“Reflections on Country Line Dancing”
“Don’t tell my heart, my achy breaky heart; I just don’t think you’d understand.” Who knew that the 1993 smash hit, “Achy Breaky Heart,” by Billy Ray Cyrus would be the turning point that would cause country line dancing to become a worldwide phenomenon. Despite differing opinions on the exact history, it is evident that country line dancing is an extension of past social dance forms and is representative of the social, economic, and political state of the United States. However, one thing is for sure. Country line dancing is not just a fad, but rather seems to be a mainstay in the culture of the United States, as seen by the thousands of clubs like the Boot Scootin’ Saloon throughout the country.
First,
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A popular opinion about line dancing is that it is not a fad but a tradition (Lane 2), which includes ties to many forms of social dance. Thus, country line dancing can be seen simply as an extension or progression of social dance as it has developed over the past one thousand years. Despite many different answers, there seems to be somewhat of a consensus that country line dancing has seemed to evolved from the combination of the two forms of social dance, folk dancing (round and square dancing) and disco. First, in the 1800s, round and square dancing was created from the combination of the polka and the waltz, dances which were representative of the culture of European immigrants that traveled to America. In the 1860s and the 1890s, cowboys in the west took these traditional forms and combined them to form country western dance. As one source states, “they are credited with the simple footwork and the country flair reflecting their culture of the time” (Lane 2). From square dance, country line dance has taken such steps as the grapevine and the chasse and also the idea of line formation (Phillips 2). In the 1970s, with the release of John Travolta’s disco movie, Saturday Night Fever, as one source states, “. . . for the first time [people] saw what couples dancing together to “Pop” music could be like . . . they planted the seed not only for couples dancing, but also for line dancing” (Rapoport 2). Then, as the line between country and pop music began to blur, country line dancing continued to evolve as John Travolta in Urban Cowboy again helped to spread this dance craze (Lane 2). However, it was not until Melanie Greenwood developed a line dance that went to Billy Ray Cyrus song, “Achy Breaky Heart,” that country line dancing reached its turning point to extreme popularity. Lastly, as one source states,
During this time, the Bee Gees were gaining popularity, and a lot of their music is featured in Saturday Night Fever. Their music, combined with the dancing, influenced the way that dance began to change. There was the emergence of more disco style dance being incorporated into jazz dance. “The 1970s also saw the huge impact of John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever, which boosted the image of the male dancer…” (Nalett). Seeing a male actor starring in a dancing role in a feature film was a great encouragement for men to dance. They had a sense of security that it was “cool” and
Country music originated in the Appalachian mountains of the Southern United States and has traditional folk roots that date from the early 20th century. The commercial history of country music began in the Southern United States in the 1920’s, during a ‘period of intense modernization’ (Ellison, 1995). It wasn’t until this time that country was considered a viable music genre. It was first identified as ‘hillbilly’ music in 1925 and later became known officially as ‘country’ by its designation on the Billboard Music charts (Shmoop, 2014). Widely considered the ‘Mother Church’ of country, the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville became the home of many emerging and already established artists (Tichi, 1994:21). Coupled with the rise of radio and barn dance programs, country’s popularity increased greatly. Ellison (1995) describes country’s evolution from ‘rustic radio programs’ to a genre with an ‘extensive national network of fans unparalled in other forms of popular music’. During the 1930’s, the Great Depression assisted in the spread of country music throughout the US, with many poor unemployed Southerners migrating north, t...
The painting “Sugar Shack” depicts how African Americans relieve physical tension through dance and movement. This painting suggests that Ernie Barnes shows how his culture expresses themselves through dance. In fact, one of the reasons Sugar Shack is popular is because of the way Barnes captured physical strain and dynamic movement through the extension of arms and legs and the swaying of hips. We see the figures as men and women who are dancing in pairs, physically relating to one another and to other couples. This creates a sense of unity among all the figures in the piece, including the band. Barnes said, “Sugar Shack is a recall of a childhood experience. It was the first time my innocence met with the sins of dance.” The painting is supposed to make a person feel the rhythm while viewing it to show that African Americans use rhythm as
It is surprising for an individual to meet a famous person in the neighborhood or in a vacation resort, but how much more surprising it is for a person to get a job with a notable individual. I was shocked when as a new immigrant I got a job at The Anna Wyman School of Dance Arts and I was privileged to work with a Canadian choreographer, dancer and the Artistic Director, Anna Wyman. Through my work with her, I was able to explore the history of Canadian modern dance and to learn about my employer’s significant offerings to it. Wyman has made a great contribution to Canadian modern dance in the 70’s and 80’s with her dance company that was called- Anna Wyman Dance Theatre. Although, nowadays, we cannot admire her dance theatre anymore, the legacy resounds in her work as an artistic director, choreographer and teacher at The Anna Wyman School of Dance Arts.
A club known as the Whitey’s Lindy Hoppers possibly began this trend in 1935 when they formed their group of 12 dancers (Swingin’). This group of dancers began, and performed the majority of their lifetime as a group in the Savoy Ballroom. They created the Lindy Hop quite simply, using movements from the Charleston as well as basic tap movements. And because of their dance, they had the opportunity to perform both on Broadway, and even in some movies. First, two partners would dance around together in various ways. Then, the man would complete a series of lifts with the girl, usually ending with them apart. Finally, a section of solo footwork would occur to bring the couple back
Cormac O’Shea shouted as we danced in waves across the hard floor in front of the floor to ceiling mirror at the front of the studio. Our hard shoes would thunder steadily to the beat of the music as my dance friends and I worked hard to get our Hornpipe perfect. Irish dancing is fast paced and very invigorating. I danced for seven years at O’Shea Irish Dance and every day felt proud of the tradition and history I represented.
