In Albert Wendt's novel "Leaves of the Banyan Tree," the author traces the lives of three generations of Tauilopepe men. Each man is faced with a changing society consuming his every move. The novel's setting is located in Western Somoa during a time of mass conflict in replacing the old traditions with new ones brought on when paplagi European views came into their lives. The challenges of colonialism on this society cause each of these men to react to this traumatic culture change differently. Tauilopepe, Pepe, and Galupo each have the illusion of power within them based on their own unique moral standards. Each man's behaviors, attitudes towards power, and ambitions for the future show how they are all obsessed with competition and a strong desire to gain as much power as they can.

Early in the novel, Tauilopepe is the head of an aiga...