Graphical Organizer Part 2

My representation of this section of the reading is focused on Troost's unknowing. On the graphic, the top of the pyramid titled "anticipation," reflects the couple's long-awaited arrival of this "paradise," when however it is far from what they had imagined. The middle of the pyramid, "arrival," reflects the settling grounds of what is to come. Venturing around the island, finding out the terrible living conditions, and first coming across culture-shock are the settling factors involved with “arrival.” The bottom or base of the pyramid, "unknown," reflects Troost's complete ignorance as a foreigner and a man. He doesn't know much of any means of survival, including: retrieving the fish and other food goods, harvesting clean water, or finding what to do with his time. Sylvia works, taking on the male role while Troost takes on the female role, staying at home. His surplus of time and unemployment (besides survival in a foreign place and culture) declares his unknowing. This foreign status on Kirabati with no clue of what the future will bring makes him insecure as to why he is on this island in the South Pacific. Reading of his first experiences on the island in this section made me empathetic towards him and his fiancée. They must have been truly desperate to have moved to the middle of nowhere.

Summary Part 2

This section starts off with the local creation myth of Tarawa. The spider god Nareau created the island of Tarawa, and he flung grains of Tarawa to the wind to create the other islands. After this brief introduction to mythology, One interesting thing about the mythology Tarawa is that the ocean was present before the gods, which shows just how centered the ocean is in the culture in Tarawa. Troost described the island, noting its landmass, shape and vegetation. Then, he described some research he did involving how the inhabitants of Tarawa got to their island, and how the first I-Kiribati, or white men, arrived.

The next chapter begins with a description of what Sylvia, Troost's wife, did at the island. Her job was to manage programs that work to improve the life of the people of Kiribati. Some of the programs she ran sought to increase sanitation, and reduce vitamin A deficiency. Troost also discussed his goals on while on Tarawa. He planed to write a great literary masterpiece, which he quickly developed writer's block on.

Chapter seven starts off with a detailed description of the Kiribati diet, which contains mostly fish. Kiribati is rich with fish, but this is not necessarily a good thing. Fish is pretty much the only thing that people can eat in Kiribati, making their diet very limited. Troost then describes some fruitless attempts at getting spices, and food other than fish. Troost then went into a description of the different parts of the island, including the lagoon to the south, and the islets to the north. He also talked about the ship that brought supplies to the island, and the frustrations he had with the hording wives. Troost also described the importance of alcohol in Kiribati culture and the devastation caused by a shortage of beer.

The last chapter in the section is all about the importance of a working water system in a society and the problems with a deficient one. Kiribati suffers continual droughts, and there is always a shortage of water. Troost went over his experiences with trying to deal with this problem, including relying on neighbors, and attempting to move five cubic meters from the water tower to his tanks at home.

Quizzer Part 2

Why is Troost so infatuated with the Islands beginnings and the history of the people/culture?

Troost at this point does not know that he wants to write a book. He is merely trying to occupy his time on the island while his wife toils away at her job. I think he wants to learn more about the people around him and how they came to be, so he himself can better relate to what they are. I’m not saying as an I-Matang he will ever be part of the glorious I-Kiribati tribe, but I think he’s trying to relate to the local people in as many ways as he can, so he doesn’t feel like an outsider looking in.

In Chapter 6, Troost emphasizes his difficulties with writing his book. Why is he having such a difficult time writing?

At this point I don’t think Troost has any idea what he’s doing. I think he’s more or less writing the book to occupy himself, instead of writing the book for the purpose of educating those from the outside world on the culture in the South Pacific. I think at this point in time in Troost’s tenure on the island a journal or logbook would be more appropriate, not a novel.

Why does Troost play off the idea of “The Great Beer Crisis” as an island-wide chaotic experience?

The whole island city of Tarawa seemingly runs on beer consumption. When the people have a lack of beer, they seem to have a lack of direction. We call this alcoholism. Of course Troost himself developed a mild liking for the taste of the Australian ale, and he too has a moderate breakdown when he can’t get his hands on a six-pack. Also labeling the situation as “A Great Crisis” doesn’t bode well for any critics trying to tell you that the people of this village aren’t addicted to alcohol.

In chapter 8 Troost buys a supply of water from the local dealer. Why is this technique of buying and selling not beneficial to the people who need water the most?

Troost had to pay fifteen dollars to fill up his entire tank of drinking water. Fifteen dollars American can also buy about 30 two foot long fish in Tarawa. Most of the people probably don’t have that kind of money to spend on the items necessary to survive. All the infectious diseases are a sign that the people are scraping by consuming whatever they possibly can, and maybe the water should be sold for less. I understand that it’s supply and demand, but if all the people die of thirst, there’s nobody left to sell water to. I guess the dealers are just picking their poison.

