ipl-logo

Culture And Tradition In The Whale Rider

1111 Words5 Pages

The whale rider illustrates that culture and tradition can be both a positive and negative thing in people’s lives. Do you agree?

Each person has a different view on culture and tradition. Some people look at culture and tradition as something that plays a significant role in their lives, while some don’t see them playing an important part of their lives. In my opinion, I do not think that culture and tradition are important roles that affect our lives. And so I am going to be discussing the positive and negative features of culture and tradition.

“The Whale Rider” focused on many different subjects - family, society, poverty, loss, gender discrimination etc… But the main focus was Koro’s attitude towards Kahu. Despite Kahu repeatedly showing her capability and leadership qualities, Koro still ignores her because he thinks that she should not take a role that was …show more content…

Traditionally, respect must be shown to men by women and children, and this was shown in the novel. Also, not only is respect shown to men, it is also shown to God, people at higher ranks and ancestors. In “The Whale Rider”, Koro was showing respect to the Maori traditional custom by refusing to accept Kahu as a leader, even though she had the qualities to lead the tribe. If he had let Kahu to learn and lead the tribe, he would not be respecting the Maori traditional culture. As Shakespeare once said “All the world 's a stage, and all the men and women merely players: they have their exits and their entrances; and one man in his time plays many parts, his acts being seven ages.”Personally, I think respect to women is also as important as respect to traditional culture because there is no reason why men are better than women, men have their advantages and strengths while women also have their own. The reason that there are both men and women is so they could support each other, live together and

Show More
Related
199 Words | 1 Pages

Typically, society and family are the forerunners on what is believed by each new generation, leaving little room for change. Having a system based in tradition could, and most likely will, result in poor outcomes. Traditionally, women are seen as the weaker sex, the homemaker. This began to pose a problem when there became need for women to go out and find work in order to keep their families and themselves alive. Within the United States, immigration played a role in this.

Read More
905 Words | 4 Pages

In whale rider, the grandfather, Koro, is very set in his ways. He is follows the traditions of the Maori culture and is looking for the next chief of the tribe. Pai is clearly the best candidate, but Koro will not see this because she is a girl and he believes that the chief has to be a boy. Koro continues to follow his traditions, but it becomes clear that the tribe needs to adapt their traditions to fit the modern world. They need to find a way to keep the core lessons and values, but continue to grow and learn as a society.

Read More
1210 Words | 5 Pages

Culture is highly influential on an individual, until it isn’t. Similar to the latest trends or crazes of society, culture only affects the perspectives of people until something new is introduced. In reality, that might include an individual straying away from the values of their family in order to create their own sense of culture, which causes their family to not influence their perspectives anymore. In literature, such as the novel Bless Me, Ultima, and the short stories of “Everyday Use,” “Occupation: Conductorette,” and “Going to Japan,” this theme of culture only influencing a character for a limited amount of time still persists. The culture of an individual influences their perspective on the others and the world, but only until the

Read More
628 Words | 3 Pages

Every day we use our culture. Whether it be to argue claims, express opinions, or make decisions, culture plays a part in each area. Culture is who we are, one’s identity, its extent is enormous over our views and actions. A person grows up surrounded with culture at a young age. This can affect how they learn and what they learn.

Read More
1065 Words | 5 Pages

In the beginning of the film Koro goes to see his son at the hospital. In this scene the sons wife has just died and there is a person speaking chants in their native tounge over her dead body. As Koro enters the room the first thing he says in a room full of mourning people is “Where is the boy?” He does not acknowledge the dead woman, or address the pain of his son’s loss. My assumption is that Koro feels an overwhelming pressure to find a new tribe leader.

