The Whale Rider & The Historical Framework

The controversial view of gender in The Whale Rider is an underlying theme throughout the film. In order to have a better understanding of this viewpoint, I want acknowledge one of the many key questions related to the historical framework described in the “Critical Theory as Critical Thinking: A Book of Classroom Practice in Literary Criticism” book. The question states, “How does the work relate to the social climate and worldview of its time (26)?” Or in this specific case, how might Niki Caro’s depiction of gender roles, relate to the characters beliefs regarding “a woman’s role” in Maori culture? The historical approach bases its analysis on the assumption that, “there is a relationship between a work of art and the time and place in which it was created (25).” So in this specific analysis is based upon the assumption that there is a relationship between Niki Caro’s depiction of gender roles, and the social norms of the Maori culture.

For example, in the beginning of the film Pai criticized the older women for smoking stating that they had to protect their childbearing abilities, apparently this thought alone supports the idea of gender roles within the Maori culture. According to Maori history “women could not fight in war, perform the war dance, or have full facial tattoos; they were, however, considered sacred because of their childbearing abilities and this assistance to the future tribe.” (https://scholarspace.manoa.hawaii.edu)

Another example of this would be when Pai sang for the opening of the school as opposed to joining in herself, it’s explained that, “women could not fight in war, perform the war dance, or have full facial tattoos; they were, however, considered sacred because of their childbearing abilities and this assistance to the future tribe. ” (https://scholarspace.manoa.hawaii.edu)

It seems that the male favored gender roles within Maori culture may either enrich or desert the women of the culture.