Section 3. You will hear a tutor and his student called Helen discussing the anthropology project she is researching. First, you have some time to look at questions 21 to 24. Now listen carefully and answer questions 21 to 24.
Come in Helen, what can I do for you? Well, I'm doing research for the anthropology project and I was hoping to ask for some help for a few details. Sure, I remember you opted for Pacific Tapper Cloth as the topic, didn't you? What did you figure out so far? Well, I was going to introduce my project by stating that Tapper Cloth is fibre made from bark, just the outer layer of the trees, which are particularly universal among the Pacific Islands, but not exclusive to them. Actually, people in other parts of the world have also produced high quality cloth from bark, but what sets Pacific Tapper apart is the incredibly varied role it plays in this region.
Nice! So what about raw materials that are used in the production? Well, Tapper Cloth is made from many species of trees. In the Pacific, the paper mulberry tree is most common, but it doesn't thrive in all conditions. In fact, it wasn't discovered in the islands at first, but was carried in canoes by the first migrants.
Tapper is also made from the breadfruit tree, which is a more convenient way because its fruit is the staple food. The paper mulberry tree is only grown for Tapper-making mills. Yes, that's right.
Then how about the Maori people here in New Zealand? Well, at present, the Maori don't produce Tapper. Yeah, but I suggest you should take it into account. We know that when Maori migrated here from other Pacific islands, they were ready to produce Tapper because they took the paper mulberry tree with them.
The thing was, after they'd been in New Zealand a bit, they found the flax plant is superior to Tapper because it makes stronger fabric. By the time Europeans arrived in the 18th century, Maori were producing all their fabric from flax rather than the Tapper, and had been for some time. Okay, so in terms of the production process itself, first the inner bark is beaten with a wooden hammer to soften the fibres.
Then the various pieces are glued together using adhesive paste made from the aloe root tuber, which is the only way to fabricate large pieces of cloth because bark strings are too fine to be woven together, and stitch isn't strong enough. Before you hear the rest of the talk, you have some time to look at questions 25 to 30. Now listen, and answer questions 25 to 30.
So now you should do more research on the details about different countries. Where should I go into now? Well, I think Samoa is the typical place known for its sepal, which is hand-painted with representations of the ancestors. Till now, at the most profound events in lives, such as births, funerals, weddings and investiture of a chief, some are with sepal ropes to add significance and eating to the ceremony.
Okay, then I can talk about Tonga. It seems to me that the great innovation in Tonga has been developing a simple coarse cloth, which is quick and easy to produce. This is suitable for all sorts of daily functions around the house, like bed covers, nets and curtains.
Good point. Now, what about Cook Island's Tapper? Well, the is of poor quality. Consequently, the breadfruit tree is often used.
One type of thick cloth, called tikkoda, was wrapped around the poles and used to make the entrances to places of worship and therefore was highly regarded in local culture. You might mention Fiji as well, which is interesting, because tapper was actually used as currency there. Fijians used to sail between the islands and exchange tapper for other commodities, like canoes or pigs.
I know that in Tahiti, the tapper cloth is regarded differently, because the patterns are in colour, which is considered more valuable than the usual patterns. You're right about the Tahitians using coloured pigments, but they aren't more valuable. The colours are only decoration.
People enjoy wearing bright robes, especially for dancing and competitive games, and do it just for fun. Oh, I'll take a note of that. Well, the last place I was going to mention was Tikopia.
Even today, it's a common place to see wearing clothes made of tapper cloth. And on many of the other islands, the tapper only come out on special occasions. But here, you see people working in the gardens wearing tapper.
Sounds promising, Helen. I'll look forward to the presentation of your project. That is the end of section 3. You now have half a minute to check your answers.