Cheikh Anta Diop’s Southern Cradle of Culture

IN THE WORLD OF CARIBBEAN MUSIC, ESPECIALLY since the 1970s, there appear to have been two contrasting conceptions of the constituents of the universe, the essential interaction that involves these constituents, and the ultimate condition toward which the constituents and interactions propel the universe. One conception envisions these constituents as individuals within collectives and communal relationships; the other conceives of them as realisers of the self. The first views the ultimate condition as a ‘coming together’ of the constituents in what a particular Caribbean musician calls “Oneness”; the other regards the ultimate condition as the result of the assertion of the visions of one camp in a universe that includes itself and others. The first view appears to come to life in the lyrics of two of the most popular songs in Africa and in the region. One of these songs is “Wonderful World, Beautiful People” from the late 1960s, which exhorts: