Poetry and Pacific studies: Notes from the field

After many years at the University of the South Pacific (where this paper was written), William Clarke is currently a Visiting Fellow in Resource Management in the Asia-Pacific Project at the Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies, The Australian National University, Canberra. Following a brief review of the place of oral poetry and song in Pacific Island societies, aspects of contemporary life are examined through the words of present-day Pacific poets. Topics examined include tourism, land issues, cultural identity and authenticity, the place of women in Pacific societies, corruption, environmental issues, population growth and urbanisation. A central theme of the discussion is that the poetic voice can heighten our attention towards and understandings of people's lives and feelings.