Last semester after watching WUDT, a lot of my friends said they liked the West African dance piece I was in. Not just because I was in it, but because they understood that story that was told through the movement. A lot of people have issues with dance because it is not a universal language. But why isn't it? It's just movement... or is it?
The issues of language, its meaning, and how this meaning is communicated is a central focus of my project. My philosophical inquiries regarding the origins of language, its universality, and how it is dependent on culture have inspired me to translate these central questions to the language of dance. My first dramaturgical piece was made to display the large and complex space between where thoughts begin and where they are perceived. Meaning is extracted differently by individuals not just based on their persona experiences, but the influences of their culture. Robert Wuthrow states that “the dramaturgical approach recasts the problem of meaning by affording a shift from analysis of the subjective or semantic meaning of symbols to analysis of the conditions under which symbolic acts are meaningful.” 1 Here is further support for the idea that the context is a powerful influence on the reception of any work.
As an interdisciplinary endeavor, this project will be incorporating my studies of rituals into this project. Many anthropologists stress the importance of the understanding the social context of which rituals occur before their purpose can be completely understood. Rituals within a particular culture show what kinds of beliefs, values, and conceptions are and are possible to be held by the members of a particular society. My second dramaturgical piece was inspired by my thoughts about what details of rituals make them meaningful and effective. Outsiders need to be careful how they interpret the meaning of rituals because there are often many layers of meaning and emotion embedded in its practice.
Ultimately, the relationships between culture, language, society, and how rituals bridge these ideas will be the focus of my project. I envision all of this happening in Bowles Plaza and I believe it will involve a significant number of people, and hopefully attract the attention of significantly more. I will be using movement as medium to communicate ideas and emotions between the participants and also the audience. The third dramaturgical piece I created is completely covered in text of rituals that will be read one at a time among a group of people. People will have different instructions based on when they think the ritual takes place, if they have ever done it, and other variables that will dictate their response to what they hear. There will also be unusual uses of ordinary objects, say, nonverbal communication between two people on rolling chairs. I also want the audience to be included, if they wish, in this project. Onlookers will have opportunities to engage with my performers, perhaps in a game of some sort. Ultimately my thoughts about language, movement, and the act of performing rituals will be embodied in a creative performance.
The bottom of this canvas has iron-on letters arranged in a meaningless sequence. The fibers of the letters do not stick onto the canvas- which illustrates the incompatibility between different mediums, which in my project can be languages or any form of communication. The wide range of colors represents the various ways meaning can be interpreted, and the small details imposed on the paint is meant to enhance the value of local areas. At the top whole words are written, presumably from the boggled letters below, or perhaps they emerged from the meaning in the color. As a whole this work symbolizes the various ways meaning can be extracted from different mediums, and the variation in this process of interpretation.
This paper has various acts that qualify as rituals written around the paper. The hand in the middle with the eyes and ears on it represents that various senses we use to gain information about our world, and how they must be integrated for a holistic experience. Similar to how people adopt different roles in their practice of rituals and in performances, people have different perspectives on what qualifies as ritualized actions, and their role in them. Creating this piece inspired me to be more aware of how rituals occur in our everyday lives and how people unconsciously engage in such practices.
I was inspired to create this piece after examining a container of different colored beads. Looking from a far, it was just one big heap of different colors, but after looking closer I was able to focus on individual colors and appreciate them separately. We often overlook the individual components of things in our environment, which ultimately changes the way we perceive the existing relationships between people, objects, and interactions in general. Context shapes how we see things and it affects what things mean. In rituals, objects are symbolically used to embody relationships or beings, and the participants actively support this meaning through their faith. This transformation of beliefs is mediated by the performative aspects of rituals, in that the performance allows for the adoption of alternative realities.
The foundation of society rests on our ability to communicate with other human beings. The only reason people are able to co-exist with one another is because certain things are understood universally by virtue of human language. The way we attribute meaning to words is arbitrary, but what is most important is that we are able to connect meanings with sound patterns. Our minds have evolved to accommodate speech and language, which are arguably the most important evolutionary tools we have acquired.
