Hawaiian Pig God Sparknotes

Insecure beginnings to boastful habits. Obnoxiously flaring their masculine attributes describes nearly every male in today’s society. Kamapua’a’s exasperating norm makes him a prime example of what a teenage boy is bound to go through. His pig-like features ironically fit the pig-like attitudes of boys. In her translated epic A Legendary Tradition of Kamapua’a, The Hawaiian Pig-God, Lilikalā Kame’eleihiwa relates Kamapua’a to a teenage boy in today’s society by describing his insecure youth, boastfulness character, and rascal decisions in order to serve as a warning to young girls about the inevitable heartache boys will cause them.

Kame’eleihiwa’s translate speaks about the early days of Kamapua’a. Birthed from the forbidden love that was

Kame’eleihiwa’s translated epic depicts Kamapua’a’s character swing from an insecure pig to a strong and boastful being. In the beginning of the epic Kamapua’a’s older brother, Kekelei’aikū watches over him and states, “I pity my little pig” (Kame’eleihiwa 16) because he does not believe in Kamapua’as abilities. Later in the epic after Kamapua’a has matured he begins to receive attention from many different women in this epic. Kame’eleihiwa was, “a person greatly admired by the onlookers, as a beautiful man and as the best of the warriors” (Kame’eleihiwa 101) which made him desired by most. Similar to Kamapua’a, teenage boys begin unconfident and unwilling, however overtime as their body matures their ego grows. In this epic Kamapua’a journeys throughout the islands where he encounters new woman. Making love to woman and then leaving them is a wrongful habit that Kamapua’a has grown too familiar with. He took something so precious and made it ugly, he used his good looks and charm to win the hearts of woman just to break them. In the epic, Kamapua’a is distracted by a flying ma’i which leads to Kapo. After Kamapua’a and Kapo make love she is soon overtaken by his handsome features and boyish charm. As she becomes comfortable with him he suddenly leaves her to fulfill other duties. Kapo was so hurt she, “cried out for the love of her kāne, Kamapua’a” (Kame’eleihiwa 124) because she didn’t want him to leave.

Unfortunately, rational thinking is a very uncommon trait detected in a male’s genetic information. In Kame’eleihiwa’s translate she tells the tale of Kamapua’a’s mischievous actions. Kamapua’a’s misbehavior in this epic is imitates the rascal actions of a teenage boy. There are numerous events where Kamapua’a is capable of causing trouble towards others without feeling any sympathy or regret. In the epic Kamapua’a, “began stealing the people’s chickens, from Punalu’u to Kaleo’ō’io at Kualoa (Kame’eleihiwa 22) for no apparent reason other than his desire for rebellion. Kamapua’a was aware that the people were enraged by his actions, however because he is so self-absorbed, he never stopped to think about how his victims felt, therefore he continued to steal chickens. Kamapua’a acted off of random desires, never rational thinking. When men think irrationally this causes them to be insensitive and completely oblivious to how their actions affect others. Kamapua’a’s rascal decisions serve as a warning to women that irrational thinking is hardwired into a man’s