4.3 KiB
| title | chunk | source | category | tags | date_saved | instance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Fern and the Tiki | 4/5 | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fern_and_the_Tiki | reference | science, encyclopedia | 2026-05-05T08:55:40.676360+00:00 | kb-cron |
== Reception == A 1960 review in Landfall said the book had a "jaundiced undercurrent...[and]...it is obvious that [Ausebel's] disappointment in and his disillusionment about New Zealand unset him bitterly". The reviewer said Ausubel seemed unaware how to approach people in the country and what he saw as smugness, "may be in fact a mask for sincere and considerable feelings of inferiority - and in a small bourgeois country, a feeling of nakedness". A later commentator suggested that the position taken by Smithells reflected how New Zealanders felt about the book as late as 2002 in that if "he [Ausubel] had limited himself to Māori-Pākehā relationships and not risked insulting New Zealanders' culture, his work would have been better received". Kemble Welch, a senior pathologist at Whangarei Hospital who had worked for many years amongst Maori communities, said Ausubel's conclusion that New Zealand's colour bar was "so big and baneful" that there was reason to be pessimistic about the country's future, was difficult to be tested using scientific methodology. Welch called the reliability of the data gathered by Ausubel into question due to the fact that [he] "does not refer to any other reports or statistics, so relies entirely on his conversations with others", noting in conclusion that Ausubel himself acknowledged that the data did not "reflect a definitive, adequately controlled or representative cross-section of New Zealand opinion on race relations". Cyril Belshaw said the book was a "criticism...[rather than]...a detached and systematic analysis of national character" and while "well written and clear...is spoiled by failing to conceal the emotion which lies behind it, by over-statement and inaccuracy". The reviewer concluded however that the book contained Ausubel's honestly held opinions with a "refreshing forthrightness which reveals the writer as very human and sincere". An article in the Christchurch Press cited directly from the book key claims regarding New Zealanders' attitudes towards various social issues, following Ausubel's assertion that they [were] "conditioned to dismiss all critical appraisals of their country as the presumptuous and misinformed utterances of just another of those loud-mouthed Americans who got off the ship three days ago, had a quick look around Auckland and Rotorua, and is now telling us how to manage our affairs." Another reviewer said that although some of Ausubel's comments were "plausible enough", he needed to be a more relaxed observer of the country's culture and if he had shown a sense of humour in interpreting and appreciating "the peculiarly ludicrous features of the human comedy of our society, we might have had something to learn from him". The Honolulu Star-Bulletin said Ausubel had presented "a bold and forthright criticism of the New Zealander's character, the welfare state and the country's sacred cow -race relations", while The Edmonton Journal noted that in an election year, the book had generated a "hot national debate amongst many thinking people in government, business and education on where the nation [was] heading". A reviewer in the Weekly Examiner stated that Ausubel had "put New Zealanders under the microscope...[finding them]...hostile, resentful and bigoted toward other nations...[and lacking]...friendliness, accessibility and hospitality". The correspondent was in no doubt that New Zealanders would by infuriated by the section on race relations but suggested it "may help them take a fresh look at themselves. H. B. Hawthorn said that while he had personally seen all that was reported in the book, he suggested "agreement on manifest facts is not sufficient for a study of national character", and if Ausubel's reporting did meet some of the requirements of "clear standards of comparison and assessment...frequency, quantity, and the precise identity of actions generally elude the reader of The Fern and the Tiki". The reviewer did acknowledge that the sections on race relations in the country however, could "help in altering either the myth or reality" in this area of New Zealand life".