Yeelen Study Guide
Yeelen (The Light, or Brightness)
1. What do you see as the significant difference/s between Out of Africa and Yeelen, especially in the cinematic representations of the Africa? (5 points)
A major difference between both films is the cinematic representation of the African people. In Out of Africa, African people were represented in a way that they were lesser beings to the white people and solely existed in this film to serve the white people in the film. In a way, Africans in this movie were foreigners in their own homeland. Out of Africa did not represent Africans as a people who stood on their own and were powerless over their land. Yeelen takes a different approach, representing the power struggle within the Diarra family from the Bambara branch of the Mande people. The main character of the film, needs to defeat his father, who seeks to preserve his power while imprisoning society, in order to put an end to the evil empire. Both movies represent a postcolonial time, however in Out of Africa, Africans are lesser beings than the whites and don’t fight their position in their society compared to the whites. In Yeelen, The main character represents the Africans of postcolonial Africa, and his father represents the influences and power whites still have over Postcolonial Africa. Unlike Out of Africa, Yeelen sends the message that Africans need to stand up to the evil powers that have influence over them, rather than accept their fate of oppression and powerlessness.
2. In terms of language usage, what are the differences between Yeelen and some of Sembene’s films we have seen so far? What do you think is the reason behind this difference? (2 points)
In other films by Sembene that we have seen, the usage of French language has been prominent was seen in his earlier films. In his later films, Sembene started to use the Wolof language and started to abandon using French altogether. In this movie, Cisse changes the language to the Bambara language which
1. What do you see as the significant difference/s between Out of Africa and Yeelen, especially in the cinematic representations of the Africa? (5 points)
A major difference between both films is the cinematic representation of the African people. In Out of Africa, African people were represented in a way that they were lesser beings to the white people and solely existed in this film to serve the white people in the film. In a way, Africans in this movie were foreigners in their own homeland. Out of Africa did not represent Africans as a people who stood on their own and were powerless over their land. Yeelen takes a different approach, representing the power struggle within the Diarra family from the Bambara branch of the Mande people. The main character of the film, needs to defeat his father, who seeks to preserve his power while imprisoning society, in order to put an end to the evil empire. Both movies represent a postcolonial time, however in Out of Africa, Africans are lesser beings than the whites and don’t fight their position in their society compared to the whites. In Yeelen, The main character represents the Africans of postcolonial Africa, and his father represents the influences and power whites still have over Postcolonial Africa. Unlike Out of Africa, Yeelen sends the message that Africans need to stand up to the evil powers that have influence over them, rather than accept their fate of oppression and powerlessness.
2. In terms of language usage, what are the differences between Yeelen and some of Sembene’s films we have seen so far? What do you think is the reason behind this difference? (2 points)
In other films by Sembene that we have seen, the usage of French language has been prominent was seen in his earlier films. In his later films, Sembene started to use the Wolof language and started to abandon using French altogether. In this movie, Cisse changes the language to the Bambara language which
Bibliography: Pallister, J. (1997). Colonial Precolonialism in West African Cinema: Yeelen. Crossings (Binghamton, N.Y.), 1(2), 174-197. MacRae, S. (1995). "Yeelen": A political fable of the "komo" blacksmith/sorcerers. Research in African Literatures, 26(3), 57-66. doi: Indiana University Press