The 1930s Horror Adventure Film on Location in Jamaica: ‘Jungle Gods’, ‘Voodoo Drums’ and ‘Mumbo Jumbo’ in the ‘Secret Places of Paradise Island’

In this article, I consider the representation of African-Caribbean religions in the early horror adventure film from a postcolonial perspective. I do so by zooming in on Ouanga (1935), Obeah (1935), and Devil’s Daughter (1939), three low-budget horror productions filmed on location in Jamaica during the 1930s (and the only films shot on the island throughout that decade). First, I discuss the emergence of depictions of African-Caribbean religious practices of voodoo and obeah in popular Euro-American literature, and show how the zombie figure entered Euro-American empire cinema in the 1930s as a colonial expression of tropical savagery and jungle terror. Then, combining historical newspaper research with content analyses of these films, I present my exploration into the three low-budget horror films in two parts. The first part contains a discussion of Ouanga, the first sound film ever made in Jamaica and allegedly the first zombie film ever shot on location in the Caribbean. In this early horror adventure, which was made in the final year of the U.S. occupation of Haiti, zombies were portrayed as products of evil supernatural powers to be oppressed by colonial rule. In the second part, I review Obeah and The Devil’s Daughter, two horror adventure movies that merely portrayed African-Caribbean religion as primitive superstition. While Obeah was disturbingly set on a tropical island in the South Seas infested by voodoo practices and native cannibals, The Devil’s Daughter was authorized by the British Board of Censors to show black populations in Jamaica and elsewhere in the colonial world that African-Caribbean religions were both fraudulent and dangerous. Taking into account both the production and content of these movies, I show that these 1930s horror adventure films shot on location in Jamaica were rooted in a long colonial tradition of demonizing and terrorizing African-Caribbean religions—a tradition that lasts until today.

Exploring the Virulent Jazz Counterculture in Mumbo Jumbo

This article will be focusing on Ishmael Reed’s Mumbo Jumbo (1972), a vibrant postmodernist text, which offers a fresh perspective on the rise of black popular culture in the form of Jes Grew, which is largely informed by jazz and neo-hoodoo aesthetics. Jes Grew, the phenomenon which binds the multifaceted text in cohesion and brings together elements from History, Jazz and Afrofuturism, is communicated by using the metaphor of a virulent disease- the Jes Grew pandemic. The article is a work in cultural studies, attempting to map the evolution of the counter culture that Jes Grew represents and its effect on identity. This mapping is achieved by viewing the equation of the Jazz counter-culture with the Jes Grew pandemic. Jes Grew decodes the cultural and racial politics Mumbo Jumbo is invested in by destabilising the meaning and perspective attached to ‘disease’ and adapting it to an entirely new climate of cultural reclamation and celebration by deconstructing the dominant culture defined illness (Jes Grew in the text) and reinterpreting it as potentially healing and liberating. The discussion of the politics and aesthetics of this counter-culture mainly hinges on the central metaphor of the Jes Grew pandemic operating throughout the narrative. Raymond Williams’ work on culture studies and Stuart Hall’s theory on the formation and representation of cultural identities are particularly helpful in discussing the issues of culture and identity that are in dialogue with the narrative.

Ritmo e arrastamento (Ou: do relé entre o individual e o coletivo)

Este trabalho procura apresentar os conceitos de “arrastamento” e “ressonância”, da física, e estendê-los para pensar a propagação cultural na forma de ciclos rítmicos coletivos. A partir de elementos de Manuel Delanda, Gabriel Tarde e Kodwo Eshun, uma virologia rítmica baseada em uma ecologia materialista dos meios de comunicação é proposta a partir de uma crítica da memética de Richard Dawkins e da mistura da filosofia de Gilbert Simondon com uma leitura do romance Mumbo Jumbo, de Ishmael Reed.

