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The digital retrofit that the Hawaiian language went through during their renaissance period was not the first time that the language went through changes. The contact between native Hawaiians and Western civilization in the 19th century allowed the influences of outside cultures to affect the Hawaiian performative culture. Because the language was strictly oral prior to contact, there is a cultural emphasis on the presentation and preservation of tradition through performance. These performances, whether they be spoken poetry, songs, anthems or chants of any kind, are all described by the Hawaiian word mele. Once the language was remediated into a written alphabet, a new era began for the performative arts of the Hawaiian culture. In the scholarly journal “He Lei Ho‘oheno no nä Kau a Kau: Language, Performance, and Form in Hawaiian Poetry”, Ku‘ualoha Ho‘omanawanui detailed this transition by examining the performative structures of Hawaiian poetry over time.
In the journal, Ho‘omanawanui describes the period of time following western contact as a new age of literacy for the Hawaiian people. With the new opportunities that came with a written alphabet, Hawaiian scholars were able to archive an astounding number of ancient chants and stories that previously been passed down the generations through mele. However, Hawaiians did not have complete freedom or control over what they could publish or archive. The western missionaries that had settled in the Hawaiian Islands at this time were very particular about the kind of material that the Hawaiians could create. In Hawaiian performative arts, mele is a general term. Within this term, there are many other categories and classifications in the Hawaiian language to differentiate the different types of performances. Ho‘omanawanui quotes the Hawaiian language teacher Nogelmeier, who explains these categories.
"The main division is between mele oli, to be chanted without accompaniment,
and mele hula, for dancing. Terminology is unevenly recorded and overlapping,
but certain genres are generally acknowledged: ko‘i honua, mo‘okü‘auhau,
ha‘i küpuna, kämäkua (genealogy and origin chants); mele inoa, mele
ma‘i, mele ho‘äla (name and personal chants); mele pana, mele aloha ‘äina
(place or loyalty chants); mele pai ali‘i, mele ho‘ohanohano (chiefly or honorific
chants); mele aloha, mele ho‘oipoipo (love chants); pule, kau (prayer or
eulogy chants); mele nema, paha (criticizing or challenging chants); mele
kähea, mele komo, mele ka‘i, mele ho‘i (entry and procession chants); kanikau,
mele kümäkena, küö, uë helu (mourning chants). Overlaid upon these types of
mele oli are terms for vocal styles and techniques that often identify closely
with the poetic content and purpose. (Nogelmeier 2001, 3)"
The missionaries were very certain about imposing their way of life upon the Hawaiian people, so their particularity regarding what could be published stemmed from a necessity to strictly follow their moral code and way of life. This unfortunately meant that many forms of mele, especially hula, had a stigma attached to them that dissuaded Hawaiian publishers to print them. One form of Hawaiian poetry that was supported by the missionary population was mele ku’i. Ku’i means “to join, stich, or bind”, and the term mele ku’i was used to represent poetry that combined Hawaiian lore and traditions with western literary formats. More traditional Hawaiian poetry formats were non-strophic. Non-strophic poem structures do not adhere to a specific rhythmic structure in order to get through the thought. Mele ku’i differed from traditions and adopted some of the structures of western literature. The last verse of these poems would also tend to include some sort of concluding statement, which was a formulaic post-contact tradition.
By the late 19th century, with the introduction of a massive amount of Asian immigrant workers and the overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy by the United States, the opportunities for Hawaiians to culturally express themselves continued to deteriorate. When ancient performative traditions of Hawaiian mele continued to be suppressed, Hawaiian poets and artists used this as an opportunity for a political statement. In Ho‘omanawanui’s writing, they specifically reference the work of Wayne Kaumuali’i Westlake as an example of contemporary mele ku’i. In this section of the journal, two of his more prolific works are displayed, with analyses for each piece from Ho‘omanawanui’s work.
Ho‘omanawanui (pg. 29): Westlake has described concrete poetry as “What you see is what is meant. / Nothing more, nothing less. / Take it or leave it” (Westlake 1979, 33). Yet his concrete poem, “Hawaiians Eat Fish,” can be interpreted on several levels, indicative of the Hawaiian penchant for kaona. Viewed one way, it is a statement of fact: Fish and other ocean creatures were the most important protein source for Känaka Maoli; as island people surrounded by the abundance of the Pacific ocean, the kai (sea) is often fondly referred to as the “Hawaiian ice box.” The importance of fish is reflected in our poetry from ancient times to now: Fish are prominently featured in the Kumulipo, the first species of animal to appear. This is significant, due to the genealogical hierarchy favored among Polynesians, with the firstborn being more esteemed than later offspring. Fish are important metaphors in our literature, from the aggressive manö (shark), to which bold and daring chiefs were equated, to the sweet-eyed kole and halalü, to which beautiful and desired young women were compared by their sweethearts. The celebration of the eating of fish is reflected in the number and variety of mo‘olelo and mele written about fish, such as the earlier example, “Aloha ka Manini.” Westlake’s poem can also be read as a command for Hawaiians to eat fish. This is an important political statement in contemporary Hawai‘i, a way to hold on to cultural traditions being quickly eroded by American pop culture and a continental perspective (as well as to fight against the poor health conditions that plague our native population). Westlake is telling Hawaiians to resist American cultural influences and big business, represented perhaps by the beef industry, which has blitzed the media with the message that beef is “what’s for dinner.” But another layer of kaona, which also touches older Hawaiian traditions, is the flip side of the repeated message for Hawaiians to eat fish (“Hawaiians Eat Fish”), that is, “Fish Eat Hawaiians.” On the surface, one might think Westlake is referring to a “Jaws”-like image of Hawaiians being attacked by sharks, which is unlikely, as sharks are considered sacred, beloved ‘aumakua (ancestral spirit, family guardian). Rather, Westlake is probably referring to an older wänana (prophecy), written about in the nineteenth century by Moke Manu, David Malo, and others, which warns that the “small fish will be eaten by the big fish.” Metaphorically, this ‘ölelo no‘eau (proverb) has been interpreted to mean that Hawai‘i (the small fish) would be overtaken and oppressed (eaten) by foreigners (big fish).
Ho‘omanawanui (pg. 30): The concrete poem “Pupule” is a whimsical and clever visualization of the definition of the Hawaiian word pupule, “crazy, insane, reckless, wild” (Westlake 1989b). In this poem, the letters p, u, l, and e, used in spelling the word, are jumbled across the page in a haphazard, disorganized way, indicating a sense of recklessness or craziness (figure 2). The placement of the letters can be read as a political statement about the psyche of the modern Hawaiian, caught in the conflict between Hawaiian and western cultures. The poem captures the trauma of dispossession and an overall lack of direction that has been felt by Känaka Maoli since the overthrow of the Hawaiian kingdom: Westlake’s seemingly careless “dumping” of letters on the page can be read as a metaphor for the Känaka Maoli experience of being dumped on by the non-Hawaiian societal majority. Unlike the linear, organized, and “progressive” manner in which we are trained to read characters in English, from left to right, the scattered placement of the letters on the page also evokes a cyclical Hawaiian sense of time, a different pattern and order to the universe; it challenges readers to break out of a linear mode of thinking, and Känaka Maoli to resist the conformity of western institutions.