NOTE: This is part nine of a thirteen part article. Enjoy!!!
Part IX- Polynesian History (1595 – Present)
Moorea....No caption needed
As the French were invading Tahiti in 1842, one of the most famous visitors to Polynesia arrived in Taiohae, Nuku Hiva, in the Marquesas. A young Herman Melville, later author of Moby Dick, arrived on the American whaler, Acushnet. Conditions on the American whaler were brutally severe, so Melville and a fellow sailor, Toby, decided to jump ship. Melville and Toby headed inland. The terrain was extremely rugged and Melville was injured when he fell into a ravine. The native Marquesans of Taiohae gave Melville and Toby shelter and medical aid. Even though Melville had a relationship with a Marquesan woman, he left Taiohae after only 6 weeks when he became concerned that the kindness and love he received was a prelude to human sacrifice of a personal kind.
Twilight Moorea.....still no caption needed
Melville wrote of his experiences in Taiohae in his novel Typee in 1846 . Although criticized for giving an overly romantic view of Marquesan life, the novel relates his experience with a people who were noble, naked and savage. Melville succeeded in capturing the essence of the indigenous Marquesans, a concept enjoyed by readers in 1846 and today
More to follow, Part X is on its way. Suzan
