Bailey Clarke
Stories (1/0)
What Is Hawaiian Literature
What is Hawaiian Literature? Being someone who has very little background on the topic, I entered my Hawaiian literature class with little to no knowledge on the topic. I didn't even know the English class I had enrolled in was for Hawaiian lit. But curious to learn, I thought about what constitutes as literature. The dictionary defines literature as “written works, especially those considered of superior or lasting artistic merit.” But in the beginning, Hawaiian literature is mostly verbal stories. The stories tell a history of the land, the people, and the culture. Stories are an important part of the culture. Highly educated writer Thomas King discusses the importance and intimacy of a story, and how once you hear a story it becomes yours to tell. The way you tell it will never be the same as how you heard it before. Sometimes the details will changed or be seen differently. However with Hawaiian literature, they tell their stories with the same details as the person before them. It's a part of their culture and history. They started their literature off orally, which is why it is so important that the facts stay the same way, to preserve their history. Later when the missionaries came, written Hawaiian literature started to become more prevalent. They had many newspapers that were made to teach the Hawaiian people of stories. But what is the importance of Hawaiian literature, and who has the authority to create Hawaiian literature, or deem it to be proper and authentic Hawaiian literature?
By Bailey Clarke6 years ago in Wander