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Difficulty: MediumEveryday Resistance and Cultural Retention

Read the excerpt below from the South Carolina Negro Act of 1740.

"...it is absolutely necessary to the safety of this Province... that no wooden drums, horns, or other loud instruments, which may call together or give sign or notice to one another of any conspiracy or combination, shall be kept by, or in the possession of, any slave..."

Which of the following historical practices arose as a direct response to colonial prohibitions like the one described in the excerpt, demonstrating the retention of West African cultural traditions?

  1. The development of body percussion, such as patting juba, and vocal call-and-response to maintain rhythmic communication and community cohesion.Answer
  2. B
    The complete abandonment of rhythmic traditions in favor of European classical instruments to ensure compliance with colonial administrators.
  3. C
    The creation of permanent, militarized maroon societies in the Lowcountry swamps solely to preserve traditional drumming techniques.
  4. D
    The substitution of instrumental rhythm with simplistic animistic worship rituals that did not require physical objects.

Answer

The development of body percussion, such as patting juba, and vocal call-and-response to maintain rhythmic communication and community cohesion.
The correct answer is correct because the restriction of physical instruments like drums led enslaved Africans to utilize their own bodies as instruments (patting juba, foot stomping) and use voice (call-and-response) to retain West African rhythmic structures and communicate covertly, demonstrating resilient cultural retention and everyday resistance.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the primary source excerpt from the South Carolina Negro Act of 1740.
Identify that the colonial law specifically banned wooden drums, horns, and other loud instruments to prevent communication and conspiracy among enslaved people.
Understanding the specific restrictions placed on physical communication tools establishes the context of forced cultural repression.
2
Relate the prohibition of drums to the concepts of cultural retention and everyday resistance.
Recognize that enslaved Africans did not abandon their traditions but instead adapted them, using body percussion (like patting juba) and vocal styles (call-and-response).
This demonstrates how cultural forms were maintained covertly and creatively under severe restrictions.
3
Evaluate the options to find the practice that represents this adaptive cultural retention.
Select the option describing body percussion (patting juba) and call-and-response.
This option correctly matches historical evidence of cultural adaptation as a response to the drumming ban.

Key Concept

Everyday Resistance and Cultural Retention
Estimated Time:1m 15s
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Topics

Everyday Resistance and Cultural Retention

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