Pacific Islands Languages and Societies Commons^™

Decolonizing The Tropics: Part One, Anita Lundberg, Sophie Chao, R. Benedito Ferrão, Ashton Sinamai, Et Al.

Arts & Sciences Articles

This special issue is a collection of papers that addresses and enacts the theme of decolonizing the tropics. Each article provides a sense of how we can untangle ourselves from entrenched colonial epistemologies and ontologies through detailed articulations of research practice. Drawing together humanities and social sciences, the papers collectively address questions of whose voices are heard or silenced, what positions we write from, how we are allowed to articulate our ideas, and through which mediums we present our research. In doing so, the contributions foreground the critical importance of these and other questions in any move towards decolonizing the …

Coast To Coast, Zeyuan Ren

Masters Theses

This essay contains four bodies of work created during my graduate studies, all of which take place on either the West or East coasts, incorporating performance, photography, and video. In the first half of the paper, I examine how the theme of “displacement” is established in my initial works, and highlight the significance of the state of “being displaced” in my process of imaging and (re)understanding the ocean.

At the core of the thesis, I investigate the wave-piloting of Marshall Islanders and a particular cartographic model, the “stick chart,” which is a mnemonic device embedded with the voyager's somatic memories, …

Lives Away From Home And Precarious Writing As Life: Reading Bienvenido Santos’S Postscript To Saintly Life, Ivan Emil A. Labayne

Akda: The Asian Journal of Literature, Culture, Performance

Towards the end of his writing career, Bienvenido Santos published two autobiographies, Memory’s Fictions and Postscript to Saintly Life—a departure in a writing life mostly devoted to penning fictional works. This paper focuses on the last autobiography which mainly looks at Santos’s experiences as a pensionado in America. It pays attention to how Santos writes about his Philippine home while in exile, taking part in a program that is part of the American colonial period. The range of Santos’s emotions—with shame and pride on both ends—while abroad is also examined. How these emotions were manifested in the book served …

Ang Balintuna Ng Pesimismo At Pag-Asa Sa “Ilang Aeta Mula Sa Botolan” Ni Cirilo F. Bautista (The Paradox Of Pessimism And Hope In Cirilo F. Bautista’S “Ilang Aeta Mula Sa Botolan”), Mesándel V. Arguelles

Akda: The Asian Journal of Literature, Culture, Performance

Sa sanaysay na ito, ginagalugad ang isa sa mga birtud ng panulaan ni Pambansang Alagad ng Sining sa Literatura Cirilo F. Bautista—ang balintuna, sa pangunahin, ang balintuna ng pesimismo at pag-asa kaugnay ng pagpaksa sa mga usapin, suliranin, at penomenong panlipunan ng kanyang panahon hanggang sa kasalukuyan. Pinagninilayan din ang bait at bisa ng kanyang mga tula na nakasalalay sa kabatirang kapwa lubhang mahalaga at di-makasasapat ang wika upang, aniya, ay “ipahayag ang ating isip at damdamin” na nagbunsod sa kanya sa pagbuo ng pormulasyong “sugat ng salita” at “kirot ng kataga”—kapwa ginamit bilang mga susing konsepto ng kanyang dalawang …

Marginal Voices, Silenced Annotations: Notes On The Life Of Edith L. Tiempo, Cris Barbra N. Pe

Akda: The Asian Journal of Literature, Culture, Performance

The popular version of National Artist for Literature Edith L. Tiempo is that she holds a central position as the literary matriarch of the Philippines. However, little is known about her background as a partly tribal (indigenous) woman. This paper proposes that biography can be a form of intervention to recuperate silenced narratives and marginal lives. Drawing from the ideas of the Geneva School of Consciousness, biography can be seen as a form of reading, where latent images in an author’s works can be made manifest and reveal hidden narratives in the author’s life. Edith’s life and works yield images …

The Ecocritical Erotic In Marjorie Evasco's "Elemental", Jose Kervin Cesar B. Calabias

Akda: The Asian Journal of Literature, Culture, Performance

This brief article explores the critical entanglements of nature, matter, and the human body in Marjorie Evasco’s poem “Elemental.” Through ecocritical erotic writing, the text establishes the “trans-corporeal” relationships between human desire and the natural environment, the language of the erotic and the craft of poetry, and the writer and the task of ecofeminist writing. Ultimately, this essay suggests that the text and the author engage with the ba’i as an indigenous source of femininity, charting a direction toward native Philippine ecofeminism.

