How did Albert Wendt combine Oceanic oral traditions with the novel and short story?

Albert Wendt is widely recognized for successfully integrating Oceanic oral traditions with the Western literary forms of the novel and short story. Lacking a pre-existing, standardized Oceanic literary style when he began writing in the 1960s, Wendt developed a unique mode of expression that synthesized his cultural heritage with contemporary fiction.12

He achieved this by adopting the narrative techniques of the traditional raconteur and conversationalist—who freely intermingle legends, jokes, gossip, and proverbs—and fusing them with novelistic devices such as interior monologue and the strategic use of symbolism. By absorbing the history, myths, and oral traditions of his country, Wendt was able to blend these elements with the idiosyncrasies of written fiction to create a distinct, personal vision. His work effectively bridges the gap between the spiritual world of precontact society and the realities of modern life, enriching borrowed literary forms with the depth of his cultural background.12