Natives and Exotics : World War II and Environment in the Southern Pacific

At the heart of Natives and Exotics is the author¿s analysis of the changing visions and perceptions of the environment, not only among the millions of combatants, but also among the Islands¿ peoples and their colonial administrations in wartime and beyond. Judith Bennett reveals how prewar notions of a paradisiacal Pacific set up millions of Americans, Australians, New Zealanders, and Japanese for grave disappointment when they encountered the reality. She shows that objects usually considered distinct from environmental concerns (souvenirs, cemeteries, war memorials) warrant further examination as the emotional quintessence of events in a particular place. Among native people, wartime experiences and resource utilization induced a shift in environmental perceptions just as the postwar colonial agenda demanded increased diversification of the resource base. Bennett¿s ability to reappraise such human perceptions and productions with an environmental lens is one of the unique qualities of this study. Impeccably researched, Natives and Exotics is essential reading for those interested in environmental history, Pacific studies, and a different kind of war story that has surprising relevance for today¿s concerns with global warming.

Judith A. Bennett is associate professor of history and associate dean of graduate studies at the University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand.