Oh, Y'all Thought I Was Done with Ethos and Nommo? Not Really.

“Black women have always appreciated Nommo – the force of the word, the power of giving things their names and thereby bestowing upon them her life force.” (Dance, 2)

In connection to this quote, I feel that it embodies everything that we have been talking about so far in this course. Words and language have always been a way for people to communicate with each other. The actual words that someone speaks or uses conveys their message and what they have to tell someone else. Interestingly enough, African Americans, dating way back to slavery, had to come to grips with the fact that whatever native African language they were used to had to conform to the white man’s standard. In typical fashion, however, black people were able to take the English language and transform it into something palatable and accessible. To this day, black women have especially been able to use their words, and therefore this Nommo that Dance speaks of, as a way to not only express a variety of topics and emotions, but to do so in a way that compels people to pay attention.

This impacts me because I know the power of my words. Often we abuse or become ignorant of this power in the sense that what we say has the power to build or to break. In this context I refer to instances where I say things rashly out of emotion and they backfire, or being able to empower and transform the minds and thought processes of an entire nation just by saying and expressing what is on my heart. Also, I want to become a published writer. But after having someone read my work, especially someone who is not black, there is a more general assumption made that what I choose to write and how I represent my characters is reflective of not only myself, but the African American community as well (since people love to make big claims).

“Such a female was bad…Such a female is ba-ad.” (Dance, 3)

Here I want to pay attention to the differences in “bad.” Today, you hear this word being attributed to a female who has it together physically, financially, and mentally. This is a female who looks good, is independent, and “wants but don’t need no man” to do what she has to do. However, the significance in this quote has more to do with the fact that this one word has several different meanings when placed in the same context. The initial “bad” refers to its traditional meaning of being the undesirable opposite of something that is good. In this context, Dance refers to a sassy woman and how she is considered “bad” at an earlier period in time. Over time, this bad characteristic evolves and becomes one that allows for Ms. Sassy to overcome her trials and reject as well as fight against the idea that she cannot speak her mind on things that affect her.