Lawrence, Stewart R.Pratt, MichaelHooper, Keith2026-07-152026-07-151992https://hdl.handle.net/10289/18451The aim of this thesis is to illustrate from three constructed cases why and how some knowledges that have been marginal (like accounting before the nineteenth century) become powerful (Hoskin and Macve, 1991, p. 10). In other words, to explain from a New Zealand context why and how the practice and profession of accounting grew to be so influential and important in relation to its comparatively humble 18th century bookkeeping and clerical origins. It is argued that the practice of accounting became more important in the nineteenth century because such practice facilitated the exercise of power and discipline in the context of a growing, European dominated society. According to Foucault (1977) the new human disciplines (e.g. medicine, law accounting, etc.) which appeared in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries were not the product of emergent economic needs but rather the product of new disciplinary powers. Moreover, the importance of such new disciplines, Foucault (1977) claimed, should not be traced in a linear fashion relating, for example, legislation and institutional development, but from a postmodern perspective stressing diffuse and contingent origins. In other words, no single source of origin can fully explain such phenomena. The three studies examined in this thesis are not meant to be representative or necessarily typical of contemporary practice, rather they serve to illustrate the diffuse and separate sources of accounting’s power origins within a New Zealand. From the 1860s, three events took place which were to change the social and commercial structure of the new colony: the passing of the first New Zealand Companies Act 1860, the Native Lands Settlement Act 1865 (which individualised Māori land titles and permitted direct European purchase), and large scale European immigration into New Zealand. The colony during this period changed from a Māori dominated economy based on tribal ownership of land to a European capitalist economy based on individual land ownership. With limited manufacturing capacity and few mineral resources, land was the basis of wealth and economic power in New Zealand. The period from 1870 to 1930 was crucial because it was during those years that most land in New Zealand was transferred from Māori to European ownership. The common theme shared by the three separate cases depicted in this thesis is that to a greater or lesser extent they are about conflict over land - its acquisition and the power and wealth its ownership conveys. The overall aim is to provide a critical history of accounting in New Zealand in Foucauldian terms, and to provide an explanation of the present by tracing its genealogy. To achieve this end some consideration of New Zealand’s history is necessary and, in particular, the importance of the Treaty of Waitangi to New Zealand society. The cases are suited to a Foucauldian interpretation because they represent local, discontinuous histories concerning struggle and insurrection, elements which Foucault considered to be vital for genealogical research. The first case study (of three) examined in this thesis demonstrates how land was transferred to individual European ownership and the part played by an accountant and other professionals in executing land transactions. It also illustrates the close conceptual links of accounting practice with European values such as capital accumulation and shows how an accountant was able to use his knowledge to advance his employer/client’s interests. Thus the former explains the character of the discursive practices of accounting, while the latter illustrates how accounting practice served the ends of the ascendant power structure. The second case study continues to develop these themes by exploring the history of company formation in colonial New Zealand. The emphasis is on conflict between directors and shareholders and in particular the struggle for control of a land company. The study depicts the way in which the privileged use of accounting knowledge may serve the particular interests of a powerful business elite. The final study depicts the activities of a practising public accountant acting for an overseas client. Once again two themes are apparent: accounting as an instrument of European capital accumulation, and accounting as a modern power discipline. The latter theme explaining how power may be exercised. Research for these studies was conducted in various national archives containing collections of private papers. Use was also made of past newspaper accounts of company meetings and contemporary commentaries on business affairs. Secondary sources were used extensively in the first four chapters to furnish background material relevant to the themes and arguments developed.enAll items in Research Commons are provided for private study and research purposes and are protected by copyright with all rights reserved unless otherwise indicated.Thesis