kerenga
Kerenga, Maulana. Nommo, Kawaida, and Communicative Practice: Bringing Good into the World. N.p.: n.p., 2010. 3-10. Print
In the essay “Nommo, Kawaida, and Communicative Practice: Bringing Good Into the World,” Kerenga explores the Afrocentric concepts to describe the origins and use of rhetoric in Africa and its influence on the African American community in today’s American society. Karenga also argues in this essay that in order for a culture to understand itself and thrive within a global context it must know and be able to operate fully in the orature of its culture. When separated from its language, a culture loses a part of its history and its posterity. This is especially true of the African American community who Karenga believes has consciously or subconsciously relied upon various forms of rhetoric to communicate and persevere through the “holocaust of enslavement” and beyond (7). Karenga notes Molefi Asante’s observation that “. . . the African brought to America a fertile oral tradition, and the generating and sustaining powers of the spoken word permeated every area of his life. . . . [And] prohibited by law from reading and writing,” African Americans embraced the spoken word even more vehemently (8). Moreover, Karenga reiterates Asante’s position that “. . . the Afro-American developed, consciously or subconsciously, a consummate skill in using language to produce his own alternative communication patterns” in response to the oppression and repression that he experienced (9).
Karenga approaches African American rhetoric as Afro-centered “. . . communal deliberation, discourse, and action, oriented toward that which is good for the community and the world” (3). This approach “. . . complements the ethical teaching of the Odu Ifa 78:1, the sacred texts of ancient Yurabaland, that ‘humans are divinely chosen to bring good into this world’ and that is the fundamental mission and meaning in human life” (3-4). This is “ . . . essentially an
In the essay “Nommo, Kawaida, and Communicative Practice: Bringing Good Into the World,” Kerenga explores the Afrocentric concepts to describe the origins and use of rhetoric in Africa and its influence on the African American community in today’s American society. Karenga also argues in this essay that in order for a culture to understand itself and thrive within a global context it must know and be able to operate fully in the orature of its culture. When separated from its language, a culture loses a part of its history and its posterity. This is especially true of the African American community who Karenga believes has consciously or subconsciously relied upon various forms of rhetoric to communicate and persevere through the “holocaust of enslavement” and beyond (7). Karenga notes Molefi Asante’s observation that “. . . the African brought to America a fertile oral tradition, and the generating and sustaining powers of the spoken word permeated every area of his life. . . . [And] prohibited by law from reading and writing,” African Americans embraced the spoken word even more vehemently (8). Moreover, Karenga reiterates Asante’s position that “. . . the Afro-American developed, consciously or subconsciously, a consummate skill in using language to produce his own alternative communication patterns” in response to the oppression and repression that he experienced (9).
Karenga approaches African American rhetoric as Afro-centered “. . . communal deliberation, discourse, and action, oriented toward that which is good for the community and the world” (3). This approach “. . . complements the ethical teaching of the Odu Ifa 78:1, the sacred texts of ancient Yurabaland, that ‘humans are divinely chosen to bring good into this world’ and that is the fundamental mission and meaning in human life” (3-4). This is “ . . . essentially an