Harland Sovereign

Paper 4

April 8, 2022

A World of Culture

The written assignment this week came along with an interview that was to be

done with someone of a different culture. My subject was happy to help me with my

interview and it even ended up going longer than 45 minutes. The subject that I

interviewed is named Linahei Dauphin, she is a native Tahitian who lives in Fa’a’a,

French Polynesia. She agrees (after having visited America several times) that our

cultures are very different and she was excited to help with some of my schoolwork.

Due to the differences in language, for any direct quote coming from Linahei, I will take

the liberty of translating it from French (her native language) into English for this

assignment.

The first question that I asked Linahei while in our zoom meeting was “What does

Tahitian culture mean to you?” Before responding, she took a moment to think on the

topic. Linahei told me a few things in her response but there are a few that I will

highlight. Since Tahiti is an island located in the South Pacific, the people have to work

with the natural recourses that are at their disposal. Similar to all Polynesian islands,

Tahiti is rich in natural recourses, including the ever important coconut tree. Linahei

explained to me all of the different things that come from the coconut tree that supports

the very way of life that can be found in the villages across the entire country. The

Tahitian national dish, according to Mrs. Dauphin, is a dish called Poisson Cru. This

delicious dish is prepared with raw tuna and coconut milk, their home structures are
made from coconut trees and the roof is made from woven coconut branches. The

coconut husk is used as a big repellant and the water from young coconuts supports life

when rain goes dry. The lifeline that the coconut tree is to the people of Tahiti is actually

very interesting. Linahei explained that because of this connection to nature, it makes

the members of the society more likely to respect the islands that they reverently call

their “fenua”.

The second question that I asked her was one that I was excited to know more

about. I asked Linahei about the biggest holiday that is celebrated in their country. “In

Tahiti our biggest holiday is longer than a day, it is almost a full month long, we call it

‘The Heiva’”. This holiday, The Heiva, takes place in the month of July and it is a way

that the people of Tahiti celebrate the islands that they feel so blessed to live on. The

Heiva consists of a program of planned meals including the traditional way of cooking

“in the hi’ima’a” (underground oven), along with traditional dances performed in front of

judges. Tahitian dance is the type of dance that is more often credited to Hawaiian

culture, what Americans would identify as “the hula”. Linahei told me, in my interview

with her, that the Heiva is her favorite month out of the year because “all of the friends

from all of the islands come together to celebrate life.”

One of the funny things that I saw during this interview was the overlap that

existed amongst lots of questions, when I asked about different work that is found in the

islands she told me that the main work was a process called “Copera”. This process is a

method of splitting coconuts with an axe in order to harvest the meat to make coconut

oil. It is funny to see how ingrained the coconut is in the Tahitian way of life.
The interview that I had with Linahei was actually very helpful for me to see the way that

other people do things. I am inspired by the culture found in the Polynesian Islands and

it makes me sad to see that Americans tend to have a lot less respect for the world

around them. The reverence that is shown to the islands themselves in Linahei’s

homeland is both inspiring and interesting. It is lovely to see people who “have so little”

(according to American standards) actually live a life so rich. Let us be like the people in

the islands by appreciating “the little things”.