New Zealand literature

New Zealand literature is literature, both oral and written, produced by the people of New Zealand. It often deals with New Zealand themes, people or places, is written predominantly in New Zealand English, and features Māori culture and the use of the Māori language. Before the arrival and settlement of Europeans in New Zealand in the 19th century, Māori culture had a strong oral tradition. Early European settlers wrote about their experiences travelling and exploring New Zealand. The concept of a "New Zealand literature", as distinct from English literature, did not originate until the 20th century; it was not until the 1950s that, as historian and poet Keith Sinclair said, "New Zealand intellect and imagination came alive".^[1][2]

Early New Zealand literature

Polynesian settlers began arriving in New Zealand in the late 13th or early 14th centuries, and became known as Māori as they developed a distinct culture, including the development of Māori myths, legends, poetry, songs and prayers. Public speaking on the marae was (and remains) a particularly important part of Māori culture, and performance was a key part of the oral tradition.^[2] Māori did not have a written language until early Christian missionaries worked with Māori in the early 19th century to develop a written form of the language.^[3] As European settlers arrived, they collected many Māori oral stories and poems, which were translated into English and published, for example Maori Fairy Tales (1908) by Johannes Andersen. These stories, such as those about the god Māui, became widely known among the non-Māori population of New Zealand as well as the Māori people.^[2]

In the 19th century most Pākehā New Zealanders saw themselves as British, and most publications were written by British authors for a British audience. It took time for a distinctly New Zealand literature to develop.^[2][4] The first printing press arrived in New Zealand in 1834, and the first book printed was a Māori translation of a catechism, Ko Te Katikihama III, by William Yate in 1830.^[5][6] Early New Zealand books were generally narratives of visits and travel to New Zealand, such as A Narrative of a Nine Months' Residence in New Zealand in 1827 (1832) by Augustus Earle or Station Life in New Zealand (1870) by Mary Anne Barker,^[7] or scientific works such as The New Zealanders Illustrated, a rare book by natural history artist George French Angas (1847) and A History of the Birds of New Zealand (1872) by ornithologist Walter Buller.^[8][9] Early expressions of New Zealand identity in literature included, notably, Old New Zealand by "a Pakeha Maori" (Frederick Edward Maning) and Erewhon by Samuel Butler.^[4]

Poetry

Words from New Zealand writer Elizabeth Knox as public art in Wellington.

Poetry has been part of New Zealand culture since before European settlement in the form of Māori sung poems and waiata. Early colonial poetry, written by immigrants from the United Kingdom, was also predominantly sung poetry, and was primarily concerned with traditional British themes. New Zealand poetry developed a strong local character from the 1950s, and has now become a "polyphony" of traditionally marginalised voices.^[10] Notable New Zealand poets include Janet Frame, R. A. K. Mason, C. K. Stead, James K. Baxter, Hone Tuwhare, Sam Hunt, Vincent O'Sullivan and Bill Manhire. The National Library of New Zealand appoints a New Zealand Poet Laureate biennially.

Writers

Novelists Janet Frame, Patricia Grace, Albert Wendt, Maurice Gee and children's author Margaret Mahy, are prominent in New Zealand.^[11] However, there is also a strong current of work written independently with little concern for international markets and having only a small readership, such as Ian Wedde's early novel Dick Seddon's Great Dive (1976). Novelists such as Kirsty Gunn ^[12] exemplify the shift to less parochial concerns.

Keri Hulme gained prominence when her novel, The Bone People, won the Booker Prize in 1985. Likewise Canadian-born, New Zealand raised Eleanor Catton with her Booker Prize of 2013 for her novel The Luminaries. Witi Ihimaera wrote the novel that became the critically acclaimed movie Whale Rider, directed by Niki Caro. His works deal with Māori life in the modern world, often incorporating fantastic elements.

Writers popularly and intellectually claimed by New Zealand as its own include immigrants, such as Eleanor Catton and South African-born Robin Hyde, and emigrants who went into exile but wrote about New Zealand, like Dan Davin and Katherine Mansfield. Erewhon, although a novel set in New Zealand and written by Samuel Butler as a result of a 5-year stay in New Zealand, arguably belongs primarily to English literature. Likewise the New Zealand work of Karl Wolfskehl, resulting from his 10-year sojourn in Auckland (where he died), is seen at present as belonging rather to the story of German literature.

This contemporary recognition or non-recognition of a writer as a New Zealand writer is part of the ongoing popular and intellectual debate about New Zealand identity. Consequently, such attitudes should not at all be regarded as fixed.

Playwrights

New Zealand has a lively community of playwrights in theatre. Significant playwrights include Roger Hall, Hone Kouka, Briar Grace-Smith and Renée. Support for playwrights and plays in New Zealand is provided by Playmarket, a national organisation which also publishes and sells plays and scripts.^[13]

New Zealand also has a tradition of independent theatre which does not subscribe to commercial theatrical norms. One might cite Red Mole theatre group (1970s-2002), some work by Mervyn Thompson, the early work of Paul Maunder, in Christchurch Pacific Underground and the Free Theatre (1984–present), and in Wellington Barbarian Productions led by Jo Randerson. These groups have arguably nourished the intellectual sub-stratum of New Zealand theatre. Foreskin's Lament is a notable New Zealand play about rugby culture - by South Islander Greg McGee - famous for its closing speech by the titular character.

See also

• Māori poetry
• List of New Zealand literary awards
• List of New Zealand poets
• List of New Zealand writers

References

Further reading

• Stafford, Jane; Williams, Mark, eds. (2012). Anthology of New Zealand literature. Auckland, N.Z.: Auckland University Press. ISBN 9781869405892.

External links

• Braunias, Steve (March 20, 2004). "The 50 best New Zealand books". New Zealand Listener (3332). Retrieved 3 June 2012.
• New Zealand Electronic Text Centre
  • New Zealand literature at the New Zealand Electronic Text Centre
• New Zealand Electronic Poetry Centre
• New Zealand Book Council
• Dunedin City of Literature