'Social development' and 'economic development' are complex concepts, concepts that may be interpreted very differently in different contexts and at different times. Not only may the processes involved be different in different contexts, so too may be the criteria by which success is judged. It is argued here that successive Solomon Islands governments have striven for social and economic development without taking full account of the real nature of Solomon Islands society. What is needed is national development policy, planning and implementation that arise out of, and take fully into account, the historical, geographic and cultural context of Solomon Islands. On the whole, the socio-economic structure of Solomon Islands society is currently underpinned by a tri-partite hierarchy in which, for the majority of Solomon Islanders, kastom (traditional beliefs and practices) and church (the beliefs and practices endorsed by the church) take precedence over the state as legitimate forms of authority. This inevitably poses problems for state-led development. If socio-economic development activities are to be successful in achieving a better quality of life for all Solomon Islanders, including those who live in rural areas, they must take full account of the role of kastom and church in the lives of the people. This must include an understanding of the differing concepts of development of people in different areas of the country such as those of Ulawa islanders that are discussed here. The thesis begins with an introduction to the research (Chapter 1) in which the theoretical framework is located broadly within the postmodern paradigm. In Chapter 2 the essentially qualitative and interpretive nature of the methodology is outlined and explained. Chapter 3 provides a critical review of international development literature in which it is argued that official definitions and descriptions of development are based on production and deficit models. The need to accommodate an indigenous and organic concept of development, one that takes account of the diversity of human experience, is stressed. Chapter 4 provides an outline of Solomon Islands society. Here, the historical narrative is complemented by three metaphors - 'island', wantok and betelnut - which serve to reinforce and explain the nature of Solomon Islands society and the ways in which that society has been shaped by historical processes. Chapter 5 is devoted to a discussion of modern development activity in Solomon Islands, the main focus being on the period immediately preceding and following independence. Chapter 6 explores, with particular reference to Ulawa Island, indigenous concepts of development and the impact of national development activities on rural-dwelling islanders. It also engages the issue of state reform, proposing a model based on a two tier system, with central government in its current form dealing directly with the people at constituency rather than provincial level. Finally, Chapter 7 summarizes the main conclusions reached. It is noted that the failure of both pre- and post-independence governments to take full account of the nature of Solomon Islands society has been a major factor in the lack of effective development in the islands.

This thesis is an exploration of the ways in which past and present Churches of Christ worshippers from northern Vanuatu reflect on politik (Bislama: politics, political action but also much more). To comprehend what this term means to local people in Vanuatu, we must be aware of the contexts in which it is used, the events and relationships that are its exemplars and the local political economies of historical knowledge that inflect its meanings. To this end, this thesis explores the origins of politik as described by my interlocutors through oral histories about the interplay between their church, state institutions and Nagriamel, a traditionalist movement which emerged on Santo in 1967 and spread quickly throughout the northern New Hebrides. Through an examination of the content of these spoken histories, this thesis suggests that politik is seen to have corroded the unity of pre-existing social groups, such as the church, which is considered by its adherents to be indigenous. As a contingent state of democracy, politik describes the unwanted aspects of modernity and nationhood based on the perceived emergence of hierarchies between indigenous people in the post-colonial state of Vanuatu. Given that the rise of Nagriamel is considered to have inspired the resurgence of kastom where previously it was proscribed, kastom is often seen by conventional worshippers to be something to endure rather than celebrate. Among Churches of Christ worshippers, the conflict between kastom and church doctrine is considered to constitute part of the conflict inherent in politik.¶ Given that much of the knowledge on which this thesis was based was collected during interpersonal and group interviews, this thesis also explores the creation of political economies of historical knowledge about politik. Through a review of oral historical methodologies and appropriate anthropological theory, it examines the nature of information collected during participant-observation. As this thesis compares different genres of historical information (local, oral histories, national public histories and colonial archival records) it is also concerned with historical methodology.

