Weekly Blog post 9

Using John Rutherford's interview with Homi K. Bhabha to support your discussion, provide a definition of hybridity and discuss the relationship between this and identity: (215 words)

Hybridity in it’s simplest definition is mixture, the mixture of racial theory. Hybridity is not a new, cultural or historical phenomenon, it has been a feature of all civilisations since the creation of civilisations. Identity is the psychological qualities that make a person. This can also be determined by self identity or group identity. I would describe the relationship between identity and hybridity by first stating that there is hybridity in all identities this is in the sense that every identity is a mixture of different factors, ranging from social class, sexual orientation, religion, interests, views, to ethics. 

Identity, however is different to identification, identification is the process of identifying. Whereas identity is a natural state of person or group.

Because the difference in culture and ‘national population’ is an ever-changing state, we can never truly recognise a stable narrative of cultural difference. This is, how Bhabha states, “ever more visibly constructed from a range of different sorts of interests.” Bringing us back to the previous point, identity is the mixture of different contributing factors, social class, sexual orientation etc. Therefore, due to the ever-changing and constant evolution of the human, cultural changes will continually be affected by these social contradictions and movements deemed suitable by whatever society dictates at any given time. 

Works cited:

• Rutherford, Jonathan. Identity: community, culture, difference. The Third Space: Interview with Homi Bhabha, Lawrence & Wishart, 1990, pp. 207-221.

Draft a plan for your essay structure including a skeleton draft for your introduction, this will include a clear thesis statement that responds to the question you choose and clearly outline in full sentences the 3 key points you will need to consider in order to unpack this:

Introduction:

Thesis Statement:

New Zealand's dominant pakeha culture is responsible for problematic representations of the marginalised Maori culture, however there are also representations of Maori by Maori themselves.

Three key points:

I will show this using Melanie Wall's "Stereotypical constructions of Maori in the Media" with analytical breakdowns of three of the four stereotypical representations. These are: 'Maori as the Comic other' (Munter, Outrageous Fortune) and 'Maori as the radical political activist' (Paikea, Whale Rider film), both of which are representations of Maori culture by the dominant New Zealand culture. My final point will be 'The quintessential Maori' (Ricky Baker, Hunt for the Wilderpeople 2016). 

I will back up my ideas by discussing use of costume design for each of my character examples.