Aloha Dance Essay

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The Forbidden and The Aloha Dance It is said that ancient times were simpler than the present day. Life was simply about surviving. But of course, change is inevitable. Humans constantly feel the need to expand grounds or to go where conditions are best suited for them. Eventually, a tribe or race would have met another on their own. But what was life like before the different tribes and races met? In present day research, it is seen that though there was no contact whatsoever, separated ancient tribes and/or races were deemed similar. Somehow, human minds branch off into different views of the same topic, depending on where the people are located. Take the Hawaiians and Middle Easterners for example, they remained on opposing sides of the world and yet they have similar forms of …show more content…

Origins are a blur, but evidence points to the ancient Egyptians. However, the use of this dance form is most commonly paired with the Middle Easterners. There is a misconception on raqs sharqi that many people believe. Raqs sharqi was not for the entertainment of a man. The dance form was by women, for women. In the ancient times, it was believed that this dance would bring fortune and fertility to the women. These dances were performed as part of ceremonies or rituals. Men only danced this form at parties for other men as entertainment. Raqs Sharqi is known to be a violent dance, movements consisted of exaggerated movements of the hips and torso. However, these performers also used their finger motions to “bless” the audience with good fortune. The raqs sharqi performers were seen mainly in 3 different types of clothing: bedleh (a beaded bra, belt and lengthy skirt), beledi (a floor-length dress that flows), or gallabiyah (a shapeless, cotton robe). A good visual to compare these outfits to is an Arabic woman in a hijab, with no skin

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