Our ability to share ideas, thoughts, and emotions with others allows for the transfer of knowledge not only across individuals, but larger groups of people. Despite the fact that hundreds of spoken languages around the world, the tool of translations allows for the transformation of meanings into alternative forms. At first, one may think that communicating in one language is most efficient because meaning may be lost in translation, but this may not be the case. Our thoughts and emotions are subjective and are based on the past experiences we've had that shape our perspective. The process that turns our non-physical ideas and feelings into words that can be spoken is complex and not well understood. Our ability to communicate is contingent on this process, but there is no way of knowing how efficient and precise it is.
Translation from one language to another can be highly problematic; not only is there no guarantee that the meaning of a word in one language has the exact same meaning in another language—but there may be some words or concepts that do not exist at all in another language. If there is not a word for depression, for example, do people feel depressed? If so, how would they express this feeling to others? Broad differences exist between how languages frame the social worlds we inhabit, and thus language acts to shape and limit our experience. If spoken language is the only means by which people can represent their world, their descriptions are limited to content and syntax of this language.
Alternate forms of communication are just as important as spoken language because they provide other mediums to convey meaning. There are an infinite number of ideas, concepts, and feelings to be expressed, and a considerable number of forms these might take. A thought or event can exist “outside or alongside language”, so why should it only be communicated through language? 1
The medium by which ideas are communicated affects their reception; the constraints and benefits of using one communicative mode over another cannot be ignored. The various sense modalities offer an array of options for information to be received and their processing engages an assortment of mental functions. With spoken language, the intention of the supplier can be more easily conveyed than in other forms that are less precise. Two artists could produce similar works that have completely different meanings behind them. Regardless of the form of communication and intentions of the creator, the way the material is interpreted is largely dependent on both the internal and external circumstances of the receiver.
Similar to how language structure how we choose words to represent the world, culture also defines our worldview and expression of it. Culture is an artifact of society, in that it would not exist if people were not alive to create it; it emerges from the social nature of human beings. Cultures tremendous influence in how individuals see themselves in their world and consequently defines the range of beliefs people can cognitively comprehend and adopt. The adoption of a particular set of metaphysical and epistemological beliefs regarding one's existence and place in the world contributes to the way events and symbols are interpreted.
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Culture frames the content of people's lives and puts it into a meaningful context for individuals to accept and contribute to. Religion is a unique forum where culturally based beliefs affect how people live their lives and interact with other people. The practice of many of the world's religions entail the believers taking part in rituals and services that often engage spirits or other-worldly beings. This engagement is often mediated through the use of symbols and objects that are only meaningful in the specific context and require the presence of a qualified mediator. In the context of a ritual, symbols and objects can take on meanings and have outstanding effects on those present. 3
Rituals are special because they represent the confrontation of a sacred and secular space. They are inherently cross-disciplinary because they cross social, societal, and cultural norms. During rituals, acts are performed while specific thoughts and emotions are invoked. Anthropologist Catherine Bell focused on this dichotomy between thought and action to organize her beliefs on ritual theory. 4 Although she valued thought more than actions, she believed rituals were not made of abstract concepts but ideas that were rooted in the body. Through the movements and embodiment of the practices, the intentions of the practitioner become clear and are manifested through the ritual. During ritual practices ideas are heightened and exaggerated and can act as a type of socialization for those participating in the ritual.
Rituals categorize and construct social relations through the embodiment of prescribed actions. Only specific people are entitled to touch sacred objects or say certain verses, enforcing or sometimes rearranging the power relations between those involved. Ritual actions reflect deeper social and cultural understandings and inform our non-ritual ways of acting. The interactions that occur during rituals relay information about the current state of affairs of the participants, and can affect changes in both the cosmic and secular world that it may be operating.
5 Although at some points rituals may appear to be unnecessary elaborate acts, the performance and successful execution of a ritual is to serve a function.
