Repository logo
 

Between Diaspora and Celebrity: Caribbean Canadian and Pacific New Zealand Public Personalities and the Next Generation

dc.contributor.advisorPearson, David
dc.contributor.advisorTeaiwa, Teresia
dc.contributor.authorBlascheck, Birte
dc.date.accessioned2012-09-14T03:09:22Z
dc.date.accessioned2022-11-01T22:53:57Z
dc.date.available2012-09-14T03:09:22Z
dc.date.available2022-11-01T22:53:57Z
dc.date.copyright2012
dc.date.issued2012
dc.description.abstractThis is the first comparative study of Caribbean Canadians and Pacific New Zealanders on this topic. While using a triangulation of different methods, it focuses on the descendants of migrants, and offers empirical and theoretical insights into the symbolic meanings of Caribbean Canadian and Pacific New Zealand public personalities for the next generation. Across three different occupations, it compares a Caribbean Canadian public personality with its Pacific New Zealand counterpart. Through individual interviews and an analysis of biographical and professional sources, it explores how the artists/entertainers Farley Flex and Oscar Kightley, the (retired) athletes Donovan Bailey and Tana Umaga and the former Governors General Michaëlle Jean and Anand Satyanand perceived their positioning within their respective diasporas and nations, and their relations to the next generation. It also illustrates the geo-cultural contexts in which these public personalities were represented in diasporic and national media texts. Furthermore, it investigates how young Caribbean Canadian and Pacific New Zealand focus group participants viewed the selected public personalities. By taking an appreciative approach, this thesis reveals the interconnected power relationships between diaspora, nation and celebrity culture, which challenges simplistic representations and perceptions of Caribbean Canadian and Pacific New Zealand public personalities as primarily role models that the next generation should or would aspire to emulate. This thesis argues that family, friends and community tend to be far more important in this respect. However, the success stories of the selected public personalities provided subjective diasporic representations in “arts and entertainment”, obvious (inter)national recognitions through “sports” and their opinions about the “Governors General” indicated the next generation’s ambivalent relations to the state. Drawing on interdisciplinary literatures from diaspora and celebrity studies, this thesis contributes to these two fields by proposing “diasporic public personalities” as a new analytical concept, which illuminates various socio-economic interdependencies when assessing questions of visibility, influence and diverse minority and majority statuses. The comparison of Caribbean Canadians and Pacific New Zealanders also highlights the significance of small island regional identities within national localities and the global space of diaspora and celebrity culture, which demonstrates the continuities between various (is)lands across the sea.en_NZ
dc.identifier.urihttps://ir.wgtn.ac.nz/handle/123456789/28125
dc.language.isoen_NZ
dc.publisherTe Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellingtonen_NZ
dc.subjectCelebrityen_NZ
dc.subjectDiasporaen_NZ
dc.subjectYouthen_NZ
dc.titleBetween Diaspora and Celebrity: Caribbean Canadian and Pacific New Zealand Public Personalities and the Next Generationen_NZ
dc.typeTexten_NZ
thesis.degree.disciplineSociologyen_NZ
thesis.degree.grantorTe Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellingtonen_NZ
thesis.degree.levelDoctoralen_NZ
thesis.degree.nameDoctor of Philosophyen_NZ
vuwschema.contributor.unitSchool of Social and Cultural Studiesen_NZ
vuwschema.subject.marsden370503 Migrationen_NZ
vuwschema.subject.marsden420399 Cultural Studiesen_NZ
vuwschema.type.vuwAwarded Doctoral Thesisen_NZ

Files

Original bundle

Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
Loading...
Thumbnail Image
Name:
thesis.pdf
Size:
1.25 MB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Description:
Thesis
Loading...
Thumbnail Image
Name:
form.pdf
Size:
117.27 KB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Description:
Permission Form (Admin)

Collections