Melal – Story About a Marshal Island Family Spanning Three Generations
Melal is a story about a Marshal Island family spanning three generations. The story depicts their spirit and their place in this world, as well as the American presence in their islands and the effect of that presence. The deterioration of their culture and the ways in which they cope with this foreign entity build the tone of the story. The issues of cultural identity and self-determination are themes that resonate powerfully throughout the novel.
When the two brothers decide to go fishing and take a camping trip on the island, they cross over into the military territory where the missile range is located. This area is forbidden to them, yet it was once the home of their ancestors. Their cultural identity drives them forward with self-determination as they not only defy their fathers issues concerning their safety, but also break the law and go anyway. The conflict of cultural identity becomes clearer as they are faced with a group of American teenagers fishing in the area. The brothers have a choice to fall into line and obey the structure in place by their American occupiers, but instead follow their own path and know inherently that this is their land and their home and shouldnt be treated as unwelcome guests on their islands.
The American community and presence is depicted in a demonic way. They brought opportunity for their own needs and their own progression, framing the societal structure of the islands in current times and shaping it to fit their agenda. The people become enslaved in their own islands. The father works for the American sewage-treatment plant there and experiences several conflicts culturally. In the Marshallese community, he is revered and treated with great respect. The cultural identity plays a role in this situation as he realizes the American presence will always see and treat him as an inferior. He feels the unspoken mood and tone of their intent, that he is a lesser being, destined for a role of servitude to his American superiors. The familys grandfather, now dead, serves as a reminder of the past, and also a reminder of the rebellious passion he held, never accepting or acknowledging the authority of the Americans in their islands.
There are mystical images that are closely tied to their cultural identity throughout the novel. The gods of the past in a way are modernized and represented in the people and things of the current day. Demons are most closely tied to the Americans and their presence. The native peoples of the islands had no say in the occupiers presence and were at the mercy of outside forces beyond their control. Barclay examines the ramifications of the actions of the Americans in their islands and the damaging effect it has