Partaking in any ritual entails the participant to enter a state of mind that is uniquely different from the mindset of their everyday experience. Although peoples' religious beliefs are often integrated into their daily lives, in the context of rituals, people's beliefs about the world change to accommodate their actions. In the context of ritual practices, objects and symbols represent different things that are often are of a cosmic nature. To experience a ritual as a performance one must be willing to enter into this alternative mindset.
According to Haberman, people can hold different world views through the adoption of different identities.
6 Identity is the medium by which people can relate to their world, and therefore it also acts as the vehicle by which they can enter different worlds. By transforming their identity people can hold different views of the world which are reflected by actions. In ritual practices the thoughts behind our actions reflect our ideas about the world. Adopting alternative identities entails the adoption of different meanings of our actions.
Rituals are experienced through several different points of view that revolve around the distinctions between the performer and the spectator. Depending on how the ritual is executed, the performers experience and understanding of the ritual may be very different from an audience's experience of the same. The presence of spectators is not necessary to make a ritual public; even when one is alone “humans not only act, but know they are acting: they observe themselves.” 7 The performance of rituals requires a specific faithfulness and attention of the participants. Their allegiance to the specific worldview they hold allows for the power of rituals to affect those who are participating.
A religious reality is entered by playing a role, or performing, a new identity that has a predetermined place in the alternative world. The actor must understand the purpose and meaning of their newly adopted identity throughout the entire course of the ritual. The performative qualities the ritual mediates this role-playing. If the ritual is framed as a performance, the psychological transitioning of identities is facilitated for the person actively participating in the ritual. Framing the execution of the ritual as a performance helps the actor make the transformation of identity real. An active investment of emotion and belief allows for the direct perception of the ritual as a performance.
Rituals practices are unique because they are performed in ways that employ order, limits, and rules, and yet at other moments allow for free movement and responses to the environment. Rituals are adaptive in their ultimate goal; each participant may be asking for a different turnout; in this sense, rituals adopt a theatrical quality—they are contrived for a certain situation. Through the careful balance of adherence to traditions and adapting for personal relevance, each time a ritual is performed it is different its previous performance as well as the one that will follow.
Individuals must transform their identity to become part of a larger group, and also to make use of the ritual in a way that is meaningful to them. Similarly, when dancers performs with a group they must be aware of the dancers around them, yet still remain focused on their individual contributions to the work. The psychological motivations and physical expressions are intimately intertwined in performing arts and religious rituals.
The transmission of religious truths and ritual acts are transmitted through dramatic actions because performing efficiently transits emotion. A significant element of any performance involves the projection of emotion from the actor to the audience. Lutgendorf believes that the audience's experience is inseparable from this performative aspect of it. 8 Physically witnessing the dramatic performance connects to the internal state of the person. A dramatic rendering not only keeps people attentive and the overall experience positive, but gets people actively involved and brings the story to life. The acting physically and emotionally conveys the meaning to audience, but this can only be accomplished if the audience is open to experiencing the ritual as a performance.
[Franko, Mark. ed. Ritual and Event: Interdisciplinary perspectives. (New York: Routledge, 2007)] ↩
[Ness, Sally A. “Going Back to Bateson” Ritual and Event: Interdisciplinary perspectives. Ed. Mark Franco. New York: Routledge, 2007. 13-30]↩
[Driver, Tom R. The Magic of Ritual: Our Need for Liberating Rites that Transform Our Lives and Our Communities (New York: HarperSanFransico, 1991)]↩
[Bell, Catherine. Ritual Theory, Ritual Practice. (New York: Oxford University Press, 1992)]↩
[Johansson, Ola. “Performative Interventions” Ritual and Event: Interdisciplinary perspectives. Ed. Mark Franco. New York: Routledge, 2007. 31-55.]↩
[Haberman, David L. Acting as a Way of Salvation. New York: Oxford University Press, 1988]↩
[Driver, Tom R. The Magic of Ritual: Our Need for Liberating Rites that Transform Our Lives and Our Communities (New York: HarperSanFransico, 1991)]↩
[Lutgendorf, Philip. The Life of a Text: Performing the Ramcaritmanas of Tulsidas Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1991]↩