Intro to Polynesian Mythology

Hey guys! I hope you're all doing well!  This past weekend was Tucson Comic Con, so I am exhausted from vending and desperately trying to catch up on homework.  Still, I had a blast!  Thanks to everyone who stopped by to see me.

For the next several weeks I'm going to be doing a series of posts about Polynesian mythology. Besides the fact that the mythology is gorgeous, there is a reason for this: Disney's upcoming movie, Moana, draws heavily from Polynesian myths. It's set to release on November 23, and I thought it would be neat to give my readers an introduction to some of the stories their film might draw upon.

 

So, first things first: What do I mean when I say Polynesian mythology?

The phrase “Polynesian” covers a wide range of cultures, from the Samoans, to Hawaiians, to groups living in New Zealand and Australia. Polynesian culture is centered around a group of islands in the Pacific. Many of the cultures traveled by boat, allowing them to spread to other bodies of land – which is how the culture arrived in New Zealand and Australia.

Because there are so many cultures under the name Polynesian, their mythology varies drastically at times. Their deities can have completely different names, but have the same stories – or have different stories, but the same names across cultures. Each group has myths that are unique to them; each also has stories that one can see tie into stories from other groups.

One character appears in all of the cultures I have looked into: Maui.

 

Maui is a trickster – and we've seen several of those across mythologies! Unlike the Norse Loki and the Japanese Susano, Maui is not antagonistic to mortals. He can be boastful and reckless, but he cares for humans and strives to help them. In so doing, he has more in common with the Greek trickster god, Hermes. Interestingly enough, Maui is not a full deity; he's only a demigod.

Maui is set to be one of the main characters in Moana, voiced by Dwayne Johnson. (I'm super excited for this casting for two reasons. 1: The Rock is in a Disney movie? I get to hear him sing?! Heck yes!! 2: Johnson actually has Samoan ancestry, so he's portraying a character from the stories of his ancestors. I love that!)

 

Because of this, I've decided to spend the next several weeks doing posts about the adventures of Maui. At times he is triumphant, his actions heroic. Other times his stories seem more like those of a braggart. And though he tries his hardest to save mankind, failure awaits him in the end.

(By the way – one of the islands of Hawai'i is named Maui. If you want to look up more stories about the demigod, make sure and specify!  Otherwise you'll end up looking at pictures of islands.)

 

I'm really looking forward to this, guys! I'll see you next week.