Download Research Proposal

Research Proposal
Behind Latin Dance
Maritza Barron
Professor Bianco
UNST 122G
11 March 2006
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There are many ways dance is used in different cultures. There are those
who use it as a way of expression and means of communication. This is a
proposal of a research based on this subject. It will be a way to learn about other
cultures and gain knowledge from dance. Anthropologists are also now beginning
to study dance to learn more about a culture and its background.
Dance has been used as a way of expression in different cultures. A prehistoric culture
that used dance in this way was that of the Aztecs. Aztec dances in their time revolved around
religion, from celebrations, to offerings, and sacrifices to the gods. These factors were
intergraded creating new reasons for dance, with some effects on modern-day descendants and
their dance, especially that of Mexicans and Latin Americas. Many social and political issues
were also expressed in dance, which maybe used as a form of language for the dancer, that is as a
“ powerful communicating medium that can break down barriers, unite diverse groups and
promote social change” (Jaeck, p. 44).
A dancer will always use the art not only for fun and exercise, but also as a way to tell a
story to those who are watching. Anthropologists are also now beginning to study dance to learn
more about a culture and its background, as well. Knowing this, the question that brought this
research into play is: If dance in prehistoric times was used as a language of expression and is
still used today to express, political issues, social change, or any other idea, then what is
expressed in Mexican and Latin American dances and the meaning behind it? As a way to learn
about what is behind Latin and Mexican dance, this research will contain information from
scholarly journals written from university professors to specialized anthropologists. In some of
these articles, it is found that it is the “social and political factors” that shape a country, such as
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Mexico, which is what is portrayed in many dances. With the little that we know about dance
and its truth about the cultures, the more study is done and more journals are read, it can be
found that modern Mexican and Latin American dances, from merengue, salsa, tango, rhumba,
and samba, are a way of non-verbal communication to express ones beliefs or ideas, or that their
culture, the same way the Aztecs used dance.
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Annotated Bibliography
Booth, Willard C. "Dramatic Aspects of Aztec Rituals." Educational Theatre Journal 18.4 (Dec
1966): 421-428.
Willard C. Booth writes in the “Dramatic Aspects of Aztec Rituals” mainly that of what
he Aztecs did for their celebrations. He mentions reasons why Aztecs sacrificed people
and their belief behind the type of sacrifice. There is also explanation on their calendar
years, dance, and literature. Much of what Booth writes is very interesting to read and
know but it can also be quite shocking at times. There is some explanation of how the
dance is related to the sacrifices and the celebrations made for the gods. This is an article
that could be used to understand the Aztec religion and its connection to dance which
then could lead to how some of these connections are applied in today’s dance in Latin
America.
Jaeck, Lois M. "The Body as Revolutionary Text: The Dance as Protest Literature in
Latin America." Ciencia Ergo Sum 10.1 (2003): 43-50.
Lois Marie Jaeck who is part of the languages and linguistics department in the
University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, Canada, writes a very remarkable article about
dance being a means of communication of the oppressed. In this article she explains how
the body is used to promote various ideas such as to unity, social change, and breaking
down barriers. She also reveals that dance could be a form of language that characterizes
a culture. Jaeck describes a few types of Latin dancing in different parts of Latin America
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as well. This article is very thought provoking and full of information that applies well to the
research of who political protests or issues is brought into dance.
Reed, Susan A. "The politics and Poetics of Dance." Annual Review of Anthropology
27 (1998): 503-532.
In this article, Susan A. Reed brings up the point of dance being a good source for study
to learn about cultures. It is said that anthropologists now are turning to dance to study a
culture because of its communication through non-verbal skills. As mentioned in other
articles, dance is a means of communication to express ones beliefs or ideas, or that of a
culture. This is an article that would help better understand the ways of dance, how
anthropologists move into the understanding of the meaning of movements.
Ramirez, Olga N. "Social and Political Dimensions of Folklorico Dance: The Binational
Dialectic of Residual and Emergent Culture." Western Folklore 48.1 (Jan 1989): 15-32.
Olga N. Ramirez, an anthropologist specialized in folklore, gives her expertise letting
readers interested in dance know how people miss the manipulation on the Mexican
folklorico being that of social and political processes. Also Ramirez mentions how much
of the historical background of the country, plays a role in Mexican folk dance. She said
that it is the “social and political factors” that shaped Mexico, which is what is portrayed
in many dances. This is also another article that can be useful to information in Mexico’s
contributions to dance, especially the folklorico.
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Works Consulted
Booth, Willard C. "Dramatic Aspects of Aztec Rituals." Educational Theatre Journal 18.4
(Dec 1966): 421-428.
Jaeck, Lois M. "The Body as Revolutionary Text: The Dance as Protest Literature in
Latin America." Ciencia Ergo Sum 10.1 (2003): 43-50.