Two views of ancient Hawaiian society

Abstract

Since 1950, two opposing views of Hawaii's history in pre-western-contact times have developed. One view is that a dramatic change occurred around the year 1450 CE with the implementation of the ahupuaa system. A culture that had been based in a kinship relationship between chiefs and commoners changed. Power was gathered into the hands of an elite who then exploited and extracted labor and the fruits of that labor from a larger group of workers in order to maintain a privileged lifestyle and pursue political goals. In opposition is another picture of Hawaii's history. This view is that power was shared between chiefs and commoners in a reciprocal and mutually beneficial relationship. Balancing mechanisms functioned to move the society towards the good, a state sometimes referred to as the Hawaiian word "pono." In this study I will compare and contrast the two views.