Character Clues
Character Analysis
Clothing
In Typee, clothes tell us more or less directly where a character is from, and what station she holds in that society. For Toby, a clean "blue frock and duck trousers" (5.9) signals his sailor-ship, but also that he's well put-together even after six months at sea. Tommo cites this as an exception, and his care follows a through-line in Toby's personality: he thinks things through, presents himself as strong, clever, and careful. (Oh, and are you wondering what "duck trousers" are? They're canvas, wide-legged men's pants. No waterfowl involved whatsoever.)
When Tommo encounters "a superb-looking warrior stooped the towering plumes of his head-dress beneath the low portal" (11.7), he can't help but describe the full complement of his gear, from the "necklaces of boar's tusks, polished like ivory" (11.7) to the braided tassels adorning his loincloth. Our hero is sitting there, gawking, wondering who this fearsome, magical character might be, when the man turns to him, and Tommo recognizes his face: it's his chief pal, Mehevi.
For Tommo, this is a turning point in his estimation of Mehevi. When before he thought him a chief among other chiefs, now he realizes his new friend is king of the valley. Mehevi's regal power may have been illegible in his everyday dress, but kitted out this way, there's no question who holds the power.
And now we come to Fayaway, who wafts without friction through the beauty of the land. So, does she wear a power suit? Um, nope. Rather, "she wore a tunic of white tappa, reaching from her waist to a little below the knees; and when exposed for any length of time to the sun, she invariably protected herself from its rays by a floating mantle of— the same material, loosely gathered about the person" (11.47). The looseness of the garments, the exposure, their white color: everything about the outfits is whispering about the gentle, vulnerable, ethereal beauty.
Of course, it bears repeating, Tommo the narrator is in love with Fayaway. He will characterize Fayaway in precisely this manner at every turn. So, when Tommo wears a similar outfit, does it have the same effect of vulnerability and beauty? Yeah…that's a big "nope."
At the Feast of the Calabashes, it seems like a signal of good will when Tommo makes an effort to dress up, or dress down as it were: "I determined to do all that lay in my power; and knowing that I could not delight the savages more than by conforming to their style of dress" (22.20). He remains in a brief tappa tunic, covering his more sensitive parts, and goes on to the Ti for the celebration. With this gesture, he's on the one hand being a polite guest, and on the other hand, staying in the sweet graces of a people who he fears might eat him for dinner.
We're wondering: are there instances in the text that provide exceptions? When do the clothes misdirect entirely, hiding who characters truly are?
Direct Characterization
Analytic, sharp-eyed Tommo is never one to pull punches, and throughout Typee we find him presenting judgments of character like it ain't no thang. For instance, he warns that careful, clever Toby can also be "a strange wayward being, moody, fitful, and melancholy" (5.9), and that the sailor-mercenary Jimmy is "an arrant old gossip" (Toby.15).
A Note About Characterization & First Person
Of course, the trick about having a first-person narrator is that you're seeing only one perspective. Sure, this is always the case, because in all but exceptional cases we've got one author presenting one side of things. But at least in third-person and multi-narrator books, you've got access to the interior of more than one character.
So when it comes to Tommo—whether he's calling the Typee women "spoiled beauties" (27.11) or Marheyo "most paternal and warm-hearted" (11.32) —we have to remember that we're learning just as much about the evaluator (Tommo) as the subject (everyone else).
Speech & Dialogue
In Typee, characters get called out pretty quickly for who they are, based on what they say, how they say it, and what language they happen to be using.
Toby & Tommo Have a Talk
Because most of the characters are unable to understand Tommo, who speaks mostly English, dialogue greatly characterizes the bond between Toby and Tommo. Their geniality shows in the way they speak: "'Oh, no, Toby,' I exclaimed, laughing; 'but there's something to be seen here, that's plain, or there would have been no path, and I am resolved to find out what it is'" (7.20).
And later, when Tommo can't tell if Toby is asleep: "'Awake!' roared Toby in a rage, 'awake! You mean to insinuate I've been asleep, do you? It is an insult to a man to suppose he could sleep in such an infernal place as this'" (7.32). Their friendship is enacted in these very necessary chats, and their friendship characterizes both men as people we care about, following through the rest of the story.
The Story of Fluency
It isn't just what Melville's characters say, but what language they're able to speak. We learn something, for instance, of Tommo's adventurous past, when he's able to produce a few words of the local tongue.
Elsewhere, Marnoo's semi-fluency in English gives us an opportunity to learn something about his past: as a boy he was taken by a foreign captain, and lived in Australia before returning home.
But it also tells us about his privilege and station. Not only does his taboo give him freedom to travel freely about the island, his communication skills grease the way nicely. He is a great orator, Tommo notes. We suspect that his self-possession and polyglot fluency has something to do with his freedoms, too.
But a "savage" in possession of English doesn't just tell us about Marnoo's character, it also gives us information about Tommo. When Marnoo, upon first meeting Tommo, asks in English how he's doing, and how he finds the island, Tommo confides to us: "Had I been pierced simultaneously by three Happar spears, I could not have started more than I did at hearing these simple questions" (18.37).
As liberal as Tommo can seem, capable of respect of the islanders, it's clear that he also expects them to have limitations in the sphere of more "civilized" skills.