The epic of Sundiata begins by a griot storytelling the story of ancestors of Mali and the tale of a man whose victory will create the Mali Empire. The griot then explains that the king of the city of Niani will create a great ruler by marrying an ugly woman, who is claimed to have magical powers . The king of the city of Niani is Sundiata’s father, Maghan Kon Fatta. Two hunters went for the hunt of looking for this ugly woman and so they did. Her name was Sologan, who was also known as the buffalo woman because she roaming around ruining the land of Do. After they got married, they conceived Sundiata, Mali’s greatest king. Even though he could not walk in the beginning, later on he overcomes this tragedy and gains strength to rule Mali, like …show more content…
he is suppose too. In their society, the great way to pass down of history of their society is by oral traditions and women role depended on their son’s role in society. Hospitality is a value that all in Mali custom to have, even if it is a host or a guest.
In the beginning, Maghan Kon Fatta was given the chance to produce a young great king because was hospitable to the both hunters to brought Sologan to him. Sundiata’s empire became to be great because of the positive treatments that the king and his family have shown travel as exiles. People who did not show hospitality was seemed as terrible people because everyone is consider offering hospitality to anyone. Soumaoro, who was trying to take Sundiata’s position was seen as cruel because his lack of hospitality. All that Soumaoro did was treat harshly subjects and tax them a very high price . He did not show any compassion towards anyone because he was too busy trying to defeat Sundiata to over rule Mali. Even though, Soumaoro did not succeed to defeat him because Sundiata was a wise person, who everyone in the empire admired and had the help of spirits and magic to win the …show more content…
battle. Magic in Mali was not considered supernatural. By paying respect to their spirits, the forces that control the world can be access with trees, mountains, and lakes. Not everyone uses magic as good. Unlike, Sundiata, Soumaoro uses magic for evil. When Fakoli Koroma betrayed him, Soumaoro burns Niani to the ground making the kings flee. This caused for everyone that lived in Mali to live under Soumaoro tyranny. Sundiata did nothing about it because he was not in Mali at the time but heard of this tragedy through "eminent members of her husband's court" . These eminent members were merchants that Sologan recognized when they came around selling baobab leaves. Music is seen to be important in Mali civilization.
Through music, the griot keeps history and communicates with the people of Mali. Since keeping the history is important to the griot, it makes music important to them. Through music the people of Mali celebrate the great heroes and they make long dances. Hymm to the bow represent not only when Sundiata begun to walk for the first time but also serves as a battle cry. The power of music is apparent in the way Balla Fasséké saves his life through flattery of Soumaoro, which he does with an impromptu song. Music can make people listen, and hence through song, they may learn about themselves and grow stronger by celebrating their greatness
. Every king becomes a king because their fathers inherit their position to them after they have passed always. Women obey his husband and his sons because since they have a high role in society they decide for everything. Their mothers are jut there to support them, just like Sologan did with Sundiata. She made sure that nothing happened to him because Soumaoro wanted to kill him and her goal was for her son, Sundiata, to become the greatest empire of Mali. Their values in society were produced by Western Africans.
An interesting aspect of reading Sunjata is that it allows the reader to get a glimpse into the past. An unmissable trait that the story brings up is the power and control that women hold within their marriages and families overall. Part of this power comes from the West African people carrying on their family through a matrilineal system. Familial ties are a significant motif in Sunjata with even the storyteller tracing his ancestry back to the strong women told about in the oral tale. The matrilineal system means that instead of children taking the name of their father, as seen in many European societies, they would take the name of their mother and hold closer to the ties of her ancestors. This system allows for a sense of feminism to sprinkle all over the story of Sunjata and, ultimately, on the
During 1910 and 1970, over six million blacks departed the oppression of the South and relocated to western and northern cities in the United States, an event identified as the Great Migration. The Warmth of Other Suns is a powerful non-fiction book that illustrates this movement and introduces the world to one of the most prominent events in African American history. Wilkerson conveys a sense of authenticity as she not only articulates the accounts of Ida Mae Brandon Gladney, George Swanson Starling, and Robert Joseph Pershing Foster, but also intertwines the tales of some 1,200 travelers who made a single decision that would later change the world. Wilkerson utilizes a variety of disciplines including sociology, psychology, and economics in order to document and praise the separate struggles but shared courage of three individuals and their families during the Great Migration.
Ayiti, by Roxane Gay, is a collection of fifteen short narratives about Haiti and its people, which gives the readers insights into the complex Haitian diaspora experience. The novel seeks to offer a deeper view into Haitian society and covers an array of themes such as the politics of survival, resiliency, and feminist culture in Haiti. Throughout the novel, Gay is highly critical of mainstream media because of how they depict and silo Haiti as a poor and helpless country. Haiti’s historical stance on censorship is well documented, and as a Haitian writer living in America, Gay is successful in giving agency to the voiceless by chronicling the stories of the Haitian diaspora. Ayiti explores stories that explain what it is like to be a Haitian
The episode entitled “The Buffalo Woman” of Sundiata: An Epic of Old Mali begins to delve into several ideas prevalent throughout the entirety of the novel, most notably the concept of destiny and an exploration of its influence on how the events of the story unfold. Other ideas present in this chapter that are of great significance include the supernatural and the virtue of generosity.
