Bring on the tough stuff - there’s not just one right answer.
- What does "civilization" seem to mean to Tommo? Is it different than his contemporaries' idea of it? How has the concept changed today, in positive or negative ways?
- What secrets do the characters of Typee keep from each other? How do language barriers help maintain certain mysteries?
- The Typee tribe seems not to have a system of currency, as far as Tommo can tell. In absence of money, how do the Typee determine the worth of one thing over another? How might the things they value reflect what they think is important as a society? What examples support your answer?
- When writing about a culture that isn't your own, how do you avoid value judgments? Should you? Do you think it's possible? Where are some moments in Typee where Melville runs into trouble with this? How does it change your attitude toward Tommo—or Melville?
- The Typee have a system of taboos that work as their only real governance—what is allowed and what is not allowed. If you were to create a system of taboos based on your own freedom and its limits, what would you include?