Free Paper on Navigating Identities: An Exploration of Maori and Chinese-New Zealander Perspectives

Introduction

Everyone has a perceived image of who they are and beliefs about the kind of person they are. A sense of identity is an essential aspect of our being, and it is a desirable fact that brings about security and comfort. Many people seem to spend most of their time figuring out who they are, the things they want, and what they believe. Therefore, having a strong sense of identity has multiple advantages. A clear idea of one's uniqueness makes it easier to connect with people of similar identities. Strong identities often stand out and are always memorable. Identity ensures that people develop their being, and they find something that they can work towards impressing or being close to. Ethnic and cultural identities are essential aspects of our beings, and they assist people in making decisions and behaving in particular manners. People always experience complex circumstances and decisions. Without prior beliefs of what should be done and weighing all the options, making decisions would be difficult. An identity eases decision-making time since it guides behavior and assures people of the decisions made. This paper will analyze two articles and focus on their view of identity from the Maori people and the Chinese-New Zealanders. These are conflicted identities, and they illustrated theirs concerning ethnicity and their feelings towards two ethnic ties.

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Maori Identities

Identity is developed when people attempt to establish a particular narrative, and in the narrative, several claims are it. Ethnic identities illustrate the way people make sense of who they are and how they relate with other people around the world. When one says that they are Maori, they claim the same (McIntosh, 2005). This is how they link with others, and they connect their creeks to particular rivers. It is sometimes a presentation of self that allows other people the work of social location. This lets people fit them in their classifications and schemas (McIntosh, 2005). It may also affirm their personal and distant relations, while other times, they may present it as a challenge. One's identity as a Maori is bound and entangled with different axes of identification, including intellectual interests, political tendencies, religious affiliations, occupations, domestic locations, age, sexual orientation, class, and gender.

Therefore being of mixed descent may sometimes bring about the feeling of lack of a robust identity even at a personal level in the absence of ambiguity. Being of mixed descent and privileging single ethnic descent leads to identity issues (McIntosh, 2005). Allowing a single line of descent does not devalue or dismiss the other, but other lines reinforce, shape, and influence the privileged ethnic lines. Ethnic identities are developed from particular political salience, and they are bound to the authenticity questions. This may be featured by highlighting people as being not Maori-looking enough, therefore challenging their identities.

Identities in Maori are complex. Even though there are certain dominant forms, these are always responding and are informed by particular social conditions. There is a need for an emphasis on collectiveness solidarity and positivity to an ethnic group. It provides both material and emotional support and generates expectations about the cultural contents of ethnic groups, such as the practices and meanings around ethnic identities, as illustrated in everyday life; they also assist in the development of particular political agendas (McIntosh, 2005). However, there is a need for sensitivity to how identity articulation can separate individuals who already have lives marked by exclusions. Critically, they also focus on identity politics that blind people to economic-social-political structures that guide the lives of too many to the margins.

The traditional identity is still the one that is the most political, and it demands a comprehensive engagement in society. The different proponents of the identity will put efforts for Maori orders to be met and ensure that the political agenda is defined (McIntosh, 2005). This will ensure that the entire society acknowledges that the identity of the Maori people means a lot. However, it is always a politicized and political identity.

The fluid identity known by the conscious rejection or adoption of cultural markers to suit the members' desire may solidify with time but prevail in sensitivity to change. This is mostly a self-conscious celebration of community and self that does not agree to see itself as inauthentic, disaffiliated, or lost. Instead, it takes community and culture seriously, and it recognizes that people are, and they make culture (McIntosh, 2005). It will continue having different perceptions and attempts to destabilize the negative readings simultaneously since strengthening is seen as a legitimate and centered Maori identity. The forced identity will go on to struggle under the deprivation burden (McIntosh, 2005). In most ways, this identity, because of most media and social profiles, acts as a strong driver for solidarity in the societies of the Maori people. It is a highly familiar identity that cannot be ignored by both the Maori people and others. The social environments that have endangered the forced identity have led to the development of space in which most Maori people emerged. A few of the Maori felt that this identity was too distant for them to recognize it. The struggle to get a legitimate place in the land and address the previous lives while addressing future opportunities relies on being aware of the present conditions and the societal structure and the ability to guide social change.