... way they are moving from the bad things all around them into the good, that is, the music. In this way they are in a way escaping from the darkness that is around them every day even if only for a short time. It's the only light they have. This is when the author uses the image of darkness for the last time. " For, while the tale of how we suffer, and how we are delighted, and how we may triumph is never new, it always must be heard. There isn't any other tale to tell, it's the only light we've got in all this darkness." This supports that their music is the only thing that is totally good in their lives. With all the violence and despair that is around them all of the time, music is the only way they can free themselves.
The epic pin points the exploits of Sundiata Keita. His father, Maghan Kon Fatta, had several wives. He was the second son of Maghan and the son of Sogolon Kedjou. His father was the king of the Malinke people. Around the twelfth century the Ghana Empire fell and many smaller kingdoms expanded outwards. As the Malinke people expanded so did the Sosso Empire. After the death of his father, his brother was crowned king and exiled Sundiata (Sundiata, 27). While being exiled, the Sosso Empire invaded the Malinke Empire. When Sundiata returned
When comparing the two Sogolon Kedjou and Sassouma Berete both did what they thought would help to get their son's to become king. Sogolon knew everything that Sassouma was capable of doing to hurt her family, so she came up with the idea to leave the kingdom. Soglon said, "Lets us leave my son" (113). She thought this would be the best thing to do for all her children so she could keep them alive. "Despairing of ever injuring you, Sassouma will aim her blows at your brother or sister"(115). Although it was Sundiata's destiny to become king there was no set time placed on when this would occur. Therefore traveling to different kingdoms gave them time, and allowed for the fulfillment of not only Sundiata's destiny, but the destiny of his sibling too. Sassouma on the other hand wanted her son Dankaran to reign as the king of Mali after his father passed away. Sassouma knew her late husband would not pass the throne to her son, so she decided to banish Sogolon and her family to the backyard. Sassouma thought this would help her son's path to becoming the next king of Mali. She thought Sundiata was competition and a distraction to her son, so she wanted him dead. "I want to kill Sundiata. His destiny runs counter to my son's and he must be killed while there is still time" (115).
The griot, Djeli Mamadou Kouyaté briefly introduces his ancestors and tells that the Kouyatés have always served the Keita princes of Mali. He describes their duties as harboring old secrets, memorializing the names and deeds of great kings, and preserving "the memory of mankind."(pg xxiv The words of the Griot Mamadou Kouyate) The griot’s role in this book is to serve the king. Griots are very important to African culture; they are the keepers of tradition and are responsible for making sure things are done according to the customs of their ancestors. This is a very painstaking task because these customs are not written down; they are passed down by word of mouth. Their father teaches each griot, the knowledge griots possess is remembered through song and story, and is passed on with amazing accuracy. (pg xxiv)This system would not work well if it were...
One important feature found in ancient Greek culture is the music. Music is considered to be important as it creates an atmosphere during events such as wars, festivals, and other occasions. This element stands for sophistication, wealth, and power in a kingdom. When music is played during wars, it gives a type of tense feeling where it conveys a message reporting that both sides will never admit defeat until there is no more mercy to be held. During festivals, the music provides a light, and happy atmosphere where all people enjoy activities and food.
Since the earliest days of human civilization music has been a key tool for communication of stories which carried emotions through them. If we think back to our youngest years of life music has surrounded us whether it was from our parents singing us lullabies or from some sort of toy that played music we can say that musical melodies have helped shape or lives one way or another. Once we start growing up and figuring out who we are our musical preferences change; some people like classical and some like punk. We start to befriend people who like the same music as us and eventually we may attend a musical event. Our lives somewhat revolve around the music that we listen to.
Music is an art and a wonderful gift to human race. It soothes, stimulates and makes us feel happy. It affects our moods in many different ways from lullaby to war cry for changes in the society. Music is actually distinct to different people. Above all, it has a transformational importance that is captured in its art and nature. Music draws our emotions and it has an impact of bridging different cultures across the continents. Slave songs were very vital channels through which all kind of information was conveyed both positive and negative.
Sundiata developed into a great leader of Mali through hardships, religion, and core/tributary/periphery relationships of states. The djeli who transmitted this information to the translators, is also a manifestation of an institution important in Sundiata’s epic, because without djelis these stories would be lost forever. Sundiata learned about the formation, running and maintenance of African states through interactions with the communities he was introduced to.
Jamilia Carlyle Thesis: Throughout the epic of Sundiata, magic and religion are recurring themes that ultimately explains how the great king of Mali came to power. The story of Sundiata begins with a griot introducing himself as one who “teaches kings the history of their ancestors” (Sundiata 1). The griot, Djeli Mamadou Kouyate, tells the story of how the beloved king, Maghan Kon Fatta, speaks with a hunter from another kingdom.
Music plays a huge role in the structure of a society. It can have both negative and positive influence on cultures and communities. First, musical sounds and instruments can be a dividing factor between the people within the same culture. These opposing social and economic identities within these cultures can lead unnecessary animosity between the members. However, music can also be one of the forces that unite members of a culture and provide a sense pride for everyone. This makes it easier for people to display their identification to that culture.
Music has played a role in society since the dawn of man. Said to be the beginning of communication in early civilization, music and dance have influenced how we think, act and treat members of our own society. Song and dance is used in rites of passage ceremonies such as births, weddings and funerals throughout the world. Jamaican and Yoruba cultures have made many contributions to our society. The uses of this music as a vehicle for political issues, values, and beliefs have been used by many musicians from different cultures. I intend to discuss the Contribution of these two contemporary cultures music and their effect on society.