Symbole de la « renaissance culturelle kanak », le festival d’arts mélanésiens de Nouvelle-Calédonie, Mélanésia 2000, vient de fêter en 2015 son quarantième anniversaire. Cette manifestation a vraisemblablement constitué le ferment culturaliste de la revendication nationaliste qui, dans les années 1980, parvint à ériger la coutume en symbole unificateur du peuple kanak, contre le statu quo colonial. Engagée depuis plus de deux décennies dans un processus de décolonisation – dont l’issue politique et institutionnelle demeure incertaine –, la Nouvelle-Calédonie connaît les effets d’une politique de rééquilibrage au profit du peuple autochtone, notamment sous la forme d’une valorisation sans précédent de l’identité culturelle kanak, d’une sauvegarde des patrimoines traditionnels matériel et immatériel, et d’une action soutenue en faveur du développement culturel et de la création artistique à dimension océanienne.Il convient de retracer la genèse de cette « renaissance identitaire », à la lumière des débats épistémologiques qui ont agité l’anthropologie océaniste de l’époque, notamment autour des questions de la (ré)invention des traditions, et de leur utilisation à des fins de conscientisation identitaire et de mobilisation politique. Plus encore, le travail des sciences sociales – et de l’anthropologie en particulier – permet d’inscrire dans une perspective historique le processus, toujours en cours, d’édification des cultures en tant qu’identités collectives objectivées, données à voir, et sanctifiées (ou non) par une reconnaissance officielle et une inscription à l’intérieur de l’espace public. Avec l’émergence d’un nouveau champ social, qui prend en charge cette « gestion du symbolique » (Dubois, 1999), une recherche ethnographique menée auprès des acteurs sociaux permet de montrer en quoi les représentations de l’identité kanak, qui furent longtemps l’apanage de militants autochtones et d’intellectuels engagés, incombent désormais à une catégorie constituée de professionnels de la culture, de l’art, et du patrimoine.Au final, cette étude largement rétrospective entend contribuer à une compréhension à la fois épistémologique et sociologique du changement social et culturel en Nouvelle-Calédonie, depuis la conversion d’une crispation identitaire nationaliste (1975-1988) jusqu’au projet multiculturel d’une « communauté de destin » induit par la mise en œuvre de l’accord de Nouméa (1998-2018). / A symbol of “Kanak culture revival”, the festival of Melanesian arts Melanesia 2000 has just celebrated in 2015 its 40th anniversary. This event was in all likelihood the cultural catalyst for the nationalist movement which in the 1980’s successfully established la coutume (“kastom”) as a unifying symbol for the Kanak people in opposition to the colonial status quo. Having been engaged for more than two decades in a process of decolonization – the political and constitutional outcome of which remains uncertain – New Caledonia is now experiencing the effects of a policy of rebalancing in favour of the indigenous people, notably in the form of an unprecedented appreciation of Kanak cultural identity, the preservation of tangible and intangible heritage and the active promotion of cultural development and artistic creation within a wider Pacific cultural context.It is important to retrace the genesis of the “Kanak renaissance” in light of the epistemological discussions that animated Oceanian anthropology in the period, especially the debates around the (re)invention of traditions and their instrumentalization to promote identity consciousness and political mobilization. The social sciences – and especially anthropology – make it possible to place in historical perspective the ongoing process of the making of cultures as collective identities that are objectified, put on display and sanctified (or not) through their official recognition and inscription within the public arena. With the emergence of a new cultural field entirely dedicated to “the management of symbols” (Dubois, 1999), ethnographical research carried out with the social actors makes it possible to show that the representations of Kanak identity that were for a long time the domain of indigenous militants and engaged intellectuals are now the domain of curators and managers of art and cultural heritage.Finally, this largely retrospective study aims at a better epistemological and sociological understanding of social and cultural change in New Caledonia in the period since the hardening of Kanak nationalism (1975-1988) up until the multi-cultural project for a “shared future” brought about by the application of the Noumea Accord (1998-2018).

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This is a study of coming to know what it is to be Paamese. The work seeks to present an anthropological understanding of ontological concerns that constitute a Paamese perception of subjectivities. I take my lead from Paamese perceptions that the internal capacities of subjects or “things” (e.g. persons, villages, islands, and movement itself) are revealed through relations with others. This correlates with anthropology’s methodology of testing its analytical strategies through the ethnographic practices of others in order to reach more accurate representations. Paamese, as is common elsewhere in Vanuatu and Melanesia, have an extremely fluid attitude towards sociality and easily accommodate urban dwelling without leaving Paama behind. I suggest that a nuanced multi-positioned approach in which several aspects of Paamese sociality are considered from a point of limitation employed by Paamese to focus an event, such as a marriage exchange, will present a better understanding of how these subjectivities, that is Paamese people and Paama Island, adhere such that they do not part company wherever they go. Paamese suggest that each event should be considered as if following a single branch in the canopy of a tree – a scalable perception that offers the promise that a multi-faceted approach will reveal a replicable form. I take this approach to specificity seriously and employ a looping aesthetic, measi, adapted from Paamese sand-drawing in order to consider the shifting concerns expressed by Paamese perceptions of out (place), āmal (agnatic clans), sise (road), vatte (origin), ara (blood) and asi (bone). I suggest that these, parts, can be considered together as a holography for how to come to know what it is to be Paamese.

This thesis is concerned with the cultural shifts that have occurred in Lihir, Papua New Guinea, as Lihirians were drawn into greater engagement with the capitalist system, initially through the colonial labour trade and more recently through large-scale resource extraction. This research draws upon 15 months of fieldwork in the Lihir Islands from 2003 to 2004. This thesis is intended as a critical dialogue with world system theorists.World systems arguments are constructive for understanding how Lihirians have remained economically marginal.However, I reject the assertion commonly propounded in these approaches that the world capitalist system inevitably destroys ‘traditional’ cultures and remakes them to its own specifications. Working from Sahlins’ (1985, 1992) premise that there is always continuity in change, I have sought to illustrate those enduring structures and received cultural values that have shaped Lihirian engagement with the capitalist system. My concern iswith articulation rather than penetration; to capture the dialectic of global structural inequalities and Lihirian selective appropriation. This approach allows me to emphasise the heterogeneity of Lihirian culture, notonly prior to sustained European contact, or even mining activities, but specifically at the height of their engagement with the capitalist system. (For complete abstract open document)