Mind the gap

Purpose How do you feel when you read the word ‘mindfulness’? For some, it will be a welcome reminder that they should be more mindful of everything that is going on inside and outside their heads, and lead almost instantly to a state of calm and heightened awareness – which is, of course, what is should do as that what the word and practice of mindfulness means. For others, however, reactions can vary widely. Some will be completely non-plussed having never read up on the subject, and for others, they may sneer at the latest wishy-washy, mumbo-jumbo that has started to fill up Facebook feeds and cards from Hallmark stores. And for a few, the reaction may be the very opposite of what is intended, reacting violently to a belief and state of mind they are predisposed to dislike intensely. Design/methodology/approach This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds his/her own impartial comments and places the articles in context. Findings How do you feel when you read the word ‘mindfulness’? For some, it will be a welcome reminder that they should be more mindful of everything that is going on inside and outside their heads, and lead almost instantly to a state of calm and heightened awareness – which is, of course, what is should do as that what the word and practice of mindfulness means. For others, however, reactions can vary widely. Some will be completely non-plussed having never read up on the subject, and for others, they may sneer at the latest wishy-washy, mumbo-jumbo that has started to fill up Facebook feeds and cards from Hallmark stores. And for a few, the reaction may be the very opposite of what is intended, reacting violently to a belief and state of mind they are predisposed to dislike intensely. Originality/value The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.

The Power of Fan

The latest Star Wars film, The Last Jedi (2017), unflinchingly embraces tragedy and the nobility of failure – themes and values that resonate with traditional East Asian thought, especially Daoism. This is what makes it, along with The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016), among the most spiritually mature and philosophically consistent chapters of the series. These films celebrate the (not unlimited) power of the feminine, the hidden, the receptive, and the organic — in a word, what traditional East Asian thought names as y?n ? — in ways that help the warmed-over cafeteria Zen Buddhism/Daoism that is George Lucas’ Jedi mumbo-jumbo to actually hold together and work to provide a meaningful worldview. If these movies work as art — as opposed to fun action fantasy or fanboy service — then they do so as y?n tragedies. If their protagonists function as authentic heroes – as opposed to adolescent wish-fulfillment or mere signifiers of hegemonic power – then they do so with y?n nobility. That is, they acknowledge and embrace the realities of weakness, obscurity, vulnerability, and fragility in order to discover and develop the virtues of adaptability, resilience, transformation, and growth. The Daoist concept of f?n ? – which combines the meanings of “reversal,” “rebellion,” and “return” – not only helps explain the power of the best Star Wars films, but also explains why some audience members have reacted so negatively and violently to the evolving saga.

Anal abscess due to leech therapy of hemorrhoids: mumbo jumbo is still in vogue

Anorectal sepsis usually presents with anal abscesses, which may evolve to become anorectal fistulas. Most of these cases are either of cryptoglandular origin, or they develop secondary to inflammatory bowel diseases. A 32-year-old male patient applied to our Proctology Unit with severe anal pain and swelling. Three days before admission, leeches were applied to the hemorrhoidal swellings in a medical center. The abscess was drained with appropriate unroofing and search for any compartments. The patient recovered rapidly. The abscess culture and microscopy revealed mix flora with predominant Escherichia coli. After 6 months, he has been symptom-free with perfect healing of the surgical site. We need to check up on possible handicaps in our modern patient care policies that divert people to such methods. Nevertheless, such alternative methods should be regarded as nonscientific and out of context unless their efficacy and safety are documented.

Taking Divination Seriously: From Mumbo Jumbo to Worldviews and Ways of Life

The peripheral role of divination in religious studies reflects centuries of misrepresentation and depreciation in the textual record. This long history dates back to the travel literature of early modern times, particularly in West Africa, where two stereotypical themes took form: divination as mumbo jumbo, and the diviners as charlatans who shamelessly deceive their credulous clients. These two stereotypical themes persisted through the anthropological discourse about African divination until the 1970s. To undo this long history of misrepresentation and depreciation, a change of analytical focus from reified differences to similar engagement with broad ideas and big questions is in order. By considering a particular case study—basket divination in northwest Zambia—through the theoretical lens of worldviews and ways of life, it becomes possible to take divination seriously and grant it a more central place in religious studies. Four broad, inclusive ideas or big questions emerge from the ethnography of basket divination in northwest Zambia: ontology, epistemology, praxeology, and the place of suffering in human existence.