Reading #3
"Yoruba Aesthetics: Goodness and Beauty in West Africa," in Richard L. Anderson, Calliope's Sisters: A Comparative Study of Philosophies of Art (Englewood Cliffs: Prentice Hall, 1990), pp. 138-168.
Source: TEXT Anderson
1. What are the two features of Yoruba culture which contrast with the West?
2. In what way is art used in Yoruba religion?
3. What are the purposes of Yoruba art?
4. Briefly summarize and list the 9 canons of Yoruba aesthetics.
5. How do these canons relate to the religious purpose of art?
6. What artistic features arise from the belief that art should embody ethical and moral ideals as well as physical perfection?
7. In what way does the person of good character maintain harmony? How is this reflected in art?
8. How is energy apparent in Yoruba art?
9. What contradiction of human society is reflected in both Yoruba art and aesthetics?
10. How does art connect heaven and earth in Yoruba thought?
11. What is Oyotunji and how does it relate to the survival
of Yoruba art?