The Whale Rider: Themes (Edexcel IGCSE English Literature): Revision Note

The exam question on The Whale Rider will ask you to respond to the question with critical, personal engagement. This means the examiners require your answers to be led by an interpretation of ideas delivered in the text. Whether the question is on character or theme, you will need to explore how the writer delivers ideas or themes via characterisation, setting and plot. 

Below are some themes that could be explored in The Whale Rider. This list is not exhaustive, and themes often overlap, so consider how these themes may cover other ideas too. 

Here you will find sections on:

• Humans and nature 

• Culture and identity

• Tradition

• Family bonds

Humans and nature

The parallel narratives of the whales and the humans throughout the novel keeps Ihimaera’s story focused on the harmony and disharmony between humans and the natural world. The shifting narratives depict the Māori people’s ancient spiritual bond with the whales, as well as how the protagonist embodies the connection between humans and nature. 

Knowledge and evidence:

• By starting the novel with the Māori myth about the whale rider, the idea that man and nature can live in harmony is immediately introduced:

  • The story relates the tale of a whale rider who journeys with a bull whale and throws spears that become living creatures, symbolising the creation of life

• In chapters describing the whale and his rider, Ihimaera uses religious, poetic language to elevate nature and its harmonious relationship with man: 

  • The chief, Koro, is concerned with modern influences, exemplified in the whale story which relates ecological disasters 

  • If they cannot save the whales they will “have ceased to be Māori” 

• The resolution promises a future where humans live in harmony with nature:

  • Kahu proves to be the new whale rider by saving the beached whales

What is Ihimaera’s intention? 

• Ihimaera illustrates the importance of harmony with the natural environment 

• The novel portrays how sacred beliefs about the relationship between humans and animals can guide a community

• Ihimaera warns of the danger of human exploitation of the natural world

Culture and identity

Ihimaera’s novel elevates Māori culture as it explores its mystical creation legend and life in a Māori village in New Zealand. Its objective portrayal of the challenges faced by the tribe illustrates tensions between ancient cultural traditions and an individual’s autonomy. Ihimaera’s novel advocates for adapting outdated traditional beliefs that limit personal identity, to focus instead on spiritual heritage and a shared love of nature. 

Knowledge and evidence:

• The Māori language is used throughout the novel:

  • In Koro’s desire to revitalise Māori culture, he encourages customs like the haka (a traditional war dance), going to the marae (Māori meeting grounds), and using the taiaha (a traditional Māori spear-like staff)

  • Māori phrases relating to the legendary story are repeated, such as “karanga mai” (call out to us) or “Hui e, haumi e, taiki e” (Join together and let it be done)

• The novel illustrates embedded cultural prejudice:

  • Koro isolates his granddaughter because she is a female heir

  • In Papua New Guinea, Rawiri encounters racist colonial attitudes 

• Ihimaera suggests fairness can exist while embracing one’s heritage:

  • Rawiri’s experiences abroad help him reconnect with his cultural identity and recognise the strength of his roots

  • The female protagonist, Kahu, is supported by Nanny Flowers, who protects Māori culture while telling Kahu girls can do “anything”

What is Ihimaera’s intention?

• The novel can be considered part of a late 20th-century cultural movement, the Māori Renaissance

• Ihimaera raises the profile of Māori culture and its creation story by portraying the spiritual bond between the indigenous people and the natural world

• The novel advocates maintaining cultural identity while also fulfilling personal potential without discrimination 

Tradition 

The Whale Rider examines the challenge of protecting the natural world and cultural spirituality against the natural progression of time and societal change. Particularly, the novel presents the tensions between a more impartial, globalised world and entrenched tradition and custom. Ihimaera suggests that embracing new ideas is a necessary part of keeping a community strong and protecting our modern world. 

Knowledge and evidence:

• Initially, the novel’s narrator depicts how each member of the Apirana family struggles in some way with the ancient customs of their Māori tradition:

  • Koro both refuses to accept a female successor in Kahu because of tradition, and refuses to bury the birth cord according to ancient custom

  • Rawiri and Nanny Flowers disagree with the chief’s prejudicial views

  • Kahu is raised away from Whangara after her mother’s death, but Koro’s rejection makes her feel unwelcome and isolated

• Koro’s sympathetic fight to save the whales is hindered by his stubbornness: 

  • His isolation of Kahu endangers the whales further

• By presenting Kahu as a resilient and worthy female successor to the whale rider, the novel encourages harmony between tradition and modernity 

What is Ihimaera’s intention?

• Ihimaera presents the challenge of maintaining ancient spiritual connections in a globalised world

• Ihimaera portrays the risks of rigid traditions that endanger the community

• Ihimaera’s novel suggests that tradition and modernity can exist harmoniously through tolerance and adaptability

Family bonds

The novel depicts generational conflicts that stem from entrenched viewpoints that are not helpful to progress. Nevertheless, the novel portrays the persistence of the family bond, and the sense of community gained from a shared love for the natural world. 

Knowledge and evidence: 

• Each member of the Māori tribe struggles with the ancient traditions:

  • Porourangi, the chief’s son, struggles with his father’s traditions

• The younger characters struggle to find independence under Koro’s rule: 

  • Rawiri and Kahu leave the rigid environment in Whangara

  • Both feel the emotional distance caused by traditional expectations

• Tolerance and patience, illustrated via the characterisation of Nanny Flowers and Kahu, reconciles the family by the end:

• They find peace in their shared love for the whales and “oneness”

What is Ihimaera’s intention?

• Ihimaera shows the challenges of generational differences, particularly regarding ancient traditions in a more equal world

• The novel highlights how familial bonds can lead to beneficial progress

• Ihimaera suggests that it is mutual respect, not strict rules, that creates family harmony