Colonizing Hawai'i: The Cultural Power of Law

by Sally Engle Merry

How does law transform family, sexuality, and community in the fractured social world characteristic of the colonizing process? The law was a cornerstone of the so-called civilizing process of nineteenth-century colonialism. It was simultaneously a means of transformation and a marker of the seductive idea of civilization. Sally Engle Merry reveals how, in Hawai'i, indigenous Hawaiian law was displaced by a transplanted Anglo-American law as global movements of capitalism, Christianity, and imperialism swept across the islands. The new law brought novel systems of courts, prisons, and conceptions of discipline and dramatically changed the marriage patterns, work lives, and sexual conduct of the indigenous people of Hawai'i.

Genres: Anthropology, Nonfiction, History, Research, Law

432 pages, Paperback

First published December 21, 1999

Reviews

[Miranda Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book made me think a lot about the power of law & how legal institutions can be coercive. I also did not know nearly anything about the colonization of Hawaii, and I’m glad I was able to learn more about its history with this detailed ethnography. I have a lot of respect for the amount of work put into writing this book, and it is incredibly well-researched. However, I do wish there had been some narrative elements or more anecdotes/interviews included about individual people and their experiences.

[Cabot · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was required to read this for my anthropology of law class, and it is a quite interesting work on an often-forgotten part of US history. Merry draws from a wide literature and is thorough in her coverage of the role of law in colonization, and a lot of the points stand to be useful outside of this context. My one complaint is that the book drags at points, hence three stars instead of four.

[Anh Le · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you want a good foray into American colonial projects, start with this book. There are some more foundational theoretical texts (Said, Foucault, Fanon, etc) you should read before digging into her arguments. In addition, some prior comparative understandings of the legal discourses and the cultural logics of law in other colonies (the British in India or the Dutch in Batavia, for example) will make the books easier to read (even though it's already a highly readable monograph). That said, it is absolutely a worthy read. Also, this is a good example of cross-disciplinary venture between historical work and ethnographic study. The writing is part theoretical, part narrative based. But the author did it seamlessly and somewhat reconcile the tensions between two different kinds of approach. Detailed review will appear on my personal blog in my series of book review on "colonialism and empire".

[Rena Lu · Rating 5 out of 5]

read this for class but im also unfortunately a slut for a good legal anthro book

[kacie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm a huge fan of Merry's, and I'm thrilled to be reading this while in Hilo. She does a great job with explaining the complexities of western law in Hawaii - as a necessary tool of colonialism and religious and economic discipline, but also as a means of resistance. Can't wait to get further into her analysis on law and gender violence!

[Blake · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good narative to the legal aspects of our pre-tourism era on controlling Hawaii. Before it was the land of Hula and surfing, our attempts to "civilize" manifested in legal terms which this book ruthlessy disects.