Drawing on the collective symbols of Māori culture as literary devices for constructing narratives in biographical research
Connor, Helene
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Date
2015-10Citation:
Connor, H. (2015, October). Drawing on the collective symbols of Māori culture as literary devices for constructing narratives in biographical research. Paper presented at Society of Intercultural Educators, Trainers and Researchers (SIETAR) Australasia Inaugural Conference, Cairns, Queensland, Australia.Permanent link to Research Bank record:
https://hdl.handle.net/10652/3322Abstract
This paper discusses several collective symbols of Māori culture which I have drawn on when constructing life narratives for biographical research projects with Māori participants.
Symbols as a literary device
• Enable the telling of stories in ways which both connect and empower the narrator.
• Symbols can help subjects of biography talk about aspects of their lives in insightful and creative ways
• Symbols can also address collective cultural identity where there are shared meanings of symbols as well as individual meanings