Monáe’s Dirty Computer is a vision of the future from a point in time that is clearly not the present, but more like the late eighties or early nineties. Honestly the setting in certain scenes reminds me of the 1980’s scenes from the San Junipero episode of Black Mirror. Monáe fuses the future with movements from the past, from fashion and music, to feminism and free love. Continue reading “Retrofuture of Dirty Computer”
“Non-Zero Probabilities” and the Afrofuturistic
The piece by Jemisin was a great read that even though it was about someone just going about their life in a “more” luck effected city, it made me want more. With that said, this piece, in my opinion, is not overtly Afrofuturistic, and the sci-fi influence is even in question by the protagonist, Adele. Continue reading ““Non-Zero Probabilities” and the Afrofuturistic”
Afrofuturism in Food
When asked to find a text to look at for Afrofuturism, I thought I’d look at a topic that everyone is involved with everyday, food. Food is an important part of everyone’s life and it can be a source of connection and community for people. So I found a cookbook that is focused on taking a new look at food from regions of the African Diaspora and making vegan recipes out of traditional Africa, Caribbean, and Southern US foods. Continue reading “Afrofuturism in Food”
Lack of Nature in Western Culture
The passage from Snead that focused on repetition was really informative for me. He claims that the lack of repetition in Western culture is truly at odds with, not only the cultures of Asia and Africa, but nature itself. Honestly, after thinking on what he claims I end up completely agreeing. Western culture marks the seasonal changes with holidays that are more and more connected to consumerism rather than the actual nature based origin of the holiday. Christmas came to mind when reading this passage as these days, from this reader’s perspective, the holiday may still be considered a religious holiday but the underlying focus is on buying and giving gifts. The origin of the holiday itself, it is argued, not Christian at all, Continue reading “Lack of Nature in Western Culture”
On Tolson’s “Libretto for the Republic of Liberia”
Towards the end of the poem, Tolson starts to write of Le Premier des Noirs of Pan-African Airways. Contrasting with the beginning of the poem, this section begins to illustrate not the history of Africa, but where the people of Africa are heading, and more specifically Liberia . The plane “whirs beyong the copper cordilleran climaxes of glass skyscrapers on pavonine Cape Mesurado.”. He is calling for us to not look at Africa as it has been historically by the European, but for what it is and what it will be. Snead also mentions that Hegel mentions that the African people are “there” and the European people are “headed there”. Africa is already wonderful in its own right without a report card from Europe that grades Africa as uncivilized because the values differ. Continue reading “On Tolson’s “Libretto for the Republic of Liberia””
What the Hegel?
“Slavery is in and for itself injustice, for the essence of humanity is Freedom; but for this man must be matured. The gradual abolition of slavery is therefore wiser and more equitable than its sudden removal.” (Hegel, 157)
The racism in the excerpt from Hegel cannot be understated. It is written with this sense of having no doubts in his knowledge, even though it is clear he has attempted to learn nothing about the people of Africa. His judgement of African peoples against the supposed successes of those in the West make for an insulting and shallow explanation of the thousands of years of civilization in Africa.