Abstract
This project will be using an Action Research methodology to reflect on my own practice as a dùndún practitioner. It examines the roots of my practice in the traditions of the dùndún in the Yorùbá tradition in Nigeria – both from oral and literary sources – and in my experiences in Hungary. It concentrates on my work in Hampshire where I worked in a number of different contexts. It examines in detail two case studies in which I attempted to recontextualise the dùndún in two separate institutions – church and prison. These will be examined and analysed using the frames of post-colonial theory and Foucauldian social constructionism. Five concepts arise from these analyses which permeate the thesis: ‘cultural dialogue, understanding and integration’; ‘representation and presentation of culture and notions of identity’; ‘tradition, authenticity and originality’; ‘construction of meanings’ and ‘empowerment’.An important thread in this thesis on reflexive practice in the area of recontextualisation is the part the dùndún plays in identity construction, contrasting Yorùbá with European practice. The conclusions reflect the complexity of the processes involved in recontextualisation, especially the role of gatekeepers, the place of plurality in value systems in openness to change, the role experience plays in approaching new contexts, the complexity of the issues involved in cultural dialogue, the different types of power found in the various contexts and the relationship between tradition, authenticity and originality in various cultures. It analyses how my own practice has been influenced by these case studies
| Date of Award | 7 Jul 2011 |
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| Original language | English |
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| Supervisor | June Boyce-Tillman (Supervisor) & Olu Taiwo (Supervisor) |