Week 12: The Water Will Carry Us

For this week blog, I found it really interesting to the idea that through mermaids cultures are able to tell stories and as well how different cultures have different perceptions of mermaids. The stop motion film, “The Water Will Carry Us Home,” unveils the ocean’s diverse cultural perceptions and uncovers the idea of the legacy of black mermaids in contemporary society. The narrative is rooted in the harrowing tale of Africans abducted and cast overboard during the Middle Passage during a period of slavery, only to be rescued by the aquatic deities of Yoruba mythology, suggesting the sea’s duality as both a menacing unknown and a source of salvation across different cultures. This depiction challenges the idea of fear associated with the ocean, instead presenting it as a realm of protection and reverence, particularly for those cultures directly touched by its saving grace. As we have often seen that many different cultures have different meanings and ideas towards the ocean and mermaids. This representation invites viewers to contemplate the personal bonds each individual can forge with the sea, this film can aid in changing the ideals of individuals and seeing the ocean as not something to be scared of but something we should be curious about; and as a source of healing that has recently been seen in society as the ocean being a place that can provide peace and tranquillity. So in the sense of the class, this film aids in having a different point of view in the face of the ongoing environmental crisis, the film provides a new idea, suggesting that a personal and communal appreciation for the ocean could bridge the gap we’ve placed between ourselves and the aquatic world, encouraging a more harmonious interaction with water and all it has to offer, and how it can be used to better our everyday life and our planet.

2 thoughts on “Week 12: The Water Will Carry Us

  1. Some great points here. In particular, you write, “The narrative is rooted in the harrowing tale of Africans abducted and cast overboard during the Middle Passage during a period of slavery, only to be rescued by the aquatic deities of Yoruba mythology, suggesting the sea’s duality as both a menacing unknown and a source of salvation across different cultures.” I am interested in hearing more about the duality of the ocean and the sea as character.

  2. I like that you point out how the ocean is challenged as a place of fear. I wonder what other cultures might have embraced this view outside of the depictions of fear we’ve seen so far in the Western views of the Ocean. You also do a great job of connecting this to the global environmental crisis, and how this view might connect us better to the Ocean. Our disconnect might be one of the reasons we have no problem trolling for massive amounts of life we can’t see.

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