Synopses & Reviews
Questions of Africanness and blackness rim the Afro-Brazilian sphere of interaction. What is Africa? How is it constructed by Afro-Brazilians? What do these constructions accomplish? How are they reflected in the national character? And how do these constructs lend themselves to ideations of blackness? In fact, what exactly is blackness, given that Brazil is a hybrid nation in both its ethnic composition and cultural modalities? This book examines the field cultural and racial representation by Afro-Brazilians in Candomblé culture, public rituals, carnival, plays, poetry and hip-hop videography, to reposition Afro-Brazilians in the framework of Brazil's social and political processes.
Synopsis
This text explores how Afro-Brazilians define their Africanness through Candomble and Quilombo models, and construct paradigms of blackness with influences from US-based perspectives, through the vectors of public rituals, carnival, drama, poetry, and hip hop.
About the Author
Cheryl Sterling teaches African and African Diaspora Studies in the Liberal Studies Program at New York University. She is a Fulbright Scholar and is also the co-founder and editor of the on-line arts journal, AfroBeat Journal (http://Afrobeatjournal.org).
Table of Contents
What Roots? Which Routes? Where is Africa in the Nation? History as Transformative PraxisRitual Encounters and Performative Moments From Candomblé to Carnaval: The Transformation of Ritual into Public Performance and DiscourseAesthetically Black: The Articulation of Blackness in the Black Arts Movement and QuilombhojePerforming Bodies Performing Blackness Performing Self: The Quest for a Transformative PoiesisCentering Blackness: Hip Hop and the Outing of MarginalityUma Luta que Nos Transcende