Isagani Cruz And His Fiction: A Footnote To The “Deconstructive Effect Of Feminist Materialism On The Newly-Discovered Cordillera Archives”, Isidoro M. Cruz

Akda: The Asian Journal of Literature, Culture, Performance

A cursory reading of Isagani R. Cruz’s literary theory and criticism on one hand, and his fiction on the other, suggests a disparity between Cruz as a scholarly literary critic and Cruz as a fictionist of stories “for adults only”; however, a detail in one of his short stories in his book, Father Solo and Other Stories for Adults Only, arouses a critical suspicion that his fiction is actually cultural criticism masquerading as irreverent or obscene fiction, so that the critic and the fictionist are one. That detail is found in “Once upon a Time Some Years from Now,” …

Ol Woman Blong Wota (The Women Of The Water), Sandy Sur, Ashley Burgess, Maeve Mckenna, Catherine Grant

World Music Textbook

The women of Leweton have been performing Water Music for international audiences since the founding of the Leweton Cultural Village in 2008, and have been practising this tradition for as long as they remember. The women performers who feature in this film are Denilla Frazer, Melinda Frazer, Jerolyn Frazer, Beverley Frazer, Cecilia Tingris, Cicilia Wari, Marie Sur, Sonrin Sur, Trisha Sur, and Margaret Tingris.

Militarized Foodways: The Connection Between The Militarization Of American SāMoa And Chronic Health Conditions Experienced By Sāmoans In The U.S., Marina Aina

Pomona Senior Theses

American militarism and imperialism in Oceania led to the partitioning of Sāmoa, transforming Eastern Sāmoa into an unincorporated American territory, one that persists to this day. Sāmoans living in the United States continue to face numerous chronic health illnesses to this day. Both of these statements are true, but how are they related to one another? This thesis proposes “militarized foodways” as a way to bridge the gap and understand how those two statements are connected to one another. Militarized foodways refers to how the cultural, social, and economic practices concerning production and consumption of food have taken a military …

Kailua Canoe Club: A Values-Based Holistic Approach To Leadership, Peggy Peattie, Cristina Padilla, Maile Villablanca

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

This qualitative case study of Kailua Canoe Club (KCC) on the island of O’ahu investigated the nature of leadership in a Hawaiian outrigger paddling community. Conversations with paddlers, coaches, and board members revealed a values-based holistic approach to leadership (Best, 2011). Those values were scribed into the club’s mission statement 50 years ago with the intention of establishing KCC as a space to connect with kupuna (respected elder) wisdom, develop paddling skills, and to honor the canoe, the ocean, and each other. A component of leadership kuleana (responsibility) is constant reflection on those values, and the mentoring of the younger …

A Theoretical And Performer’S Analysis Of Todd Goodman’S Tuba Concerto And Extended Program Notes Of Recital Pieces, Johnathan De Soto Jr.

Electronic Theses & Dissertations

This document analyzes American composer Todd Goodman's 2012 work for solo tuba titled Tuba Concerto. It contains 10 chapters, including one for each of the three movements of the work: an introduction providing biographical information on the composer and context for the work within the late twentieth century and early twenty-first century; a performer’s analysis on the solo tuba part; and the biographical and performance information of composers also performed on the accompanying recital. Each of the four chapters includes theoretical analyses regarding each of Goodman's movements and practical considerations for performers of the work to observe. The thesis also …

The Future And Thriving Of Bipoc Communities: A Time To Act Macroconvening, Global Diversity & Inclusion, Portland State University

Global Diversity and Inclusion Publications and Presentations

This is the overview of the "Time to Act Macroconvening," an event bringing together the BIPOC community on November 4, 2022. The macroconvening was shaped by five affinity-based convenings that were held from June to November 2022. Each engagement was unique, but centered around discussions of the future of thriving and joy of BIPOC communities in and around Portland, and what role PSU has in bringing this future to bear.

