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Essays on Whale Rider

Whale Rider

We found 6 free papers on Whale Rider

Essay Examples

Overview

The film Whale Rider Character Analysis

Whale Rider

Words: 647 (3 pages)

            The film Whale Rider is a story of leadership, sacrifice, family, and the role of women and the culture of the Maoris. The movie is depicted through the eyes of Paikea, a strong and intelligent female with the potentials of a leader, a view not shared by other characters in the early part of…

Yolngu Boy, Whale Rider Analysis

Whale Rider

Words: 554 (3 pages)

Culture is the characteristics of a particular group of people, defined by language, religion, social habits, traditions, stories and music. “A nations culture resides in the heart and soul of its people”- Mahatma Gandi and this culture is kept alive by what they do. The texts we have studied in class “Yolngu Boy” and “Whale…

Analysis of the Whale Rider

Whale Rider

Words: 1409 (6 pages)

The film centers on Paikea Apirana, a 12-year-old girl known as “Pai,” who is the sole surviving child in her tribe. It is her duty to carry on the lineage of succession, yet her mother and twin brother passed away during childbirth. According to custom, only the eldest son, who must be a direct descendant…

Coming Of Age across Cultures in Film: Whale Rider and Rabbit-Proof Fence Analysis

Culture

Whale Rider

Words: 639 (3 pages)

Coming of Age Across Cultures in Film: Whale Rider and Rabbit-Proof Fence. Whale Rider: Themes and Cultural Issues The Whale Rider is a film adaptation of Witi Ihimaera’s 1986 novel, set in the year 2002. The story centers around the Maori culture, an indigenous group of people in New Zealand, and the Whangara community where…

Whale Rider Summary

Whale

Whale Rider

Words: 410 (2 pages)

The movie tells the story of Pai, a twelve-year-old girl who is the only remaining child in her tribe’s line of succession due to the deaths of her twin brother and mother during childbirth. Tradition dictates that the tribe’s leader be male, so Pai’s grandfather, Koro, is unhappy about her birth. Despite forming a somewhat…

Whale Rider Movie Review

Movie Review

Whale Rider

Words: 701 (3 pages)

Whale Rider, the movie, showcases Joseph Campbell’s Four Functions of Myth, namely mystical myth, cosmological myth, social myth, and psychological myth. In this film, Pai reimagines the Maori tribe’s creation myth and, in doing so, rediscovers her own identity while also preserving the fading culture. The mystical myth featured in Whale Rider is when the…

genre Romance,Children's film,Drama,Family Drama
release date June 6, 2003 (USA)
cast Koro
protagonist Paikea Apirana
information

Only males are allowed to ascend to chiefdom in a Maori tribe in New Zealand. This ancient custom is upset when the child selected to be the next chief dies at birth. However his twin sister, Pai (Keisha Castle-Hughes), survives. At age 12, she enlists the help of her grandmother (Vicky Haughton) and the training of her uncle (Grant Roa) to claim her birthright. But to break with convention, she’ll have to do the impossible: win over her ultra-traditional grandfather (Rawiri Paratene).… More

Director: Niki Caro

Starring: Keisha Castle-Hughes; Rawiri Paratene; Vicky Haughton; Cliff Curtis

Music by: Lisa Gerrard

Awards: Critics’ Choice Movie Award for Best Young Performer

Frequently Asked Questions about Whale Rider

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What does the whale symbolize in Whale Rider?
In the film Whale Rider, the whale represents life and death. The whale represents life because it is the mammal on which Paikea's great ancestor rode across the ocean reaching New Zealand which eventually became the settlement of the Maori people.
What is the conflict in Whale Rider?
Niki Caro's 'Whale Rider' presents the conflict between the older and younger generations, man and woman, past and present, localism and foreignness, tradition and change - in other words, all the very stuff of myth.
What is the main theme of Whale Rider?
Despite its focus on Maori culture, the themes in Whale Rider are universal and highlight important communication principles. We see the power of significant others to affect our self esteem, and the fact that, against strong odds, it is possible to assert ourselves and create an identity of our own.
What is the setting of the Whale Rider?
There is a vast difference between movies for 12-year-old girls, and movies about 12-year-old girls, and "Whale Rider" proves it. The movie, which takes place in the present day in New Zealand, begins with the birth of twins. The boy and the mother die. The girl, Pai (Keisha Castle-Hughes) survives.

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