Title
Honor Thyself
Year of Graduation
2022
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
MFA: Dance
Directing Professor
Jeffery Bullock
Abstract
The black male experience and identity in America are filled with complexity. We struggle to know ourselves. We work to see the way of love and the peace of an unviolated free spirit. We want to engage with ourselves with the highest degree of freedom and comfort, not to continue to question our identity in a life-threatening white patriarchal masculinity ideal. Honoring oneself from the lenses of the Reconstruction era of the United States is essential. Reconceptualizing this history explores the significance of emphasizing Reconstruction in my life as a black male to go through a process of self-discovery and healing. Through this process, I have been given the ability to reclaim my black identity through healing, education, and self-acceptance while questioning the racial system of America and the value of a human being. This work hopes to shed light on the differences in black male perspectives and how those differences can only serve as a bridge of restoration in the black community about manhood, giving us agency and being our authentic selves in the community to revitalize what black manhood is and could be.
Recommended Citation
Williams, Alonzo O., "Honor Thyself" (2022). Dance (MFA) Theses, Hollins University. 13.
https://digitalcommons.hollins.edu/dancetheses/13
Performance Access Statement
If you wish to see the creative piece or performance that accompanied this thesis, please complete the Request Form, and you should receive a response from the Dance Department within two weeks.
Included in
American Popular Culture Commons, Art Education Commons, Civic and Community Engagement Commons, Critical and Cultural Studies Commons, Dance Commons, Education Economics Commons, Gender and Sexuality Commons, Gender, Race, Sexuality, and Ethnicity in Communication Commons, Hip Hop Studies Commons, Historic Preservation and Conservation Commons, Human Ecology Commons, Humane Education Commons, Human Rights Law Commons, Law and Politics Commons, Law and Race Commons, Legal Ethics and Professional Responsibility Commons, Legislation Commons, Liberal Studies Commons, Politics and Social Change Commons, Psychology of Movement Commons, Race and Ethnicity Commons, Sexuality and the Law Commons, Sociology of Culture Commons, Sociology of Religion Commons, Theory, Knowledge and Science Commons, Urban, Community and Regional Planning Commons, Urban Studies and Planning Commons