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Taoism and Confucianism as a Reflection of African Artistic Creation: The Case of Bamileke Art in West Cameroon

Received: 1 June 2021    Accepted: 15 June 2021    Published: 25 June 2021
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Abstract

Rendered in Africa by curiosity, researchers have issued divergent opinions about the cultivation of different peoples. Some have been taken aback by the wealth of artistic production, while others believed that Africa did lack history. Father Engelbert Mveng reacted to these aberrations by arguing that the history of Africa is written in art and that we are so often uneducated before this writing. The Reverend Father wanted to represent the fundamental structure of works of art in Sub-Saharan Africa. The work of art in African artistic design does not simply reproduce nature as it is done in Western realism. It is more of a form of expression, a language, or a narrative being told. The two aspects gathered, namely the signifier and the signified, real and unreal, soul and body, are, in a sense, the different binomials that characterize traditional African art and give it existence. In other words, the existence of an artwork in Africa improves the moment these two elements are present. In Asia, there are two philosophical thoughts that, far from being completely contradictory, share a common foundation. It is in Taoism and Confucianism, that the concept of Yin and Yang is associated. These doctrines allow us to translate more concretely the concept of duality in African arts, which will be illustrated in this study by the art of the Bamileke people. Taoism is oriented towards eternal and supernatural values while Confucianism is cored and geared to human morals and ethics. Taoism here refers to the spirit of the work, on its unreal side while Confucianism referred to the body of the work, on its real side. The argument consists of two parts: first a comparative study between Chinese aesthetics and the aesthetics of the Bamileke people, then the convergence of thought that exists between the two cultures. Thus, Taoism and Confucianism are with Buddhism the foundation of the Chinese culture, making it a civilization that is needed under all heaven. As a result, the question is why African culture, despite having the same assets as its Asian counterpart, is still learning how to assert itself on the global art scene, despite its natural and human potential.

Published in Arabic Language, Literature & Culture (Volume 6, Issue 2)
DOI 10.11648/j.allc.20210602.13
Page(s) 43-52
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Taoism, Confucianism, African Art, Local Culture, Bamileke

References
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    Djoukwo Tsanetse Majolie Carine, Aihong Wang. (2021). Taoism and Confucianism as a Reflection of African Artistic Creation: The Case of Bamileke Art in West Cameroon. Arabic Language, Literature & Culture, 6(2), 43-52. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.allc.20210602.13

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    ACS Style

    Djoukwo Tsanetse Majolie Carine; Aihong Wang. Taoism and Confucianism as a Reflection of African Artistic Creation: The Case of Bamileke Art in West Cameroon. Arab. Lang. Lit. Cult. 2021, 6(2), 43-52. doi: 10.11648/j.allc.20210602.13

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    AMA Style

    Djoukwo Tsanetse Majolie Carine, Aihong Wang. Taoism and Confucianism as a Reflection of African Artistic Creation: The Case of Bamileke Art in West Cameroon. Arab Lang Lit Cult. 2021;6(2):43-52. doi: 10.11648/j.allc.20210602.13

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  • @article{10.11648/j.allc.20210602.13,
      author = {Djoukwo Tsanetse Majolie Carine and Aihong Wang},
      title = {Taoism and Confucianism as a Reflection of African Artistic Creation: The Case of Bamileke Art in West Cameroon},
      journal = {Arabic Language, Literature & Culture},
      volume = {6},
      number = {2},
      pages = {43-52},
      doi = {10.11648/j.allc.20210602.13},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.allc.20210602.13},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.allc.20210602.13},
      abstract = {Rendered in Africa by curiosity, researchers have issued divergent opinions about the cultivation of different peoples. Some have been taken aback by the wealth of artistic production, while others believed that Africa did lack history. Father Engelbert Mveng reacted to these aberrations by arguing that the history of Africa is written in art and that we are so often uneducated before this writing. The Reverend Father wanted to represent the fundamental structure of works of art in Sub-Saharan Africa. The work of art in African artistic design does not simply reproduce nature as it is done in Western realism. It is more of a form of expression, a language, or a narrative being told. The two aspects gathered, namely the signifier and the signified, real and unreal, soul and body, are, in a sense, the different binomials that characterize traditional African art and give it existence. In other words, the existence of an artwork in Africa improves the moment these two elements are present. In Asia, there are two philosophical thoughts that, far from being completely contradictory, share a common foundation. It is in Taoism and Confucianism, that the concept of Yin and Yang is associated. These doctrines allow us to translate more concretely the concept of duality in African arts, which will be illustrated in this study by the art of the Bamileke people. Taoism is oriented towards eternal and supernatural values while Confucianism is cored and geared to human morals and ethics. Taoism here refers to the spirit of the work, on its unreal side while Confucianism referred to the body of the work, on its real side. The argument consists of two parts: first a comparative study between Chinese aesthetics and the aesthetics of the Bamileke people, then the convergence of thought that exists between the two cultures. Thus, Taoism and Confucianism are with Buddhism the foundation of the Chinese culture, making it a civilization that is needed under all heaven. As a result, the question is why African culture, despite having the same assets as its Asian counterpart, is still learning how to assert itself on the global art scene, despite its natural and human potential.},
     year = {2021}
    }
    

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    AB  - Rendered in Africa by curiosity, researchers have issued divergent opinions about the cultivation of different peoples. Some have been taken aback by the wealth of artistic production, while others believed that Africa did lack history. Father Engelbert Mveng reacted to these aberrations by arguing that the history of Africa is written in art and that we are so often uneducated before this writing. The Reverend Father wanted to represent the fundamental structure of works of art in Sub-Saharan Africa. The work of art in African artistic design does not simply reproduce nature as it is done in Western realism. It is more of a form of expression, a language, or a narrative being told. The two aspects gathered, namely the signifier and the signified, real and unreal, soul and body, are, in a sense, the different binomials that characterize traditional African art and give it existence. In other words, the existence of an artwork in Africa improves the moment these two elements are present. In Asia, there are two philosophical thoughts that, far from being completely contradictory, share a common foundation. It is in Taoism and Confucianism, that the concept of Yin and Yang is associated. These doctrines allow us to translate more concretely the concept of duality in African arts, which will be illustrated in this study by the art of the Bamileke people. Taoism is oriented towards eternal and supernatural values while Confucianism is cored and geared to human morals and ethics. Taoism here refers to the spirit of the work, on its unreal side while Confucianism referred to the body of the work, on its real side. The argument consists of two parts: first a comparative study between Chinese aesthetics and the aesthetics of the Bamileke people, then the convergence of thought that exists between the two cultures. Thus, Taoism and Confucianism are with Buddhism the foundation of the Chinese culture, making it a civilization that is needed under all heaven. As a result, the question is why African culture, despite having the same assets as its Asian counterpart, is still learning how to assert itself on the global art scene, despite its natural and human potential.
    VL  - 6
    IS  - 2
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Author Information
  • International College Department, Jingdezhen Ceramic Institute, Jingdezhen, China

  • Department of Products Design, Jingdezhen Ceramic Institute, Jingdezhen, China

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