Facing the Spears of Change: The Life and Legacy of John Papa 'Ī'ī by Marie Alohalani Brown (review)

MARIE ALOHALANI BROWN'S Facing the Spears of Change: The Life and Legacy of John Papa 'Ī'ī is a groundbreaking historical biography of the remarkable John Papa 'Ī'ī, a Kanaka 'Ōiwi who faithfully served the Kamehameha dynasty as an advisor and statesman for fifty-eight years. His life was at the center of politics in Hawai'i, and his advisement played a critical role in preserving Hawai'i's independence in the face of violent European and American empire building through cultural, religious, and political shifts and through waves of epidemics that led to a massive population collapse amongst Kānaka 'Ōiwi. Through meticulous analysis and description of 'Ī'ī's life, Brown also captures all of the complexities of a rapidly globalized nineteenth-century Hawai'i.

Brown begins her ho'olauna (introduction) with an arresting scene of an unarmed man standing before twenty spearmen, catching and parrying their spears, then throwing them back in rapid succession, sending the men fleeing. The man was none other than 'Ī'ī, demonstrating his skill in lonomakaihe at a celebration commemorating the restoration of Hawaiian sovereignty after "the Paulet affair" in 1843, when Kamehameha III was forced to cede Hawai'i under duress to Lord George Paulet of Britain. Brown suggests that by this time in 'Ī'ī's life, at forty-six years old, lonomakaihe could already be seen as a metaphor for the many challenges he had overcome. Brown extends this metaphor to organize the biography, focusing on 'Ī'ī's various trials, both personal and political, and tracing how he both deflected and learned from them.

Her introduction illuminates the magnitude, in size and significance, of the Hawaiian-language archive she collected and studied, especially 'Ī'ī's own body of writing. Brown contextualizes his work (and her own) within Kanaka life-writing traditions, arguing for the importance of adhering to its aesthetic and rhetorical strategies, including the recounting of mo'okū'auhau (genealogy) and mo'olelo (history and story). Chapter 1 examines 'Ī'i's birth, early childhood, and entering service to Kamehameha as a ten-year-old, just after Kamehameha unified the islands. Brown examines 'Ī'i's mo'okū'auhau to explain his specialized stature and training to serve as kahu (guardian/advisor) to Liholiho (Kamehameha II).

Chapters 2 and 3 span thirty years of 'Ī'ī's life (1824–54) serving Kauikeauoli (Kamehameha III) first as his childhood kahu and then as a statesman in both the Privy Council and the House of Nobles. Points of interest in these chapters include his being taken hostage by the French during the "Laplace affair"; his involvement in the Kula Ali'i (royal school); his multiple government positions; and the pressures he faced during the Paulet affair and the Māhele, which first divided and privatized Hawaiian land.

Chapter 4 spans 'Ī'ī's life from 1854 to 1868 serving Alexander Liholiho (Kamehameha IV) and Lot Kapuāiwa (Kamehameha V). After losing those most dear to him and facing various political trials, 'Ī'ī was ousted from the kingdom's government altogether and forced to retire in 1868. Chapter 5 is devoted primarily to 'Ī'ī's life-writing series, which he wrote from 1868 up until his death in 1870. While his political service would be difficult to supplant in terms of its significance, Brown suggests that these intellectual contributions in his retirement mark one of the most productive periods of his life. Following Hawaiian life-writing conventions, Brown's epilogue offers her own kānaenae, an elegy praising 'Ī'ī, closing with reflections on how coming to know 'Ī'ī has shaped her as a Kanaka 'Ōiwi living in a now American-occupied Hawai'i.

Aside from the cogent analysis and narrative, readers will appreciate the thoughtful inclusion of a biographical timeline, notes discussing Hawaiian terms, and photos of letters handwritten by and about 'Ī'ī and of Ka Nupepa Kuokoa, in which 'Ī'ī published his life-writing series. They will also value Brown's caution against relying only on translations to conduct research on Indigenous peoples and...