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Hawai'i: Eight Hundred Years of Political and Economic Change
Relative to the other habited places on our planet, Hawai‘i has a very short history. The Hawaiian archipelago was the last major land area on the planet to be settled, with Polynesians making the long voyage just under a millennium ago. Our understanding of the social, political, and economic changes that have unfolded since has been limited until recently by how little we knew about the first five centuries of settlement.
Building on new archaeological and historical research, Sumner La Croix assembles here the economic history of Hawai‘i from the first Polynesian settlements in 1200 through US colonization, the formation of statehood, and to the present day. He shows how the political and economic institutions that emerged and evolved in Hawai‘i during its three centuries of global isolation allowed an economically and culturally rich society to emerge, flourish, and ultimately survive annexation and colonization by the United States. The story of a small, open economy struggling to adapt its institutions to changes in the global economy, Hawai‘i offers broadly instructive conclusions about economic evolution and development, political institutions, and native Hawaiian rights.
Building on new archaeological and historical research, Sumner La Croix assembles here the economic history of Hawai‘i from the first Polynesian settlements in 1200 through US colonization, the formation of statehood, and to the present day. He shows how the political and economic institutions that emerged and evolved in Hawai‘i during its three centuries of global isolation allowed an economically and culturally rich society to emerge, flourish, and ultimately survive annexation and colonization by the United States. The story of a small, open economy struggling to adapt its institutions to changes in the global economy, Hawai‘i offers broadly instructive conclusions about economic evolution and development, political institutions, and native Hawaiian rights.
- GenresHistory
403 pages, Kindle Edition
Published March 14, 2019
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
August 21, 2020
It's a bit funny how this book ended up being the one that popped up today, as one of my friends has moved to Hawai'i with her fiance and after many months of not hearing from her, she finally broke the silence today on Facebook! I honestly didn't know much about the place (considering I'm an East European living in South East Asia), but alas! If you've never checked out some pictures, I suggest you check some out right now.
The book was published in 2019 and focuses on the economic and general history of Hawai'i from a professor emeritus and research fellow in this same subject. The man has lived there a long time and has made the topic his career focus. Must be worth a shot then, right? I personally recommend it for those of you thinking about traveling there or moving there as the content of the book is rich and it'll enable you to appreciate the place more.
Hawaii is in most of the world's eyes, simply put, a paradise. But for those outside of the US, or even those within that perhaps don't travel much and don't plan to either, Hawaii is also mystery. Personally I've not been there myself, but hope to some day.
The book has rich stories through which it tells the historical as well as the contemporary facts and events, a style which I enjoyed a lot. However, I found the way the United States cornered the Hawaiian Monarchy until it yielded (literally at gunpoint) and turned over the country to the States as scary... the way they collaborated with the richest behind the government's back, who then overthrew and sold their own country for profit... scary and sad, and much to learn from at the same time and consider, as history always repeats itself.
I'll conclude that this little gem was something I overall liked way more than expected, considering that the topic has nothing to do with me directly, or culturally. If you really like history though, you might too.
The book was published in 2019 and focuses on the economic and general history of Hawai'i from a professor emeritus and research fellow in this same subject. The man has lived there a long time and has made the topic his career focus. Must be worth a shot then, right? I personally recommend it for those of you thinking about traveling there or moving there as the content of the book is rich and it'll enable you to appreciate the place more.
Hawaii is in most of the world's eyes, simply put, a paradise. But for those outside of the US, or even those within that perhaps don't travel much and don't plan to either, Hawaii is also mystery. Personally I've not been there myself, but hope to some day.
The book has rich stories through which it tells the historical as well as the contemporary facts and events, a style which I enjoyed a lot. However, I found the way the United States cornered the Hawaiian Monarchy until it yielded (literally at gunpoint) and turned over the country to the States as scary... the way they collaborated with the richest behind the government's back, who then overthrew and sold their own country for profit... scary and sad, and much to learn from at the same time and consider, as history always repeats itself.
I'll conclude that this little gem was something I overall liked way more than expected, considering that the topic has nothing to do with me directly, or culturally. If you really like history though, you might too.
August 21, 2020
We could understand the story of Hawaii by studying the economic forces that shaped it. Resources, trade, and redistribution have played a role in its history. All the way from the heyday of taro agriculture imported from Polynesia to the towering heights of the Big Five sugar planters, to the existing Native Hawaiians struggle to have their fair share of expropriated lands.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews