Monday, November 17, 2008

Week 5

This is short clip of a documentary about this Samoan culture. Wildly flirtatious by night and dutifully domestic by day, the stunningly beautiful fa’fafines of Western Samoa are accepted as boys who live as girls; even within their strictly Christian society. Moving easily from the role of housewife to drag queen, the colourful personalities of the fa’fafines are loved by Samoans and tourists alike. Paradise Bent presents an intimate portrait of three fa’fafines in the lead up to the annual ‘’Queen of Samoa’’ beauty contest, exploring the personal, sexual and social spirit of the fa’fafines culture of Western Samoa.



1 comment:

Morenita said...

I think this is a very interesting topic because it is not known to many. It fascinates me how much the fa’afafine’s are accepted in their culture. As the mother was saying he acts like a girl out there but here at home he acts like a boy. To her there is no difference her children continue to be children no matter what gender they showcase. I think as a society we need to move past the categorization of sexuality and gender. These two attributes do not completely make up an individual and should not matter in judging someone’s character. Like the fa’afafines’ we need to be in order to stop the hate crimes towards the transgender and gay community.
-Brenda Meza