Leadership in Oceania

What is it about?

I argue that Pacific Island systems of leadership, whether leaders are called big men, chiefs, or anything else, are constructed of constant underlying elements, albeit combined in different ways in different regions. Recent efforts to retain, reintroduce, or recreate decision-making systems based on the idea of 'chieftainship’ draw on deep-seated cultural assumptions to address new problems. Thus, supposed discrepancies between contemporary rhetoric and older practices are superficial and fail to challenge claims of 'authenticity’. This argument lends support to writers who have questioned the existence of sharp distinctions between Polynesia, Melanesia, and Micronesia, the putative culture areas of Oceania.

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Why is it important?

The article addresses issues of tradition, authenticity, the nature of leadership systems, and supposed culture areas of the Pacific, all issues that have been the focus of extensive anthropological debate