Marquesan Societies: Inequality and Political Transformation in Eastern Polynesia
by Nicholas Thomas
On This Page
Description
Marquesan society has long captured the interest of European observers, in part because of unfamiliar institutions such as polyandry. However, due to complex and destructive historical changes and the very scattered nature of early source-materials, the distinctive Marquesan developments ofPolynesian society have been obscure and at odds with anthropologists' and historians' overall understanding of Pacific societies.Nicholas Thomas's book, based on a critical study of the fullest possible show more range of sources, is the first to provide a clear account of early Marquesan social relations and culture, and as such will become a key source for Pacific scholars. However, Dr Thomas's discussion is not restricted toethnohistoric documentation. His analysis of dynamic and highly fluid society and its encounters with early European visitors and traders encompasses wider debates about the nature of gender relations in Polynesian societies, small-scale hierarchical structures, cultural transformation, andlonger-term change.In linking specific features of early Marquesan society, its contact with foreigners, and the longer-term transformations of eastern Polynesian societies, Dr Thomas offers Pacific studies a distinctive new perspective. show lessMembers
- Recently Added By
Author Information
40+ Works 979 Members
Nicholas Thomas has curated exhibitions in many countries and has been the Director of the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology in Cambridge since 2006. His many books include Islanders: The Pacific in the Age of Empire (2012), which won the Wolfson History Prize.
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 4
- Popularity
- 3,946,481
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper
- ISBNs
- 1