Quizzer Part 1

Why do you think Troost went to Cuba, and traveled around Europe?

I think he traveled because he didn't want to be tied down anywhere. He didn't like where his education was taking him, so he decided to choose for himself. By traveling around so much, he was able to bring excitement to his life. This helped him ignore where he was going career- wise.

What does Troost's analysis of his research of Kiribati show about him?

He tends to make great generalizations. He only did minimal research, looking only at hard facts on the country, instead of looking up information on the region around Kiribati as well. He also is holding onto the idea that this new island is going to have many similarities with the life he knew.

How do the stops on the way to Kiribati affect Troost's attitude towards the move?

I think it sets up a great amount of foreshadowing. He passed on islands destroyed not only by Western weapons, but also Western culture. Many of the islands he went to completely lost their culture after countries like the UK and US came. He was going to get to see a culture that has only barley been touched by the Western world, which is all he has known his whole life.

Do you think that Troost will adjust as well as Kate? Why?

I think he will. He has shown that he can adjust to many changing conditions. However I do not think he will adjust as well has he thinks he will. He has a lot of ignorance when it comes to Kiribati.

Graphical Organizer Part 1

#10. One of the main exports is shark fins
#9. There is enough electricity on the entire island of Karawa to fuel 3 US households
#8. The fact that it takes 3 days to get there
#7. Air Kirabati consists of two planes that may or may not be able to fly
#6. Beautiful and also polluted waters
#5. Housemates inclue rats and wild dogs
#4. A majority of the fish here are toxic, and that happens to be the main source of food
#3. Disease is rampant
#2. The nearest developed country is well over 1000 miles away
#1. It's not a good sign to relieve the post of a malnourished 50 year old woman who hates her job and looks as if she is 65


Now I’m no expert on life in the pacific, or anywhere else in the world for that matter, but Kiribati looks pretty sketchy to me. I think this graphic illustrates how different other cultures in the world can be from ours here in the US. One would have to be desperate, as the author’s girlfriend is, to take a job in an area like this. I didn’t even bother to mention the incompetence of some of the island “employees”, the way in which fecal matter is disposed, or the “B rated” government owned property the author calls “home.”

Introduction: Sex Lives of Cannibals

The group had varying reasons for choosing the book. We all agreed that the foreign nature of the topic would be fun and interesting to explore, and give us a better appreciation for how we live in the United States. It was not exactly the idea that we would be reading about the South Pacific, it dealt with the fact that we were reading about a culture so different from our own. It also helped that the author was Maarten Troost who is well acclaimed, and our group thought it would be interesting to read his work. We are excited to read this book, and gain some insight and knowledge into the South Pacific.
Our group is going into this book with some common biases and stereotypes about this culture. We believe that people living in the tropics are lazy and laid-back. We also see the area as a paradise with tropical fruit, palm trees, clear blue water, sandy beaches, and easy living. The atmosphere of the area is “tribal” and “savage” with traditions of cannibalism, body piercing, and Shamanism. Based on these stereotypes we concluded that Kiribati is probably part of an undeveloped area of the world, and it is considered to be an undeveloped third world country.
We are not going to let these stereotypes hold us back while reading the book. We’re all going into the experience with open minds. By reading the book with an open mind we can benefit much more from Troost’s interesting experiences. We hope that by learning about another culture we can have a better appreciation of our own.

Vocab Part 1

1. paucity (pg. x): scarcity or death
2. Fathom (pg. xi): a unit of length of six feet used in nautical measurements
3. reticent (pg. 3): to keep one's thoughts, feelings, and personal affairs to themself
4. flummoxed (pg. 3): to confuse
5. ubiquitous (pg. 3): seeming or being everywhere at the same time
6. patois (pg. 3): regional dialect without a literary tradition
7. fecund (pg. 9): very productive or creative intellectually
8. portent (pg. 9): a sign of something about to happen
9. ennui (pg. 26): to feel weary from boredom
10. succumb (pg. 28): to submit to an overpowering force

Due dates

Pages 1-45 due February 25th
Clayton: graphic organizer
Jen: vocab
Derek: quizzer

Pages 46-89 due February 27th
Clayton: quizzer
Jen: graphic organizer
Derek: summarizer

Pages 90-128 due March 2nd
Clayton: summarizer
Jen: quizzer
Derek: vocab

Pages 129-162 due March 4th
Clayton: vocab
Jen: summarizer
Derek: graphic organizer

Pages 163-178 due March 6th
Clayton: graphic organizer
Jen: vocab
Derek: quizzer

Pages 179-206 due March 9th
Clayton: quizzer
Jen: graphic organizer
Derek: summarizer

Pages 207-240 due March 11th
Clayton: summarizer
Jen: quizzer
Derek: vocab

Pages 241-END due March 13th
Clayton: vocab
Jen: summarizer
Derek: graphic organizer