Main downloadable file:
Affinity Convenings Thematic Overview

Additional files:

• Event graphic
• Overview article by Christina Rojas, "PSU Brings Together BIPOC Community Groups to Envision a Thriving Future."
• Pictorial Summary of …

Caviar Of The Pacific: Palolo Fishing Today And Its Association With Coral Reef Health, Emma Letti Lee

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Palolo is a traditional delicacy of Samoa. It is the reproductive part of a marine worm that is released twice a year, October and November in Samoa, making palolo season a culturally significant time. Coral reefs, the palolo worm’s habitat, is under a plethora of environmental threats, which is an extremely prevalent concern for Pacific Islanders. Hundreds of palolo harvesters walking on corals twice a year adds extra pressure on coral reefs. Despite these vulnerabilities, prices of palolo are soaring year by year, while there is little to no research about the palolo worm and documentation of current harvesting practices …

“For A Better Future”: The Impact Of Labor Migration On Families In Samoa, Rebekah Underwood

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This research sought to investigate the motivations, benefits, and consequences of international labor migration on Samoan families. Seasonal worker schemes in New Zealand and Australia were generally found to be beneficial to families given the tangible and material benefits it provided to them. The benefits of remittances were found to have been multiplied through investment in the village of Poutasi to increase industry and job opportunities. A lack of economic opportunity in Samoa was implicated in the motivation and beneficiality of participation in labor schemes and may have increased due to the Covid-19 Pandemic. Family was at the forefront of …

Convening For A Thriving Future: Pacific Islander, Native Hawaiian, Asian, And Asian American Community, Stephen Percy, Ame Lambert, Lindsay Romasanta, Patrick Villaflores, Christian Aniciete, Marchel Marcos, Allie Yee, Alyshia Macaysa, Aileen Duldulao, Sokho Eath, Roxanna Bautista, Global Diversity And Inclusion, Portland State University

Global Diversity and Inclusion Publications and Presentations

On October 1, 2022, Portland State University (PSU) held the Convening for a Thriving Future for Pacific Islander, Native Hawaiian, Asian, and Asian American (PIAA) Communities at the university’s Native American Student Community Center (NASCC). This event was part of a series of BIPOC-centered and -led community convenings by PSU’s Global Diversity & Inclusion as one of our action items in the Time to Act Plan for Equity & Racial Justice.

PSU contracted with Roxanna Bautista of Rise Up Solutions to support the planning, development, and coordination of this convening, in addition to providing facilitation and contributing to this convening …

“No Concealed Motives”: How The U.S. Came To Dominate Micronesia, Sean F. Senn

The Forum: Journal of History

No abstract provided.

Full Issue

The Forum: Journal of History

No abstract provided.

The Role Of Native Hawaiian Spiritual Practices In Social Systems And Environmental Stewardship, Christina A. Hornbaker

Social Sciences

The purpose of this paper is to examine how Native Hawaiian spiritual practices played a role in social systems and stewardship practices. Lightfoot and colleagues (2013) suggest that more archaeological research is needed on traditional resources and environmental management practices. The authors point out that “landscape management practices… are subtle and not prone to leaving smoking guns in the archaeological record” (Lightfoot et al. 2013), which makes such sites difficult to document without ethnographic accounts. Due to this subtlety, I will mainly be pulling information from interviews or oral histories from Hawaiian descendants, early explorers and missionary accounts, ethnographers, and …

A Taiwanese Perspective: Exploring The Relationship Between Confucian Body Philosophy And Dance/Movement Therapy, Chiu-Yi Chiang

Dance/Movement Therapy Theses

This thesis explores the correspondence between dance/movement therapy and Confucian body philosophy. It is inspired by the author’s embodied experiences during her study in the field of dance/movement therapy in America while holding the identity as an international student who came from Taiwan. Because of the cultural differences, the author experienced a learning curve in understanding theories that are mostly developed in Western society. Through embodying foreign principles, the author pursues various perspectives in implementing American ideology while having a greater sense of her Taiwanese self. In these embodied experiences, three significant themes arise when paralleling Confucian body philosophy and …

Bibliography For "Beyond Borders And Shores: A Display In Celebration Of Asian And Pacific Islander American (Apia) Art And Heritage", Margaret Puentes

Library Displays and Bibliographies

A bibliography created to accompany a display about Asian and Pacific Islander American (APIA) art and heritage in May 2022 at the Leatherby Libraries at Chapman University.