Dancehall: corpo, memória e construção de identidades

Abstract

This research aims to understand how Dancehall dance strengthens the affirmation of identities for black women and the sense of belonging in a community. By means of the presentation and analysis of the author’s own experiences and those of four women who make up this writingdance, this research reflects on the construction and elaboration of their subjectivities, practices, and identities through this cultural manifestation. In this way, we explore the Dancehall culture, its history, and how this cultural movement is articulated in Jamaica and Brazil, touching the main references and women in the culture. As a methodology, we propose the “escrevivência”, coined by the writer Conceição Evaristo, in articulation with the researcher’s own materials, the interviewees’ accounts and the theoretical basis. “escrevivência” allows the researcher to perceive their experiences, which traverse the collectivity, giving new meaning to narratives as a way to echo our stories and shifting the place of invisibility imposed on Black bodies and cultures in the diaspora.