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Easter Island Isolation and Unique Development of Ideas By: Bailee Lawrence
Easter Islands Isolation and Unique Development of Ideas
The culture of the early inhabitants of Easter Island was based on the structure of their lineage, or how they were related to Hotu Matu’a. Being the first recorded king of Easter Island, he left his land to his many children before he died. This caused an outbreak of competition that might not have ended well with some, while others came out of the fight victorious. These competions soon led to new social structures that questioned tradition. The death of the first glorious King Hotu Matu’a’s caused a separation of clans and a great increase of competition which led to great and mysterious art, new forms of government, and a religion that would be considered unusual by Western standards.
Essentially, there are eight children to which the island was divided to, which led to the formation of eight main clans as well as four smaller and less important ones. These clans all competed for land and power amongst themselves. Easter Island was really divided into two main super-clans to which each of the smaller clans were a part of. The rulers of these often followed a predictable pattern. Each would try to make build bigger moai (statues) than their neighbors. When this failed to solve anything, the tribes often turned to war and destroyed each other’s statues. As time grew on, these statues grew larger to outshine the previous generation or clan. The moai were not so much to threaten intruders as once was thought, but to represent their ancestors who would guard the island. The statues themselves were made out of the volcanic rock that was found all over the island. As a part of a social contract, the making of moai was considered a required part of society and in exchange for labor, artisans were provided food. As the social structure of the island fell, the creation of moai came to a halt.
There were many events that could be blamed for the fall of social structure. Because of the resources that were need to build the moai, the environment and natural resources were quickly depleted. This led to an abrupt halt of building, artisans no longer had food and so many statues were neglected or destroyed as a sign of defiance to other clans. As the structure fell, power was no longer passed through kin, but rather through an achieved status. Tension and rivalry emerged as a system that had created peace fell. Society no longer cared about ancestors or lineage and as a result, there were drastic changes to burial practices. People were no longer cremated; now, bodies were thrown on piles of rocks in a pyramid structure. Elders and ancestors were no longer revered. These changes brought about a new religion and focus on other parts of life.
The focus of life on Easter Island became survival as images of fertility became more popular. In order to become powerful in society, one would compete in a yearly competition; the winner was named birdman (tangata manu). This led to a cult that made elaborate caves to house the competitors for each year. The Rapanui, initially, were set apart because their religion is not based on the idea of having an eternal life. Instead, there was remembrance and honor for the dead. There was no desire to save bodies of their ancestors, but rather to cremate them and let them be free. Even after the shift to the birdman cult, the main motivation was on survival, both physically and later with the creation of more generations.
Overall, Easter Island created a legend of art, society, and religion that has made its mark in history despite the fact that it isn’t a major world civilization. The Rapanui had a large focus on ancestors in the beginning which led to the creation of Moai and competions between clans for power. This relates to how many clans competed in China for power in a dynasty. The Easter Island Moai may also be compared to Egyptians building of pyramids. Both were a way to preserve great rulers and ancestors, though Moai were not burial grounds and were not made by slaves. The Rapanui also completed destroyed their past traditions after a certain time, making it very unusual for a society because its shift to a different mindset. Preserving Easter Islands early history can help us understand that other civilizations developed then just those in Asia and that ideas were developed of their own accord; away from outside influence.
The culture of the early inhabitants of Easter Island was based on the structure of their lineage, or how they were related to Hotu Matu’a. Being the first recorded king of Easter Island, he left his land to his many children before he died. This caused an outbreak of competition that might not have ended well with some, while others came out of the fight victorious. These competions soon led to new social structures that questioned tradition. The death of the first glorious King Hotu Matu’a’s caused a separation of clans and a great increase of competition which led to great and mysterious art, new forms of government, and a religion that would be considered unusual by Western standards.
Essentially, there are eight children to which the island was divided to, which led to the formation of eight main clans as well as four smaller and less important ones. These clans all competed for land and power amongst themselves. Easter Island was really divided into two main super-clans to which each of the smaller clans were a part of. The rulers of these often followed a predictable pattern. Each would try to make build bigger moai (statues) than their neighbors. When this failed to solve anything, the tribes often turned to war and destroyed each other’s statues. As time grew on, these statues grew larger to outshine the previous generation or clan. The moai were not so much to threaten intruders as once was thought, but to represent their ancestors who would guard the island. The statues themselves were made out of the volcanic rock that was found all over the island. As a part of a social contract, the making of moai was considered a required part of society and in exchange for labor, artisans were provided food. As the social structure of the island fell, the creation of moai came to a halt.
There were many events that could be blamed for the fall of social structure. Because of the resources that were need to build the moai, the environment and natural resources were quickly depleted. This led to an abrupt halt of building, artisans no longer had food and so many statues were neglected or destroyed as a sign of defiance to other clans. As the structure fell, power was no longer passed through kin, but rather through an achieved status. Tension and rivalry emerged as a system that had created peace fell. Society no longer cared about ancestors or lineage and as a result, there were drastic changes to burial practices. People were no longer cremated; now, bodies were thrown on piles of rocks in a pyramid structure. Elders and ancestors were no longer revered. These changes brought about a new religion and focus on other parts of life.
The focus of life on Easter Island became survival as images of fertility became more popular. In order to become powerful in society, one would compete in a yearly competition; the winner was named birdman (tangata manu). This led to a cult that made elaborate caves to house the competitors for each year. The Rapanui, initially, were set apart because their religion is not based on the idea of having an eternal life. Instead, there was remembrance and honor for the dead. There was no desire to save bodies of their ancestors, but rather to cremate them and let them be free. Even after the shift to the birdman cult, the main motivation was on survival, both physically and later with the creation of more generations.
Overall, Easter Island created a legend of art, society, and religion that has made its mark in history despite the fact that it isn’t a major world civilization. The Rapanui had a large focus on ancestors in the beginning which led to the creation of Moai and competions between clans for power. This relates to how many clans competed in China for power in a dynasty. The Easter Island Moai may also be compared to Egyptians building of pyramids. Both were a way to preserve great rulers and ancestors, though Moai were not burial grounds and were not made by slaves. The Rapanui also completed destroyed their past traditions after a certain time, making it very unusual for a society because its shift to a different mindset. Preserving Easter Islands early history can help us understand that other civilizations developed then just those in Asia and that ideas were developed of their own accord; away from outside influence.