Critical Social Inquiry 0181 - West African Dance

This course combines West African dance classes with discussion-based classes on the cultural and social history of Guinea. Musicians will provide live drumming for each class. Students will explore West African aesthetics that shape the music and dance traditions of Guinea. In most classes, students will dance to traditional rhythms of Guinea. In discussion classes, we will explore footage of historic performances, and read recent scholarship on the role that national dance companies, such as Les Ballets Africains, played in the anti-colonial, revolutionary nationalist politics of Guinea. The literature will include broader social histories of the struggle for independence as well as cultural analysis of recurring themes, such as debates about authenticity and modernity. We will discuss the ways in which dance figured into the forging of national identities during the Independence era and consider how these projects in self-making evolved over time as the challenges of the post-colonial era constrained and informed the possibilities for such a project.

Power, Community and Social Justice Multiple Cultural Perspectives Writing and Research Students are expected to spend at least six to eight hours a week of preparation and work outside of class time.