Category: Arts & Life

Amanda Ayers

Granada: Past, Present and Future

Having experienced so much already, it’s unbelievable to me that I’ve only been here one month! Buenos días de Granada is a city as rich and flavorful in heritage as the tapas its inhabitants prepare. As one of 18 University students in the Bucknell en España program, I am so incredibly grateful for this opportunity to travel the world, as well as the chance to delve a bit into my experience thus far.

I am living the life of a Granada University student, studying at the Centro de Lenguas Modernas (part of the Universidad de Granada) and immersing myself in the Spanish culture primarily through a host-family living arrangement. I live with a señora and her daughter, a professional flamenco dancer. In my opinion, this is the ideal setup; we have complete freedom but are absorbed in the Spanish lifestyle to a degree unattainable had we chosen to live with other American students. We eat authentic food on the Spanish schedule (lunch at 3 p.m., dinner at 9:30 or 10 p.m.), constantly converse in Spanish with locals (learning a lot of colloquialisms not taught in the classroom) and get tips that we otherwise wouldn’t concerning just about every aspect of life here.

Standing on just about any single street corner of Granada, you could glance around and witness the hybrid of Arabic, Jewish, Gypsy, modern and Christian cultures here. Granada was the last Spanish city occupied by the Moors until the Catholic Monarchs, Ferdinand and Isabella (“Los Reyes Católicos”), united the country and reconquered the city in 1492 (“La Reconquista”). For this reason, it is brimming with Arabic influence–the Alhambra, the Albaicín (market), téterias (tea shops), hookah bars, Arab baths, kebab stands and more–while simultaneously housing some of the most prominent Catholic cathedrals and churches. There are also numerous churches that were formerly mosques, or churches that were commissioned and built by Moors in the Arabic architectural style. Even the Alhambra, originally the palace and fortress of the Moorish rulers, was later occupied and expanded upon by Catholic Spanish kings.

Places are like people; it’s only until you consider what they have done and seen in the past that you can fully appreciate or understand them in their present form. Granada is no exception. Following the Reconquista, the Moors and Jews were either expelled or forced to convert to Christianity as part of the Catholic Monarchs’ effort to homogenize the country they had just unified. I learned the other day that the reason pork is revered so much in Spain is because eating it was a way to prove that you were a “good” Catholic during this time. Otherwise, it was known that you were keeping kosher and therefore not Christian. I am constantly fascinated by tidbits like this from the past that help to explain my experience in the present.

Another fact exemplary of this is that many Spanish words that we use today are derived from Arabic. A number of those that begin with “al”, like alfombra meaning rug and almohada meaning pillow, are Arabic in root and no doubt from the days of Moorish rule over Al Andalus, or what is now known as the region of Andalucia. The word “tapas” comes from the verb “tapar,” meaning “to cover.” In their early days, these small but savory portions of food were literally used to cover wine, protecting it from insects and the elements. It is one thing indulge in them every weekend; it’s another to understand and appreciate how they came to be.

I mentioned to my mom a couple of days ago that I feel as though every minute I spend here is worthwhile. We read an article in class that discussed the ability of travel to keep one’s senses perpetually heightened, and I couldn’t agree more. Everyday, I feel myself moving farther and farther away from simply articulating the necessary, and closer to fluid conversation. Everyday, I gain a broader global perspective and unique appreciation for what I have left behind at home. With every wrong turn, verb and bite, I am constantly learning and growing. Lacking a native’s instincts in every new place that I go, I am always on my toes and conscious of my every move and utterance–and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Laura Crowley

Lecture: Living with Lynching

In Koritha Mitchell’s lecture, “Living with Lynching,” she discussed the societal impact lynching had from 1890 to 1930. While looking at the photos was painful, Mitchell urged us to move past the individual victim, reminding us that his suffering was over. What lynching created was not just mourning but also a cycle of fear, a generational gap and economic challenges.

Mitchell, an associate professor of English at Ohio State University, is an award winning aurthor who specializes in African-American literature and racial violence in American literature.

A key characteristic of lynching photographs is the solidarity of the victim contrasted with the comradery among the crowd of perpetrators. Mitchell told to us that lynching photographs were specifically constructed in this manner so as to portray the victim as an “isolated brute without loved ones,” said Mitchell. 

The perpetrators were proud of their actions and often used the photographs as postcards. This act was considered a theatrical production that ensured white supremacy. Perpetrators specifically targeted the happiest and most successful blacks to “put them in their place,” said Mitchell. The practice was unpopular during the height of slavery, as it was unnecessary as long as whites felt they were in power.

After describing the history and practices of the crime, Mitchell refocused her talk on what really hurt: the lasting affects lynching had on families. Lynching had the enormous capacity of degeneration, which refers to the creation of a generational gap within a family. The practice also encouraged blacks to be either a pimp or a coward, as such behavior guaranteed that they didn’t pose a threat. The cycle of fear that lynching created made it virtually impossible for blacks to break out of a system of oppression.

Mitchell believes that the best way to memorialize victims is lynching plays. Rather than a brief photo that stirs sharp, yet rather fleeting pain in us, lynching plays shift the focus from the moment of the crime and refocus it on what really matters: the ways in which lynching affected families and communities in the long term.

While it is easy to put lynching to rest as something of the past, a woman brought up a point in the Q&A that led me to think that such wrongdoings exist today in more subtle, yet similarly pervasive ways. This woman addressed the disenfranchisement of certain minority groups from society due to the considerable time they spend in prison. The statistics that show the frequency with which males of minorities are arrested are indeed striking and may suggest that they are disenfranchised due to the time they spend barred from voting.

