Four Forms of healing through Dance

809 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Dance/movement therapy essay

Judith Lynne Hanna is a professor at the University of Maryland who focuses on anthropology, sociology and dance. She combines these topics to analyze how dance can help heal a person and help improve health. In a broader context, dance therapy is a recent form of movement that does not require any form of previous dance experience and focuses on “movement behavior as it emerges in the therapeutic relationship.” (ADTA) Judith Hanna focuses in on broader concept of dance therapy by concentrating on expressive behavior that relieves stress, disabling conditions, tension, and chronic fatigue.
According to Judith Hanna, “dance may promote wellness by strengthening the immune system through muscular action and physiological processes,” which shows that a person can benefit from dancing by allowing the body to do physical exercises which can allow the body to strengthen itself. In order to do this, there are multiple ways in which Judith Hanna focuses in on to show that dance can have a powerful impact on the body. She explains that there are four different ways in which a person can develop a since of control over their body by (1) possession dance, (2) mastery of movement, (3) escape or diversion from stress and pain through a change in emotion, states of consciousness/ physical capability and (4) confronting stressors to work through ways of handling their effects.
The possession of dance goes to emphasize the idea that gaining a sense of control through dance comes by being possessed by a deity or spirit that processed to speak or act using the possessed person’s body. Being possessed by a deity relates back to some cultures in foreign countries such as Africa, Brazil and the Caribbean, in which the people recognize a person’s poo...

... middle of paper ...

...therapy is such a new form of movement that has been discovered, Hanna presses that dance therapy should be further investigated to show that there are beneficial effects from dancing because dancing allows a person to have a positive outlook about their illness and stressors that have been affecting their life.

Works Cited

"About Dance/Movement Therapy." ADTA. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Apr. 2014.
Berrol, Cynthia. "Dance/movement Therapy in Head Injury Rehabilitation." Brain Injury 4.3
(1990): 257-65. Abstract. The Power of Dance: Health and Healing 1.4 (1995): 323-31.
Print.
Halprin, Anna, et. al. Circle the Earth: Dancing with Life on the Line. , 1987. The Power of
Dance: Health and Healing 1.4 (1995): 323-31. Print.
Hanna, Judith Lynne. "The Power of Dance: Health and Healing." The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine 1.4 (1995): 323-31. Print.

Show More
Related

  • Overview of the Major Topics in Learning about Dance by Nora Ambrosio

    979 Words  | 2 Pages

    Learning about Dance: Dance as an Art Form and Entertainment provides visions into the many features of dance and inspires scholars to keep an open mind and think critically about the stimulating, bold, ever-changing and active world of dance. Learning about Dance is particularly useful for those who do not have a wide and diverse dance contextual, such as students in a preliminary level or survey dance course. This book consists of twelve chapters. Chapter one dance as an art form focuses on the basic structures of dance. Dance is displayed through the human body, it has the control to communicate and induce reactions. Dance can be found in many different places, it enables the participants and seekers to touch and knowledge the joy of movement. Dance is discovered as being one of the oldest art forms worldwide. Dance existed in early cultures was recognized in a sequence of rock paintings portrayed dance. Since this discovery of rock paintings, several other forms of art have been found that depict dance. People used rituals in order to worship the gods and believed that the rituals held magical and spiritual powers. During the ancient period civilizations sentient decisions began to be made with regard to dance. Other periods that had an impact on dance were the medieval period, the renaissance period, and the contemporary period. Chapter two the choreographer, the choreographer is a person who comes up with the movements created into a dance routine. The choreographer expresses themselves through choreography because this is their way of communicating with the audience. In order to be a choreographer you must have a passion for dance. Each choreographer has their own approaches and ways of making up a routine. Choreographers ...

    Read More

  • Exploring Lester Horton´s Dance Style

    2241 Words  | 5 Pages

    Dance is the universal language of the soul. Dance speaks of the truest inner feelings and life experiences of a dancer. Every dancer and/or choreographer will grow up to have a very distinctive style and set of unique techniques, dance values, and teaching methods to be followed. The dancer whom we will be analyzing in this paper is a pioneer of modern dance, Lester Horton. He was born on January 23rd, 1906 in Indianapolis, Indiana (Segal, 1998). He had moved to California to create dances and had developed a fresh and unique style of technique and choreography (Warren, 1977). He established the first permanent theater in America devoted to dance, and organized one of the first integrated modern dance companies (Yeoh, 2012).

    Read More

  • Gymnastics Argumentative Essay

    965 Words  | 2 Pages

    By universal definition, "sport" is listed as "an activity involving physical exertion and skill that is governed by a set of rules or customs and often undertaken competitively." Football, basketball, baseball, soccer and other primary activities have always been concretely defined as sports in society. However, one of the most physically demanding activities is constantly forgotten when it comes to the realm of sports- dance. Dance requires a tremendous amount of training and creates an aura of competition in which people compete to be the best, win, and take home the trophy- just like in traditionally accepted sports. These sports, however, do not possess an element of psychological health threats that some competitive dancers unfortunately must account for due to the emphasis placed on physical appearance.

    Read More

  • College Essay Dance

    466 Words  | 1 Pages

    Ballet is an athletic art form that utilizes muscle control, flexibility, and physical strength. It requires extreme discipline from the dancers and takes an extreme amount of mental concentration. This discipline causes dancers to have success throughout life and specifically in academic studies. There are many ways that dance can affect the success of a person’s life; however, there are two in specific that make dancers generally more successful. To begin, ballet causes dancers to be self-motivated workers; dancers cannot rely on others to push them to be better, but must have the drive within themselves.

