Essay On American Tattoos

Growing up, I spent all my summers in Fiji, lost in the world wind of family members and the Hibiscus Festival. However, one thing that always got my eye was the tattoos almost everyone had on the island. It was so different to what I would see in America. Each tattoo was different, some were the standard black, while others were filled in with colors. Getting a tattoo is something that should carefully be thought about. No matter how beautiful it looks, it is something that you will have to look at everyday, your body and tattoo will grow together. Polynesian tattoos are not only meaningful, but from the first tattoo they were deemed as a ritual. Polynesian tattoos are beautiful and intricate with their detailing. They can be dated back two

He teaches his students about Polynesian tattoos. Samoans tradition of men getting tattooed and women rarely get them came to be through the journey of two sisters. Team and Tilafaiga brought the art of tattooing from Fiji. They were taught that men do not get tattooed, but women do. This concert was somehow reversed on their journey home. Samoans and Hawaiians have similar tattoo designs, traditional and contemporary. Although, they were applied the same way, “The pain was extreme and the risk of death by infection was a great concern. But to shy away from tattooing was to risk being labeled a coward” (Skin Stories). To begin getting a tattoo, the skin would be marked and outlines, with charcoal or dirt. The needles would be made of bamboo, a piece of turtle shell, bird bones and rarely shark teeth. The needles would be put onto the handles of a knife, ax or spear. The needles would break the skin and inject the ink. Different liquids, like coconut milk or water, sugar cane juice and the planted based liquids would produce the ink. When the ink was first inserted into the skin, plant saps would be used to darken the ink. After the tattoo was done, people would rinse it with seawater