Read More
1001 Words | 5 Pages

Dave Berry once said, “There 's nothing wrong with enjoying looking at the surface of the ocean itself, except that when you finally see what goes on underwater,you realize that you 've been missing the whole point of the ocean. Staying on the surface all the time is like going to the circus and staring at the outside of the tent..” By the outside, someone may look like they fit in, while the adversities one deals with internally are hidden on the inside. The struggles one goes through needs to really be brought up to attention and the attempt to understand what one goes through day to day must happen. In From Silence to Words Writing as a Struggle, Min-Zhan Lu explains the struggles experienced growing up in China and the influences of

Read More
439 Words | 2 Pages

While the definition of culture has changed dramatically since the 16th century the ideals of social expectations as well as the influence of war have not as today many people still are influenced by these cultural definitions. In conclusion, “Much Ado About Nothing” ultimately defines the structure of human nature through painting a complex understanding of cultural influence that still compares greatly to the 21 century

Read More
1870 Words | 8 Pages

The Impact of Culture and Gender Roles Heather Richardson-Barker Drexel University Society has clearly defined boundaries between what is considered to be male or female. The development of an individual’s gender role is formed by interactions with those in close proximity. Society constantly tells us how we should look, act and live based on gender, as well as the influence of family, friends and the media have a tremendous impact on how these roles are formed and the expected behavior of each gender role. The term Gender, as defined by the United Nations, includes the psychological, social, cultural, and behavioral characteristics associated with being female or male. It further defines acceptable

Read More
1501 Words | 7 Pages

The issue of women’s rights and how different societies and cultures deal with it had been on the table for many centuries. In the United States of America during the 1800s, women began to move toward and demand getting equal rights as men, they decided to speak up and fight for their stolen rights. In the 1960s, continued working toward their goal, women broadened their activities through the women’s rights movement which aimed to help them in gaining their right to receive education, occupy the same jobs that were once titled only for men, and get an access to leadership positions. The women’s rights movement has a great impact on women today, although it started a long time ago, but it did not stop and women are reaping their fruit today,

Read More
1355 Words | 6 Pages

Without the knowledge of what culture is and does, we as a society would be lost. In the essay, “An Indian Father’s Plea” by Robert Lake, the author takes to explain to his audience that your culture can greatly impact your perspective of others. For example, when the teacher Wind-Wolf a slow learner, the father writes a letter explaining why wind-wolf is not, but in fact the opposite. The author said “If you ask him how many months there are in a year he will probably tell you 13. He will respond this way not because he does not know how to count, but because he was taught by our traditional people.”

Read More
476 Words | 2 Pages

Women’s place and role in the society is something that has been discussed and changed over time. Should their rights be the same as men’s? Should they be superior? Inferior? The world faces a dilemma on weather they should be or not equal as men.

Read More
1622 Words | 7 Pages

The idea that women are viewed as “less-than” in society is expressed in this quote. Gender roles are the social norms that define how we should act, speak, dress, groom, and conduct ourselves. It’s common to see expectations placed on girls and women to act nicely, be accommodating, and be nurturing. Typically, men are expected to be strong, brave,

Read More
474 Words | 2 Pages

WHALE RIDER The film ‘whale rider; was directed by Niki Caro. The story is a representation of the importance of tradition and ancestry. Symbolism is used in this film to help to show the importance of the community they live in and the elders and ancestors that have helped to build and structure their religion and the people that live within the community. The symbols that will best represent the importance of the film are the whale tooth, the bike and the windows.

Read More
847 Words | 4 Pages

In this essay, the positive and negative aspects of both points of view will be explored in detail. First of all, what is possibly one of the undeniable positive aspects of being allowed to express cultural identity is the fact that you are able to be true to yourself. As long as it is what you want, being able to express your cultural identity is a form of freedom. In this expression of culture, you have the

Read More
981 Words | 4 Pages

The part and role in which women played in their society significantly varies throughout the world, depending on the place and region. However, they all share a common similarity in which men are the most dominant in every aspect of society, therefore, men are perceived to have more authority and power than women. In the comparison of ancient civilizations and modern times, it is significant how the rights and roles of women have positively changed, giving women more chances and opportunities in society, therefore, influencing and impacting society in many beneficial ways as well as, nowadays, women and men are finally seen as

Read More

More about Culture And Tradition In The Whale Rider

Related Topics

Open Document