African Art Essays - African Art, Masks, Free Essays, Term Papers

African Art Essays - African Art, Masks, Free Essays, Term Papers African Art The traditional art of Africa plays a major part in the African society. Most ceremonies and activities (such as singing, dancing, storytelling, etc.) can not function without visual art. It can also be used as an implement and insignia of rank or prestige, or have a religious significance. African art consists mainly of sculptures, paintings, fetishes, masks, figures, and decorative objects. Sculptures are considered to be the greatest achievement for African art. A majority of the sculptures are done in wood but are also made of metal, stone, terra-cotta, mud, beadwork, ivory, and other materials. It is found in many parts of Africa but mainly in western and central Africa. Many ancient rock paintings have been found in Southern and Eastern Africa. These paintings are believed to be attributed to the SAN (Bushman) people. Masks and fetishes are often used to scare off bad things such as evil spirits, witches or ghosts. They are also used to bring about a desired end-break a bad habit, improve ones love life, or kill a natural or supernatural enemy. There are three basic themes of African art. The first is the dualism between bush and village. African tribes wear masks and headdresses: the male is represented by the elephant, the most powerful of bush creatures and the female is delicately coifed to express refinement and civilization. The second theme of African art is the problematic relationships between the sexes. African tribes use art as a therapeutic device to deal with the problems and issues dealing with the relations between the sexes. The third theme is the struggle to control natural or supernatural forces to achieve a desired end. African tribes often use masks in ceremonies (called Gelede) to please and honor the forces. For each region in Africa, there is a different style of Art. The western Sudanic Region have masks and figures representing legendary ancestors and religious sacrifices. The central Sudanic Region art includes mud architecture, embroidered textiles, elaborate Coiffure, metal and beadwork jewelry, and leather work. This style usually doesnt represent anything special. The west Guinea Coast Region use masks and figures to police ceremonies, punish people for doing something wrong, settle land-owning problems and start or end wars. The Central Guinea Coast Region art employs aristocratic materials. Specialized artists creature works of art for the leaders that include: stools, drums, cloth, pottery, terra-cotta, figures, miniature masks, combs, mirrors, pipes, and carved musical instruments. African art is traditionally essential and optimistic. Without art, there would be no African culture.

3 Cases of Intrusive Punctuation Before a Quotation

3 Cases of Intrusive Punctuation Before a Quotation 3 Cases of Intrusive Punctuation Before a Quotation 3 Cases of Intrusive Punctuation Before a Quotation By Mark Nichol When an introductory or attributive phrase ending in a verb precedes one or more complete sentences enclosed in quotation marks to express something written or said, a comma separates the phrase from the quotation- for example, â€Å"The conventional wisdom is, ‘Trust, but verify,’† or â€Å"I replied, ‘Go for it.’† But if the quotation is incomplete or is complete but is incorporated into the syntactical flow of the sentence, generally, no punctuation should intervene, as explained in the discussions and shown in the revisions following each example below. 1. The reporter who wrote both articles said that, â€Å"the company never asked for a correction.† When a sentence ends in a partial quotation and is syntactically structured so that the quotation is grammatically integrated into the sentence, no intervening punctuation (and no initial capitalization) is necessary: â€Å"The reporter who wrote both articles said that ‘the company never asked for a correction.’† (Alternatively, the sentence can be revised to consist of an attributive phrase followed by a quotation consisting of one or more complete sentences: The reporter who wrote both articles said, â€Å"The company never asked for a correction.†) An exception to the no-punctuation rule is if the punctuation is grammatically required- for example, because of an intervening parenthesis, as in â€Å"The reporter who wrote both articles said that, as far as he knows, ‘the company never asked for a correction.’† (In this case, the implied quotation, though the person of course did not literally say as far as he knows, starts with that phrase.) 2. The magazine famously dubbed the 2003 flick, â€Å"The Citizen Kane of bad movies.† The phrase preceding the quotation is not attributive, and as in the previous example, the entire sentence constitutes a grammatically complete statement, so the comma is intrusive: â€Å"The magazine famously dubbed the 2003 flick â€Å"the Citizen Kane of bad movies.† (Again, note that because the quotation is a partial sentence, the first word should not be capitalized.) 3. Such cases leave us shaking our heads and asking the rhetorical question, â€Å"What were they thinking?† This sentence suffers from the same obstructive punctuation, with the additional fault of implying, by setting â€Å"rhetorical question† off from the question with a comma, that the sentence is restrictive- that the question is not a rhetorical question but the rhetorical question: â€Å"Such cases leave us shaking our heads and asking the rhetorical question ‘What were they thinking?’† (Alternatively, simply omit the extraneous phrase and write, â€Å"Such cases leave us shaking our heads and asking, ‘What were they thinking?’†) Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Punctuation category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:12 Signs and Symbols You Should KnowDoes "Mr" Take a Period?45 Idioms with "Roll"