    Read More

  • ballet Dancers and body image

    642 Words  | 2 Pages

    Aalten, A. (2005). In the presence of the body: Theorizing training, injuries and pain in ballet. Dance Research Journal, 37(2), 55-72. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/20444641

    Read More

  • REGGAE AND ZYDECO

    3174 Words  | 7 Pages

    Music’s influence is felt everywhere and it brings about a stir of emotions in many people. Whether it is something as simple as relationship trouble or something deeper and more profound, such as one’s cultural history, music serves as a stimulant to the mind and in other ways, a stimulant to the body. Such music as country, rock, reggae and Zydeco all succeed in stimulating the body and convincing it that dancing will only increase the satisfactory feeling that the music tends to give off.

    Read More

  • The impact of the French Revolution on Ballet

    2173 Words  | 5 Pages

    [6] Cohen, Selma Jeanne. International Encyclopedia of Dance: A Project of Dance Perspectives Foundation, Inc. New York: Oxford UP, 1998. Print.

    Read More

  • The Pressures of Dancers

    3179 Words  | 7 Pages

    The typical idea of a dancer is that they are tall, slender, full of energy, and lucky because they dance with all of the “stars”. Much of this is true, however, what many people do not think of are the many hardships that a dancer goes through in order to achieve their high status in the dance world. It takes much hard work and determination along with good direction to become a dancer. However, nothing good comes without a price. Dancers often times have many pressures put on them which can lead to physical and emotional damages. These damages occur through the pressures from the media, parents, teammates, and the stereotype that society has placed on dancers.

    Read More

  • What Is The Historical Context Of The Jitterbug

    1463 Words  | 3 Pages

    Dance is more than time, Space, and energy. People have this perceived connotation that dance is just visual art depicted from movements in the body. This is true that dance is a form of visual entertainment, but when looking at the sociocultural lens, dance has far more reasoning. Whether these reasons were to free oneself from oppression, or creating a community where one felt safe, social dance was a way for people to express emotion and create identity. As social dance evolved, these different cultural identities were exposed to one another.

    Read More

  • Dancing to Wellness: Dance Therapy in Elderly Care

    937 Words  | 2 Pages

    I am writing this letter in response to the article “Dance therapy brings joy and wellbeing to older people” written by Mark Tran. I enjoyed reading this article and agree with some of the points illustrated. Dance therapy is a universally technique that can be used to promote self-worth and develop confidence. Furthermore, it is an expression of an individuals’ willingness to move, learn and reveal themselves through their bodies (Becker, 2001). Not only is dance used for recreational purposes, research shows how it benefits the elderly in a number of ways. Thus, allowing for person growth and enhancing the quality of life amongst older adults.

    Read More

  • Compare: Classical Ballet And Modern Dance

    1256 Words  | 3 Pages

    Dance is a very known form of art to mankind. Everyone sees this form of art different, some think of it as beautiful and expressive, others see weird body movements that look cool at the same time. For the ones that do not understand why people dance, they need to open up their eyes to see the reasons behind everything. It expresses joy, love, sorrow, anger, excitement, and this list just goes on for all the possible emotions that someone can feel. Along with the emotions, a story being told throughout a dance, or someone can use this form of art to praise a higher power based off of their culture. Two forms of dance that have not only been around for a long time but has also influenced the development of

    Read More

  • Parkinson's Disease Dance Analysis

    497 Words  | 1 Pages

    During today’s presentation, I learned that there is an organization called Dance for PD that focuses on dance rehabilitating patients with Parkinson’s disease. I also learned that there is a study called the Freiburg Study that focuses on how dance benefits patients with Parkinson’s. I also had no idea that Google glass was developing an app to help people remember and trigger body movements in their daily lives using the language of dance. I believe that Dance for PD covers the mental and emotional aspects of health. It gives these people a reason to try; it makes them feel like a dancer not just a patient.

    Read More

  • Essay On Dance Movement Therapy

    1451 Words  | 3 Pages

    Lately in the psychology field, Dance Movement Therapy has become a popular choice of therapy over the last few years. Even though to work as a dance therapist I would have to look for that job in many popular urban areas and deal with many traumatic events. Dance Movement Therapy is a career that is best for me because I’m a passionate dancer and a very spiritual person as well and I love to help people and to dance. A Dance Movement Therapist has many responsibilities, duties, characteristic, and requirements that they must fulfill in their work force in order to be successful in their skill. Although it requires a lot Dance Movement Therapy fits my personality and character simply because, I feel it’s my purpose

    Read More

  • Persuasive Essay: How Dance Benefits Me?

    1090 Words  | 3 Pages

    This research is important because I need to know how dance can help me. This also very helpful to me because it showed me another was to relieve stress and calm my anxiety. This research demonstrated another reason for me to stay dancing. Dancing creates a creative outlet for me, something that we don’t really have in regular life, a place to express yourself. These results give me a drive to stay in dance. These discoveries with keep me safe and healthy while I dance.

    Read More

  • Dance Essay: The Art Of Dance

    966 Words  | 2 Pages

    There are many benefits to any and all types of dance mentioned above. One major benefit that is commonly known is that it is a source of physical exercise. However, dance can also make you smarter, reduce stress, increase serotonin levels and can give one a sense of well-being. Dancing can also improve your posture and your weight and lower your risk for heart and blood vessel

    Read More

More about Four Forms of healing through Dance

Open Document