Classes

I don't have much free time since classes have started; between shopping, cooking, lectures, reading, entertainment, cleaning and actually finding time to sleep, I've become hard pressed to find some time to update my blog. But since I have a few minutes to spare at the moment, I figured I'd do a quick recap of my classes:

New Zealand Literature
This course focuses a lot on one of New Zealand's most famous writers, Katherine Mansfield. Initially, she struck me as the typical tragic female writer figure, reminiscent of Sylvia Plath or Anne Sexton; a precocious young woman, repressed and yet brilliant, whose work was reclaimed by her husband after her young death. But because she originates from New Zealand, she offers a rather unique colonial (and sometimes anti-colonial) perspective on life in this small developing colony. She was also brave enough to make a trip to London at the age of 19 by herself, in the early 1900's, which I would think was unheard of at the time; all because she was desperate to enter a larger, more cosmopolitan literary world. Anyhow, we'll be reading other New Zealand writers as well, but our lecturer seems quite fond of Mansfield's work, so the course is heavily focused on her works, which I am slowly digesting.

New Zealand Politics and Power
This course is actually the one I was considering dropping because of the heavy workload, but have resisted doing so simply because I'm convinced I'll learn a lot. We've been going over the political structure of New Zealand, from parliament, to the head of state, to New Zealand's essentially non-existent constitution, and I have already been quite shocked by the tremendous differences between nations in their exercise of power. Unfortunately, most of the political references go right over my head in that class, while most of the students who have been studying and reading about the New Zealand government since they were children seem to follow easily. The most fascinating part of the course is our tutorial exercises; instead of attending discussion groups, we'll be watching Parliament while they are in session (see the Parliament building below) and writing up reports on our observations. I could never just waltz into Parliament (or I suppose it would be Congress) in the United States multiple times a week to write an observational report!



Maori Performance and Society
This course doesn't require a lot of reading, but should still present a decent amount of work and practice. A lot of our study focuses on the sacred traditions of the Maori, and the place of the waiata (song) in their political, domestic, and other interactions. The largest part of my grade will depend on my ability to memorize and perform two waiatas with perfect pronunciation, tone, and rhythm- committing a hapa (mistake) is considered a grave embarrassment to your community and hosts, and if you commit a whati (serious mistake) you actually cannot continue singing or start over (meaning I'd fail, I suppose). Along with the waiatas we'll be keeping a journal, learning about Maori culture and musical instruments, and staying a night on a marae.

Introduction to New Zealand History
I've decided I'll probably drop this course, although I've already learned a fair amount of interesting things about this nation's history in this weeks lectures. It would probably be an easier course than the New Zealand politics course, but I feel I will have a more interactive, modern, and hands on experience with New Zealand culture with the latter.

Today I went on a Lord of the Rings tour, so I'll post pictures from that soon. Cheers!