New Zealand Chinese Identity

This chapter focuses on the Chinese New Zealanders' identities, a strong ethnic community with a high population, and a migration history that spans 140 years. The formation of identity is always a dynamic and fluid process, and it illustrates a shift in the socio-political realities in both the host state and the native country (Ip et al., 2005). In the case of the formation of the Chinese New Zealander's identity, the authors highlight that China as an external participant both as a spiritual and cultural homeland and the economic powerhouse in Asia should be taken into account (Ip et al., 2005). The Chinese factor linked the New Zealand Chinese with other Chinese in their loyalty and allegiance to the far-off native land. The China factor has recently taken over international economic proportions as Chinese transitional networks that have expanded to different regions worldwide in recent decades.

Additionally, the chapter examined the essential factors that affected and continually controlled the Chinese communities' formation in New Zealand (Ip et al., 2005). These influences include the socio-political and legislative processes that affect the immigration policies of New Zealand. This is known as the "New Zealand Factor," and they determined the number of immigrants allowed to move into New Zealand (Ip et al., 2005).

Identity provides a certain sense of uniqueness which determines our positions and who we are. New Zealand and the Chinese components have been developed as two different parts of the national identity of New Zealand. This process has been embedded in the history of identity establishment and is being disputed and continuously reviewed in response to external and domestic events (Ip et al., 2005). The ambiguity and tension have led to the engendering of suffering and self-loathing within the Chinese community, making them skeptical and insecure in assuming proactive responsibilities as full natives. The approach used of assimilation that highlights the burden of adjusting to the Chinese should be driven away since ethnocultural diversity is a reality that illustrates different adjustments and social attitudes toward public policies (Ip et al., 2005).

Biculturalism, as opposed to multiculturalism, is one of the main concerns in this chapter. Advancing the discourse further cannot be used to develop new fundamentalism by appealing to an outdated mechanism of exclusion (Ip et al., 2005). In the twenty-first century, the primary debate is about the things that constitute New Zealand and New Zealanders. New Zealand is a liberal democracy that ensures all New Zealanders live equitably, harmoniously, and reasonably (Ip et al., 2005). The resilience and strength of the democratic tradition and the flexibility that comes with civil society are to be examined in the steps that all citizens take as they undergo an ongoing process of replicating a new identity. It can reflect accurately in the country's multi-cultural aspect (Ip et al., 2005).

Like Chinese New Zealanders, the authors are all delighted of their Chinese identity, and they are also pleased to be associated with New Zealand's migration history. China is the lineal roots, and New Zealand is the chosen home for these people (Ip et al., 2005). Like many contemporaries, it is appreciative of the Maori and European heritage and culture that people interact with and experience in the host nation. These different identification and pride sources are complementary, and they do not clash (Ip et al., 2005). The current hope is that the Chinese in New Zealand will no longer be identified as "others" or "foreign people." In the issues surrounding the Chinese New Zealanders' identity, there is a need for New Zealand to develop an inclusive identity that befits a modern society.

Reflection

Identity is an essential aspect of our being. These two journals have illustrated the struggle for identity that emanates from ethnicity and nationality. The first article demonstrates that identity is developed when people attempt to establish particular narratives (Sibley & Liu, 2007). Additionally, ethnic identities illustrate the way people make sense of who they are and how they relate with other people around the world. It focuses on the Maori identity, where when one says that they are Maori, they claim the Maori identity. Through their identity, they can link with others, and they connect their creeks to particular courses. It is sometimes a self-presentation, allowing other people to move to specific social locations (Sibley & Liu, 2007). This lets people fit them into their classifications and schemas. It may also affirm their personal and distant relations, while other times, they may present it as a challenge. One's identity as a Maori is bound and entangled with different axes of identification, including intellectual interests, political tendencies, religious affiliations, occupations, domestic locations, age, sexual orientation, class, and gender (Sibley & Liu, 2007).

On the other hand, the second article illustrates that identity provides a certain sense of uniqueness that determines our positions and who we are. New Zealand and the Chinese components have been developed as two different parts of the national identity of New Zealand (Cunningham & King, 2018). This process has been embedded in the history of identity formation and is being contested and continuously redefined in response to external and domestic circumstances. The ambiguity and tension have led to the engendering of agony and self-doubt within the Chinese community, making them feel reluctant and insecure in assuming productive duties as full citizens (Cunningham & King, 2018). The approach used of assimilation that highlights the burden of adjusting to the Chinese should be made away with since ethnocultural diversity is a reality that illustrates different adjustments and social attitudes of public policies. The commonality is present in the definition of identity and the struggle people have to find one.