Learning Journal #4

This is going to be a shorter blog post because most of my free time to work on this will be this weekend but enough excuses, I have had several thoughts this week.

One has to do with the Ghanaian independence. The first leader of Ghana, Kwame Nkruma, really promoted two things in Ghana: unity and education. He stressed a uniting of all the ethnic groups in Ghana, living with one another and learning about one another. Could this blend of culture cause confusion among the younger generations as to what their own dances represent? The second thing he stressed, education, had a really big impact (or at least I think so). So, Nkruma really wanted the people of Ghana to never forget their heritage, so learning the traditional dances were really important.

Could perhaps this shift from "just knowing the dances because they are ingrained in your very way of life" to "learn the dance as a matter of history, almost like an artifact" be one of the main reasons for the changes in African dance... or the perception of it?

Andrew wanted me to be a little deeper in my analysis. I guess in light of my recent connection between the independence and the education of dance, I might need to focus my research question a little more. Perhaps pick a focus, something I want to test and see if that was the reason for change in Ghana (or it has little to do with it).

I've been hesitant to do this though in case there is not enough to study on this subject. Heck, I'm going to be in Ghana for three months, and I have to write my senior thesis on this-- I want to be able to have enough information. Perhaps I can simply have a sub question... or two.... or three.

I like these theories that I'm developing though (from my readings, talking with those who have been to Ghana or are Ghanaian, own random thoughts) because they are narrowing my search for literature; they are also affecting my methods... what questions I want to ask, who I need to talk with. (I'll put some of my new questions under "field development notes").