ABSTRACT
The arts are the intangible soul of society. Through unreconstructed histories they connect with imaginations of the past and propel us into the future. Knowing the arts, provides us with a legacy and a sense of hope.
A wise griot, summing up his message for an audience reminded them of the saying: ‘One hand cannot clap’. A young boy laughed out loud at this, shouting, ‘Of course one hand can clap, but it needs the assistance of another’. The griot turned slowly and smiled. He surveyed the hushed audience and paused on the two shining eyes of the impetuous speaker. ‘You are right, my young friend, when a hand of one and the hand of another meet, they signify respect and harmony. It is when only one hand is portrayed and only one part of a message told, that we see a limited view of reality’.