Allison Bonetti, a dancer in the performance, is quoted, remarking, “I feel dizzy every time we complete the Waltz section, but I don’t feel dirty or scandalous, as I would after, say I maybe danced in a club. I think I speak for many of us when I say that the Waltz feels like a dance my grandmother would do.” In fact, the performance is misleading seeing as it is paired with very formal and controlled dances such as the Pavane and the minuet. In fact, modern historians such as Mark Knowles have compared the Waltz to social hip hop dances of today such as “krumping and grinding” since through the ages social dances have been “manifestations of society’s beliefs, values, attitudes, confusions, and concerns.” If the performance was to correctly convey this notion, it would have beneficial to place the nineteenth century Waltz in the second half of the performance, along with dances like the Quan and the Whip. However, in order to maintain chronological accuracy, the Waltz was placed in the beginning of the performance, overall failing to reveal the true nature of the nineteenth century
...t was commanded by the gods. Socrates says that he devoted everything to this quest. He completely ignored his personal affairs to the point where he was completely broke. If he does not believe in the gods that the state believes in, namely, the ancient Greek gods such as Zeus, Hera, Apollo, Hermes, Athena, Ares, Hades, Aphrodite, Poseidon, and many others, then why did he go on a quest appointed by gods that he does not believe in? The only answer possible is that Socrates does believe in the gods of the state and that the accusation is false.
On the inside of the club door a large notice is pinned up. The notice
Many Historians say that Isadora Duncan was the first dancer to present “modern dancing” to the public. Duncan felt that the pointe shoes and costumes that ballerinas wore were to restrictive. She began to dance in a way that seemed to be more natural to her. Her inspirations came from the movements of the tress, the ocean and other forms from nature. Her techniques included hopping, swaying, skipping and running. She felt these type of movements were natural and expressive. Also, the history of the Greeks
In his defense, Socrates claims over and again that he is innocent and is not at all wise, “…for I know that I have no wisdom, small or great.” Throughout the rest of his oration he seems to act the opposite as if he is better than every man, and later he even claims that, “At any rate, the world has decided that Socrates is in some way superior to other men.” This seems to be his greatest mistake, claiming to be greater than even the jury.
There are eight symptoms of groupthink. The first symptom is when all or most of the group view themselves as invincible which causes them to make decisions that may be risky. The group has an enormous amount of confidence and authority in their decisions as well as in themselves. They see themselves collectively better in all ways than any other group and they believe the event will go well not because of what it is, but because they are involved. The second symptom is the belief of the group that they are moral and upstanding, which leads the group to ignore the ethical or moral consequences of the decisions. The group engages in a total overestimation of its morality. There is never any question that the group is not doing the right thing, they just act. The disregarding of information or warnings that may lead to changes in past policy is the third symptom. Even if there is considerable evidence against their standpoint, they see no problems with their plan. Stereotyping of enemy leaders or others as weak or stupid is the fourth symptom. This symptom leads to close-mindedness to other individuals and their opinions. The fifth symptom is the self-censorship of an individual causing him to overlook his doubts. A group member basically keeps his mouth shut so the group can continue in harmony. Symptom number six refers to the illusion of unanimity; going along with the majority, and the assumption that silence signifies consent. Sometimes a group member who questions the rightness of the goals is pressured by others into concurring or agreeing, this is symptom number seven. The last symptom is the members that set themselves up as a buffer to protect the group from adverse information that may destroy their shared contentment regarding the group’s ...
Socrates spent his time questioning people about things like virtue, justice, piety and truth. The people Socrates questioned are the people that condemned him to death. Socrates was sentenced to death because people did not like him and they wanted to shut him up for good. There was not any real evidence against Socrates to prove the accusations against him. Socrates was condemned for three major reasons: he told important people exactly what he thought of them, he questioned ideas that had long been the norm, the youth copied his style of questioning for fun, making Athenians think Socrates was teaching the youth to be rebellious. But these reasons were not the charges against him, he was charged with being an atheist and with corrupting the youth. The charge of being impious was completely absurd because Socrates talked about the gods quite frequently and never stated to anyone that he was an atheist so it would be impossible for him to be an atheist. The charge of corrupting the youth is unjust because Socrates did not tell the youth to copy him and he is not responsible for their actions. The charges against Socrates were merely excuses by his enemies to murder him in a legal way. Socrates made his enemies by going on a search to find someone wiser than he was. Socrates went on this search because the Oracle at Delphi said he was the wisest man there was but Socrates believed that to be false (5). This lead to a futile search for a person who did have wisdom so Socrates could prove the oracle wrong. Socrates went to people who had a reputation of wisdom and then he would question and talk to them to find out if they in fact were wise. When he met someone who thought they were wise, Socrates would come "to the ass...
Ancient Athens was the site of a growing culture. Philosophy was among the many improvements and discoveries being made. With these improvements and discoveries, great thinkers were able to stretch out their knowledge to new heights. The society they lived in, both welcomed and shunned their ideals. Socrates was one of these thinkers. It was because of Socrates open-mindedness that he was sentenced to death by two charges brought against him. One, Socrates corrupted the youth and two, Socrates believed in ‘false gods’. Yet, was Socrates guilty or not?
Socialism is often defined as the publicizing of all major industries, as well as spreading wealth nearly evenly, and eliminating an economy based on private control of capitol, in favor of one defined by public control. (http://www.worldsocialism.org/ articles/what_is_socialism.php). Contrary to popular belief, socialism does not mean total or complete financial equality, a hard working person will still be better off than a lazy one. The major industries that would be publicized include energy, agriculture, healthcare and education. Some industries, such as communications (internet, cell phones etc.) would not be in order to prevent state abuse of them, but all big monopolies would be abolished.