Laura Crowley

Arts & Life Editor

The Weis Center for the Performing Arts hosted Noche Flamenca on Feb. 1, which featured an hour and a half of traditional Spanish dance. Although flamenco has been popular since the 15th century, its authenticity is often compromised. This performance was a refreshing display of emotion and passion and was well received by a full audience.

For those unfamiliar with flamenco, the dance is a mixture of irregular beat and stepping patterns interjected by sporadic bursts of song. The unpredictability of the dance has its limits as hand contortion, posture and stepping methods are strictly controlled and require years of practice. When consumed with emotion, dancers will slap their knees, let out a “dale” and whip their heads until their hair becomes loose. In contrast with other forms of dance, flamenco was never intended to please or impress, yet it does just that through its rawness.

Flamenco’s intense emotionality is best understood given its historical context. The dance originated in Andalucia, the southern-most region of Spain, at a time when “the Jews were massacred, the Gypsies humiliated and persecuted, and the Arabs exterminated, the Moriscos expelled and the Andalucians generally exploited,” according to historian Feliz Grande. The intensity of the dance is clearly related to the pain experienced during this time.

“The singers and dancers showed us good things about love, sadness and great human feelings,” Hadivys Salcedo, a Columbian native, said.

Noche Flamenca is led by Soledad Barrio and consists of nine members who do justice to the authenticity of the dance in contrast to the many groups that perform today in an effort to please tourists by means of a more predictable performance. 

“It was a powerful performance. I really felt like I was back in Spain for a while,” David Chaves Rodriguez, a native of Andalucia, said.

Noche Flamenca also brings in a modern component as its members are not exclusively from Andalucia, as was the case with the majority of flamenco’s history. 

“The performers were talented and brought a lot of energy to their acts,” Malyse Uwase ’13 said.

Noche Flamenca’s popularity is largely due to the fact that they are one of a kind. Most flamenco groups stay within Spain and expect enthusiasts to come to them. Noche Flamenca makes the effort to travel around the world so that people can get a taste of Spain without having to buy a plane ticket. The group is Spain’s most popular touring group and has traveled around the world.

By Christina Oddo

Martin Luther King, Jr. used the term the “Beloved Community” to describe a non-prejudiced world in which people could share wealth, and in which people considered one another brothers and sisters. This month the University is having “A Celebration in Blue,” co-sponsored by the Griot Institute for Africana Studies, to honor Black History Month. The “Beloved” dinner started off the celebration on Jan. 28 in the Weis Center for the Performing Arts lobby.

According to Caesar Vulley ’15, a student speaker at the event, both the lives and goals of Mother Teresa and Martin Luther King, Jr. involved the definition of success as having little to do with themselves and more to do with working for the good of others.

“I was of the opinion that, while these are valid life goals, the Beloved Community that Dr. King sacrificed his life for cannot, and will not, be sustained if we continue to think only about ourselves and little about how we can make positive impacts in the lives of those around us,” Vulley said. “I developed this opinion after I came across the quote from Mother Teresa that said ‘A life is not worth living unless it is lived for others.’”

The event included a talk by keynote speaker Arthur Flowers from Syracuse University. Caesar Vulley ’15 spoke, Beyond Union performed, Oompa Williams ’13 read poetry, Mislav Forrester ’13 played the trumpet.

“I became involved through an internship I did in a detention facility last summer teaching juvenile delinquents from D.C. how to read and providing mentorship to them,” Vulley said. “I wrote an essay for the Dean when I finished the internship and shared the experience with Nancy Orbison of Residential Education. They thought my story was worth sharing, hence the invitation from Vincent Stephens, Director of MSS, to speak at the dinner.”

“It was a great event that captured the spirit of both remembering Martin Luther King, Jr. and continuing his legacy,” Beyond Unison member Allison Benoit ’13 said.

The group closed the dinner with its renditions of “Godspeed,” originally by Radney Foster, with soloist Taylor Schumann ’16, as well as “Ain’t No Sunshine,” originally by Bill Withers, with soloist Nate Fanzone ’13.

“The event was amazing,” Williams said. “From the planning to the execution of the blues theme, I think this was quite a successful commemorative Martin Luther King dinner.”

Williams found Flowers’ words remarkable and a perfect finale to the show.

“He was so powerful in explaining blues as ‘a way to get through the blues,’” Williams said. “He talked about the oral tradition as being central to the teaching and learning of the African/African-American culture. He mentioned how the western tradition of literature, and the formulaic approach to the spoken word has become important over time, and how his professional intention is to bridge the two worlds. But he emphasized and exhibited the importance of the oral tradition by not giving a lecture or a keynote speech in the western sense, but completely catering to the music and folkloric style of the African-American culture. He explained to us the way in which Martin Luther King, Jr. was completely aware of this tradition, and the way in which he embodied the blues himself.”

Williams read at last year’s dinner and was asked again to speak at this semester’s event. She wrote with the intention of seeing what would come naturally when thinking about both Martin Luther King, Jr. and the blues.

“I read an original poem that is temporarily entitled ‘Repeat’ in which I attempted to mimic the way a song is organized and cyclic in its nature,” Williams said.

Williams found Assistant Director of Community Service Lynn Pierson’s speech motivational. Pierson explained the importance of becoming involved in service projects and the necessity to keep such projects as an ongoing dedication, a lifestyle and not a one-time deal.