Chapter 8
Summary
This chapter discusses the important role dance plays in the Samoan culture. Being the single activity that all age groups participate in, dancing emphasizes individuality and can lead to inferiority if one is not a good dancer.
In dancing there are three main styles: the dance of the taupo (characterized as grave, aloof and beautiful), the dance of the boys (characterized as being “jollier” than the girls’ dance) and the dance of the jesters (described as honoring the taupo or the manaia by mocking them).
Discussion
I think the amount of creativity that goes into each dancer’s dance is very interesting. However, I find it is sad that if someone isn’t a good dancer, they will be made fun of. Never being much of a dancer myself, I feel kind of bad for the girl named Masina that Mead describes as being deplored by her contemporaries and made fun of by the younger children for her inability to dance.
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