Social Change in Melanesia : Development and History

First published in 200, this is a clear introductory account of social change in Melanesia covering the colonial and post-colonial eras. Topics include economic and technological change, urbanisation, development of the modern state, the often violent reactions to these dramatic transformations, and dilemmas of development that threaten the environment. For students and general readers.

This book, first published in 2000, is a companion volume to An Introduction to the Anthropology of Melanesia (1998). It gives a clear and absorbing account of social change in Melanesia since the arrival of Europeans covering the history of the colonial period and the new postcolonial states. Paul Sillitoe deals with economic and technological change, labour migration and urbanisation, and formation of the modern state, but he also describes the sometimes violent reactions to these dramatic transformations, in the form of cargo cults, secession movements, and insurrections against multinational companies. He discusses development projects but brings out associated policy dilemmas, reviews developments that threaten the environment, and implications for local identity, such as romanticises 'primitive culture'. This fascinating account of social change in the pacific is addressed to students with little or no background in the region's history and development.