Leaves of the Banyan Tree

1507 Words7 Pages
Three Generations of Men and Their Desire for Power In his novel Leaves of the Banyan Tree, Albert Wendt traces the lives of three generations of Sapepe men: Tauilopepe, Pepe, and Galupo. Each man is faced with a changing society shaping his every move. The novel's setting is Sapape, a Samoan village and Apia, the capital Western Samoa during a time of conflict as the old traditions are replaced with new ones brought by the papalagi. The challenges of colonization and modernization on this society cause each of these men to react to this traumatic culture change differently. Tauilopepe, Pepe, and Galupo each have the illusion of power within them based on their own unique moral codes: Tauilopepe is a hypocrite, Pepe an existentialist, and Galupo amoral. Each man's behaviors and attitudes towards power show how they are all possess a strong desire to gain power. Early in the novel, Tauilopepe is the head of his aiga and an important matai whose prestige and power shows through his behavior. He takes great pride in providing a stable life for his aiga. For example, when Lupe asked him if he was going to sell the copra, he responded by saying, “Leave it to me” (17). Although he knew that selling the copra would not make enough money for his aiga, Tauilopepe wanted to assure his wife that he would take care of them. However, materialistic greed consumes Tauilopepe, causing a distortion in his family system. Tauilopepe begins an affair with Moa, allowing him “unlimited credit at Malo’s store,” and begins the “successful expansion of his plantation” that begins to “restore his self-confidence” (28). His behavior is now motivated by papalagi standards, not the traditional Samoan ways. “He talked again of sending Pepe to a town school, of building a papalagi house and store, of how, after all these years, the Aiga Tauilopepe, under his leadership, was going to
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