Week Five: Tatz. By Ku’ualoha Ho’omanawanui

Ku’ualoha writes about the tattoos on the boys bodies. The tattoos that are designed to show where they come from and the tattoos show who they are. The tattoos are meaningful and tell a story. The tattoos are described as

“invisible DNA

made visible”

The tattoo is a powerful form of identity, it shows where one comes from without speaking and shows their story of their ancestors and how they came to be.

“like genealogy

dea personal history”.

The use of language in this poem is very powerful, it is written for the reader to hear their accent and the voice of the author. The poem also describes how important it is for tattoos to tell the story and not allow the culture to forget about the language of Hawaii.

Mo’oele is defined as meaning something similar to “succession of talk” or “succession of language.” This refers to how stories were told in traditional times in Hawaiʻi. Ku’ualoha says that the stories will fade over time so by having a tattoo and mixing it with the blood, ink and pain it means that no one can forget

“Wea dey came from

Wea dey stay

Wea dey goin”

Tattoos are an important aspect of identity for many cultures and I really like how Ku’ualoha describes them as invisible DNA being made visible and telling a story of the person wearing the tattoo. The person going through the pain to get the tattoo and to never forget where they come from.

 

Reference:

http://www.kumukahi.org/units/na_kanaka/kaaike/moolelo

https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/aut/reader.action?docID=1411801&query=