Pacific Studies
Abstract
Dress and presentation of the body serve as important points of reference in cross-cultural transactions but are potentially confusing. Focusing on early encounters between Europeans and the indigenous peoples of Australia and Tahiti, I argue that certain tactics were commonly adopted to facilitate communication across cultures and dress codes. I have categorized these patterns of discourse as exposure, make-overs, and appropriation. While these tactics could assist in developing cross-cultural relationships, they also created their own ambiguities.
Recommended Citation
Sturma, Michael
(1998)
"DRESSING, UNDRESSING, AND EARLY EUROPEAN CONTACT IN AUSTRALIA AND TAHITI,"
Pacific Studies: Vol. 21:
No.
2, Article 7.
Available at:
https://digitalcollections.byuh.edu/pacific-studies-journal/vol21/iss2/7
Included in
Australian Studies Commons, History of the Pacific Islands Commons, Polynesian Studies Commons, Race, Ethnicity and Post-Colonial Studies Commons, Social and Cultural Anthropology Commons, Social History Commons, Sociology Commons