sun (12/2). Please read all posted Think/Writes before class on Wed (12/5).