Sankofa Essay

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Richard Estrada 2/27/12 Sankofa Talk about the Concept of identity/ time / space plays out in the film The word “Sankofa” is use by Akan people in Ghana which means that a person must go back in time to reclaim their past. The word Sankofa is broken down that San means to return, Ko means to go and Fa means to look, to seek and take. This can be related to people who have forgotten there past cultures. In the movie we see that Mona who is an African descendent who lost her touch and identity with her African ancestors. In the move we see when Mona is being hauled away back to the castle dungeon as he is hauled away she shout out loud “I am an American, I am not an African”. It is there that we see her fellow Africans ancestors that were chained up together so they couldn’t escape or try to attack the white men that captured them and took away their freedom in this world. And it is there where she traveled in space back to her past as a house slave living the life as one of her enslaved ancestors. We also see that Joe who is the son of Nunu, who is a resistance leader and knows her knowledge of African custom and religion, unlike his mother Joe he believes that is not like the rest of the slaves. He rejects the culture just like Mona in the beginning of the movie, who was also lost her touch. They believe that they are not like the rest of the Africans who are slaves and who are beaten for not obeying their masters. Joe does not want to believe he is alike the slaves so he is an outsider among the people. He is a son of a white man so wants to believe and he makes himself believe he is a faithful Christian and follows the plantation minister Father Raphael. Joe abandons his ancestor culture, his mother and most of all his identity. In the eyes of the father, Joe will still be a slave no matter what he will do to try to be different he is just the son of a

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