Blog 1

The theme of Myth vs. Reality plays a very important role in the lives of the Maori people in The Whale Rider, and it also makes a strong statement in the three poems: Mending Wall, Slam Dunk and Hook, and The Game. In The Whale Rider, the Maori people especially Koro Apirana, have a strong relationship with the myths and traditions of their people. For generations these traditions have been passed down from grandfather to oldest son. Although, when Kahu, a great granddaughter is brought into Koro Apirana’s life, he does not become open to the idea of breaking the myths and for the first time in Maori history, he must decide if a woman will take over as chief.
In the Mending Wall, Robert Frost says, “Good fences make good neighbors,” which brings up the idea of barrier, a line in which one may cross from reality to fantasy. This poem parallels with Koro situation in that he cannot cross into that reality from his mythological and fantasy world. Koro is so caught up in a silly tradition that he does not even see the gift that has been handed to him, Kahu. The fence is created to prevent the neighbors from always staying on your property; there is a good balance between neighbors when that fence is there to create a barrier. Although, in Koro’s case he has not stepped out of his fantasy world and has yet to create a good balance with reality.
Slam Dunk and Hook, on the other hand, relates to a group of basketball players who put their heart and soul into what they love. They play their heart out at every game; although when one of their mother’s dies, they start to use the game as a release and also as an escape. The barrier here also is a change from the fantasy world into reality. They may play their best to get their mind off of the death, but once the game is over, reality kicks in and their sorrows all come back. This poem parallels with the end of the novel, The Whale Rider, when Kahu saves the tattooed whale which is beaching itself, this act ultimately saves Koro and wakes him up from his fantasy world and brings him into reality. The idea that he almost died grabbed him out of the fantasy he was living and made him realize that Kahu is meant to take over as chief.
In The Game, a little humpbacked girl named Cruz is born into a cruel and uninviting world. She is treated like every other girl, and acts as if she is unaffected by her deformity. Her favorite game is family; it is a game which allows her to escape from her reality and into a fantasy world where she can be treated lavishly and act as though everything in life was perfect. Although, the moral of this poem is that you can only pretend for so long until the reality catches up with you. This parallels to Koro’s decision to not even consider Kahu as chief; in the end he could not pretend or avoid it anymore, he saw the reality and the gift that she had been given. The myth had ultimately died and the reality that Kahu would become chief had taken its place.
In the end of the novel, The Whale Rider, Koro has an epiphany; he finally realizes that Kahu is the one. After ignoring her and trying shut her out of his life, he finally says that he loves her, which is the only thing Kahu has ever wanted to hear from him. They share a special bond and after finally waking up from his fantasy world, he saw that she truly was a very special girl, and that was when he came into his reality. As Frost said, Good fences make good neighbors;” Koro may continue to drift off into his stubborn fantasy world, but he can now have a good balance between fantasy and reality.