The Power of Art in Cultivating Peaceful Communal Co-existence- A Case of Bukusu Aphorisms

This paper sets out to examine the impact of art on the concept of communal coexistence with special attention to Bukusu aphorisms. The paper focuses on ten aphorisms from the Bukusu community. These aphorisms have been studied to uncover the meaning in relation to communal coexistence. The paper is guided by an eclectic model in which a number of theoretical approaches are employed. The main approaches are Publics and Nationhood Theories. This combination is basically grounded in modern folkloristic perspectives which call for viewing oral texts as representations of collective thinking. It has been established that Bukusu aphorisms form a spring board upon which the Bukusu relate with one another as well as the outside world. It has also emerged that Bukusu aphorisms can be instrumental in either promoting or undermining communal peaceful coexistence.