March 16

In doing my new literature review I finally found a lot of good information not just about Tonga but about other studies similar to the one that I want to do. The effects of westernization on traditional cultures and people and attitudes toward westernization is a broad and widely researched topic. Vakalahi studied Pacific Islander students in America and how their culture affected their education. He discussed how Pacific Islander youth living in the US had to deal with modern culture and traditional culture pulling them either way. Western culture that is developing in Tonga presents an alternative to traditional ways that youth and young adults have to deal with on a day to day basis. Gewertz and Errington (2009) studied the Chambri of New Guinea and the effects of a modern television program geared towards New Guineans and a modern Christian youth group on the traditional society. They find that the youth involved in both traditional and modern aspects of New Guinea rejected both lifestyles as valued ways of living. However, attitudes toward modernization of their society, such as a video of their traditional dances with lights and cameras and people watching in western clothing made some people sad and they believed it discounted the richness of their culture. Lukere and Jolly (2002) studied women and modern medicine in Tonga. It was found that mā’uli, or traditional midwives, were more willing to incorporate modern medicine into their practices while the hospital staff acted antagonistic towards them. They found that women prefer the care of the mā’uli, while some consider the hospital to be more clean and safe. The Ministry of Health in Tonga is trying to convince mā’uli to encourage women to attend clinics and pre-natal training courses sporadically offered in Tonga. Such is an example of the struggle between traditional ways of life and western practices in the medical field due to different attitudes women have towards western practices versus traditional ones.
My studies differ from these in context, in that it will be a case study of the young women who are involved in traditional, gender-specific work while experiencing western culture influencing Tonga and their attitudes toward this influence.