ABSTRACT
M A N Y A P E R S O N from Mai ' ao and A ' o u ' a has expressed to me his regret
for the passing of established ways of m a k i n g a l i v i n g and of t r ad i -
t i ona l ways i n w h i c h k insmen and neighbors related to one another,
fndeed, the Mai ' ao and 'A'ou'a, and other Tah i t i ans , seem to be i n -
curably roman t i c about the i r past: they de l igh t i n c o n j u r i n g up images
of a more i d y l l i c age when T a h i t i a n s were more closely attached to
the land and sea for the i r basic needs, when household members
formed a cohesive g roup and when food and labor tasks were shared
wide ly t h roughou t the local commun i ty . B u t their roman t i c attach-
ment to the past does not mean that they are w i l l i n g to make the eco-
nomic adjustments necessary to r e t u r n to earlier l i fe styles. Few, i f
any, are real ly w i l l i n g to t u r n the clock back: cash crop producers do
not wan t to go back to a subsistence or iented existence and wage
earners do not wan t to "go back to the f a r m . "
