Science-women: Arcane knowledge and African spirituality in independent African-American cinema of the 1990s

Simple item page
dc.article.end-page14en_ZA
dc.article.start-page1en_ZA
dc.citation.doiDOI: 10.1080/17528631.2018.1519894en_ZA
dc.contributor.authorEbrahim, Haseenah
dc.date.accessioned2021-08-02T16:23:58Z
dc.date.available2021-08-02T16:23:58Z
dc.date.issued2020
dc.departmentInterdisciplinary Arts and Culture Studies
dc.description.abstractThis article explores the significant role played by arcane knowledge and expressions of African spirituality in the iconography of powerful black women in three films directed by independent African-American filmmakers in the 1990s: Sankofa (Haile Gerima, 1993, USA), Mother of the River (Zeinabu irene Davis, 1995, USA), and Eve’s Bayou (Kasi Lemmons, 1997, USA). My discussion draws on the orature and legendary tales of West African-based cosmologies in the African diasporas of the Americas and the concept (and practice) of ‘conjure’ in African–American cultures. It argues that heroic black women characters possessing extraordinary or supernatural powers not only predate the current vogue of cinematic superheroism, but that the iconography of such ‘science-women’ is embedded in culturally specific, Africanrooted cosmological, epistemological and spiritual contexts. I argue that the feminine power celebrated in the films by the independent African-American filmmakers discussed here draw on legendary and historical accounts of women in African diasporic oral, literary and spiritual traditions for their cinematic storytelling to construct an affirmative and paradigmatic model of black female heroism based on empowering African spiritual beliefs and arcane knowledge.en_ZA
dc.description.librarianHE2021en_ZA
dc.facultyFaculty of Humanities
dc.identifier.citationHaseenah Ebrahim (2020) Science-women: arcane knowledge and African spirituality in independent African-American cinema of the 1990s, African and Black Diaspora: An International Journal, 13:1, 1-14, DOI: 10.1080/17528631.2018.1519894en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10539/31444
dc.journal.issue1en_ZA
dc.journal.linkhttps://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/17528631.2018.1519894en_ZA
dc.journal.titleAfrican and Black Diaspora: An International Journalen_ZA
dc.journal.volume13en_ZA
dc.language.isoen_USen_ZA
dc.orcid.id0000-0002-1852-5468en_ZA
dc.publisherAfrican and Black Diaspora: An International Journalen_ZA
dc.schoolSchool of Arts
dc.subjectCinemaen_ZA
dc.subjectFilmen_ZA
dc.subjectAfrican Americanen_ZA
dc.subjectSpiritualityen_ZA
dc.subjectIndependenten_ZA
dc.subjectSankofaen_ZA
dc.subjectMother of the Riveren_ZA
dc.subjectEve's Bayouen_ZA
dc.subjectHaile Gerimaen_ZA
dc.subjectKasi Lemmonsen_ZA
dc.subjectZeinabu irene Davisen_ZA
dc.titleScience-women: Arcane knowledge and African spirituality in independent African-American cinema of the 1990sen_ZA
dc.typeArticleen_ZA
Files
Original bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Thumbnail Image
Name:
Science women arcane knowledge and African spirituality in independent African American cinema of the 1990s.pdf
Size:
1.3 MB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Description:
Download
License bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
No Thumbnail Available
Name:
license.txt
Size:
1.71 KB
Format:
Item-specific license agreed upon to submission
Description:
Download
Collections
School of Arts (Journal Articles)
Academic Wits Research Outputs (All submissions)