"First Contacts" in Polynesia

Download or read book "First Contacts" in Polynesia written by Serge Tcherkézoff and published by Conran Octopus. This book was released on 2004 with total page 252 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book explores the first encounters between Samoans and Europeans up to the arrival of the missionaries, using all available sources for the years 1722 to the 1830s, paying special attention to the first encounter on land with the Laperouse expedition. "First Contacts" advances a hypothesis about the contemporary interpretations made by the Polynesians of the nature of the Europeans, and about the actions that the Polynesians devised for this encounter: wrapping Europeans up in 'cloth' and presenting 'young girls' for 'sexual contact'. It also discusses how we can go back two centuries and attempt to reconstitute, even if only partially, the point of view of those who had to discover for themselves these Europeans whom they call 'Papalagi'.