"Once Were Warriors"

Paper Summary:

This paper attempts to understand why some Maori choose a life of violence, like Jake, or crime, like Boogie, Jake's youngest son in "Once Were Warriors" and in doing so, contends that individuals in search of a social identity that are denied both traditional and mainstream constructions will go in search of other means of self-definition. The paper also looks at how Jake's experience illustrates how social labeling becomes a self-fulfilling prophesy for the labeled individual.

From the Paper:

"Beth, Boogie's mother, also attempts to redefine her Maori identity in a more positive fashion. Rather than accept a subordinate position in male-dominated Maori society or white society, she attempts to reconstruct a new form of female Maori identity that is not reliant upon violent, militant, masculine norms. This offers one example of how a parallel program for female offenders at a juvenile center might function differently. Such a program might strive to build ethnic pride, and encourage discipline and restraint but it might also encourage resistance to boyfriends, husbands, and fathers. It would encourage women to resist the individuals in their lives who demand that women put their own needs to the side in service of masculine ideals and even masculine Maori ideals. "

Sample of Sources Used:

• "Once Were Warriors." (1995). Directed by Lee Tamahori.

More papers on "Once Were Warriors":

• Essay # 66266 : "Once Were Warriors"
• Book Review # 150387 : "Violence Effect in Literature"
• Analytical Essay # 130403 : "Intimate Partner Violence in Films"

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