WOMEN MATAI (CHIEFS): NAVIGATING AND NEGOTIATING THE PARADOX OF BOUNDARIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Authors

Sailiemanu Lilomaiava-Doktor, University of Hawaii–West Oahu

Abstract

This paper examines Samoan conception of gender roles and transformations examining women's status and situation in light of ideological changes regarding gender relations and expectations in contemporary Samoa. I situate my paper in Samoan ways of knowing regarding gender roles and norms and draw on feminist (Trask 1984) works to provide guiding light for the cross cultural use of feminist theory to Samoan concepts of feagaiga, fa‘a-matai (chieftainship system), and gender equality. I study women's roles especially as they take on matai titles and examine what gains have been made and the dynamics involved for matai in the masculine (read: public sphere) of political authority not only in villages but also in government and parliamentary institutions. Concomitantly, as the cultural fabric of Samoan life has been influenced by transnational migration, I examine these transnational dynamics and evaluate how they affect women both at home and in the Samoan diaspora. I have decided not to italicized Samoan words, as Samoan is our official language together with English.

Recommended Citation

Lilomaiava-Doktor, Sailiemanu (2020) "WOMEN MATAI (CHIEFS): NAVIGATING AND NEGOTIATING THE PARADOX OF BOUNDARIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES," Pacific Studies Journal: Vol. 43: No. 1, Article 5.
Available at: https://digitalcollections.byuh.edu/pacific-studies-journal/vol43/iss1/5