Part 1 Digression 4 : Infinity & the Nature of Dance

Warning:  if you hate theory stuff and would rather read about me crumpling under heavy weights and pushing metal stuff on pavement,  just skip this one (and Part 2, although it does have nice photos.)

So I've had this theory for years and figured I may as well put it in writing somewhere other than the dance course packs I make.

Actually the Infinity Theory first crystallized for me with Literature and the development of philosophies and approaches.  Most analysts refer to a back and forth pendulum movement (reaction to reaction) of literary movements, but I knew this was inadequate.  This assumes a linear motion in one direction before a reactionary movement in the other. Human dynamics (and binary life in general) makes this impossible (besides, exactly what is said pendulum hanging from?)  Finally, while exploring the nature of duality in Carlos Fuentes' Aura, it hit me.

It isn't a pendulum movement.  It's an infinite movement in which one motion already engenders the contrary movement by the initiation of movement itself.  Think of waves - as one wave rises, it does so by pulling at the water in front of it : for some water to move forward, other water has to pull back.  When a wave falls and flows forward on one side of the ocean, the water on the other side of the ocean pulls back and rises in a crest.

Imagine the infinity symbol as a constant flow rather than a static typed image, and I think you will see what I mean.

So when one literary movement begins, by its sheer beginning, it inspires & defines its own reactionary counterpart that will eventually replace it as the driving literary movement.

Ok, yadda yadda yadda, what has this to do with dance?

Music breaks down into natural 8s  (which I believe result from the 8 beat rhythm of our heartbeats.)
In belly dance we recognize the figure 8 shape of a woman's body.  We refer to movements in eights: We talk about "up 8s" (Little Egypts), "down 8s" (Mayas), "front & back 8s" etc.
I don't think they are eights.  They are infinity symbols.  Our movements are not isolated.  When the "up 8" starts, there is already the downward movement from the other side that will slide into the upward movement thus taking the originating movement from up to down.  It isn't tracing a figure 8: Tracing a figure 8 implies a beginning and an end and that somewhere is the originating point.  Also it means that we have selected a point of our body that travels along the shape of the 8.

Instead, what we are really doing is manifesting infinity (gestalt) within ourselves.

to be continued...