Sons For The Return Home

This is my response to the novel “Sons For The Return Home”, written by the acclaimed Samoan Professor Albert Wendt. I personally like the idea of not naming the characters because it makes the story focus on the differences between two cultures and does not focus on the relationship between the couple. This focus is relatable to immigrants, such as myself who is neither of Samoan or European descent.

In this novel, I found the Samoan mother’s role a significant one. She has many flaws as a person but those flaws made her a very important character because without her the novel would not be interesting to read. She can be viewed as a person who is highly prejudiced and in denial. Moreover, I do not feel empathy towards the couple but I do feel sympathetic towards them as both of them lost their child and were separated from each other.

The mother is in denial. This is seen in her conversations with her son after meeting his girlfriend. The mother said that she liked the girl but did not look at him. By not looking at him proves his mother does not want him to see her because she knows that he will find out that she truly does not like the his girlfriend as his son’s potential lover. This relates to the saying that the eyes are the mirror/window to someone’s soul.

I think it is like two parallel worlds- the Samoan world and the Palagi world. Parallel worlds mean one cannot exist together. This is because a person living in the other world can cause harm to himself and an imbalance to the equilibrium because that person is believed to be different from others. 

Sometimes due to the difference between cultures, people tend to see only the negativity and compare one world with their own. In any country, in any culture not all people are good and are all people bad. There is always a mixed of two; we believe that they are either good people or bad people because of what we perceived them to be.

I also cannot blame the mother because how she perceives the Palagi culture. Her perception of the Palagi may be rooted from her ancestors. A perception, which was possibly, passes down through generations to her generation because the Palagi people have a history of killing Samoans.

This could possibly be due to New Zealand’s negligence by causing an outbreak of Spanish Influenza, which killed thousands of Samoan people and the New Zealand military police shooting nine Samoans including Chief Tupua Tamasese Lealofi III. However, I do not agree to the mother’s judgement about Palagi. I believe that it is prejudiced to label all Palagi people as bad people, just because of what other Palagi people have done.

I both agree and disagree with the mother. I agree with her concern for her child, but disagree to diminish her grandchild just because the unborn child is not a full-blooded Samoan. She is also probably concerned that the Samoan people because of the same reason may not accept her grandchild. I also think that she may be too concerned with what other people may think about their family and believing that it may bring shame to their family- having a non-full blooded Samoan grandchild.

This story is still relevant due to stereotyping and racism. It can be due to differences in culture, but not always. I think it is no longer about the colour of one’s skin anymore but their belief in life. Sometimes people tend to connect themselves to certain groups, who share their beliefs. Sometimes each group has a list in which people who do not share the same beliefs will not be part of the group and sometimes they will try to judge outsiders according to their beliefs.

I can relate to this story because of my family experience. Both my sibling and I are full-blooded Filipinos born in Philippines. I was born and raised back in my homeland for 19 years and migrated to New Zealand after my 19^th birthday. On the other hand, my brother is raised in New Zealand for 20 years. I myself would not expect my brother to have the same strong connection to the Filipino culture and everything that comes with it. For my brother to have that strong connection, he probably needs to accept everything about the culture and the Filipino community. However, it is not something that can be forced on a person. A person needs to have that desire to live that culture for them to have a strong connection.

As the boy in the story, he has less experience of what life is like in Samoa and the fact that he needs to live up to his mother’s expectations. These may be the cause of why he does not appreciate the Fa’asamoa. In comparison to his mother who was raised in Samoa, which would give her a greater connection towards the Fa’asamoa. She has lived the culture and has been part of the community for many years. Moreover, the boy’s weak connection to his homeland can be seen in his return to Samoa as a man, he admits that he likes the place but cannot see himself living in Samoa.

He has been serving and obeying his mother, and disrespecting her will make him an outcast in his homeland. It was stated in the novel, “finally, the sharp final slap of his forgiving hand across her face [his mother] broke open the womb of his grief and guilt, and he was free at last”. Being seen as an outcast unbound him from his mother’s expectations for him.

He is free does not mean he does not identify himself as Samoan. I think he still identifies himself as a Samoan, but he probably lost his sense of belonging. I think he needs time to unwind and explore the world. He might come back to Samoa or he may not, but there can only be two endings for him. It is either he will find the place he can truly call home or not.

Point of No Return Brief 2

Point of No Return by Pesi Fonua

Is it a return to Tonga or a return to a land overseas?

The impossible return of the Tongan people to Tonga from overseas or overseas from Tonga has the same reason. The text suggests that Tongans long for work opportunity, proper education, and freedom of owning land.

The Tonga monarchy and nobles probably kept land on a tenure system and ensured that those in charge have control over land use and access.

Tongans probably depend on natural resources such as farming or fishing but some of them do not have the right to own or occupy lands, especially the women. As the mother said in the short story, “…at least we had food from the allotment garden.. but now the estate owner has taken the tax allotment…” (p.363). This suggests that women do not have land rights. This gives rise to the problem of feminism in Tonga. Women should have the same opportunity as the men concerning the ownership of land. The problem arises in the characters life because his mother is dependent on her husband and the Tongan system favours the men.

As a result, they have lack of money, which made the boy in the story a beggar and the possibility that the mother along with her daughter became sex workers. Moreover, the government framework where the nobles have power over people’s lands, which could also be the cause. There is also that notion that the people, who have total control over the land in Tonga, may have their own preferences as to who is allowed to have the land and equal share is impossible. Sometimes people with a high status in security or authority tend to hinder others below themselves so those people will not surpass them.

It is also known that Tonga’s main source of revenue is remittance from Tongans working in a developed country. The characters in the short story want to migrate to the United States, Australia, or New Zealand. This may be due to work opportunities, education, or the lack of adequate resources due to land ownership.

Fonua probably wants to convey a message through his works that he wants good change in Tonga, a change that will benefit his people.