Dance and culture: meanings and significance from a historical perspective

Abstract

This paper aims at reflecting on dance as a component of culture in view of certain historically constructed meanings and senses. In the meantime, the challenge in this reflection is also to propose a connection with the topics: 1) Dance as an expression or as a denunciation of culture; 2) Dance as a confluence in an interart dialogue; and 3) Dance and Cultural Politics: From the Ancien Régime to the Mass Society. The methodology used for this exercise is bibliographical research. It allows us to take a brief historical look at dance since prehistoric times, to synthesize and to draw together what, in my opinion, are the most important and decisive aspects of the course of events towards a culture of the Western world. Such a journey allows us to understand dance not only as a purely physical/motor activity but also as a cultural component that even has its confluences with other artistic languages. One of the findings emerging from this reflection is that dance is a form of «syncretic language» which tells, reveals and unveils history, forms of society and culture.