Importance of Koro in 'The Whale Rider'

Koro is one of the minor characters in 'The Whale Rider'. But he is very important to the plot of the story. The author has uses Koro's actions and other aspects that are related to the character to help us understand the character in more depth. This keeps the story more on track, without the need to physically tell the reader what a character's personality is like. Koro is presented through his attitude towards everything he does. His feelings are shown by his actions. Koro has changed dramatically from the beginning of this film to the end. He has started almost hating Pai but loved very much at the end.

I think the director has Koro to be so sullen and ignorant for a few reasons. The first reason is to set up a challenge for Pai to over come. Since Koro didn't approve of Pai at the start she has to win the trust and love of him.

Whale Rider

Koro

Koro

This is a quality that a leader must have in order to persuade members of the tribe. Another purpose to have Koro is to create conflict to make the movie more interesting. For example Koro doesn't like Pai at the start of the movie. This causes dislike between him and his son Pororangi. By adding some conflict, it will interest watcher because human beings naturally like to see fighting. The last reason for using Koro is to contrast between the old Maori ways and the new, modern world that we live in. this will give the watcher some idea of the Maori culture. For example they show Koro teaching the boys the qualities they must have to become a leader.

Koro is portrayed as mean and nasty in this film. In the book the author can tell the reader...