Exploring Value Systems in

Dance Education through

Westernized Cultural Bias
Lauren McGinty
Introduction and Definitions

African Dances and Cultures as a junior (elective)

Inherent value system of traditional European technique classes
being held higher than dance classes focusing on the African
diaspora
Classifying high versus low art influenced by subconscious racial
biases?
Defining high art versus low art (for my purposes)
High art as required technique course for dance majors (more
inaccessible to the majority population and resides above popular
culture)
Low art as optional elective course for dance majors (more
globally accessible and commercialized within popular culture)
 Purpose/ Problem
Is there a correlation between the perception of African dance as
a lower art than European dance because of the way white
bodies have sexualized the black dancing body throughout
American history?
Is the contemporary commercialization of the black female
body (music videos and social dances) considered high or
low art?
Look at examples like Nicki Minaj and Cardi B who claim
their sexuality in their music and dancing seen in their videos
Look at examples throughout American history of black
dance being received in westernized areas of the world
(Josephine Baker)
Deliminations/ Limitations

Black bodies performing in popular culture avenues

are creating space for traces of traditional African
diasporic dances by claiming their sexual prowess
and empowering black females
African diasporic dances dont need to be taught at
collegiate institutions because it is seen in popular
culture
for a grade
dont need to be performed for a teacher or
audience
Hypothesis/ Problem Question
There is a direct a correlation between the perception of African dance as a
lower art than European dance because of the way black bodies
throughout history have been viewed as objects to be sexualized.
This sexualization of the black female body discourages educational
systems from embodying these African diasporic dances which are
derived from a celebration of black tradition (still low art)
*Can we explore the embodied characteristics of the African Diaspora
(at Muhlenberg College) to further unpack its original purposes void of
sexual content (and without appropriating black culture)? Can we use
this embodied information to understand the work of artists like
Josephine Baker and Nicki Minaj who have created space for the
African Diaspora in popular culture?
Interviews? Questionnaire?
Reference other research
 Bibliography
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