Challenging stigmatization through cultural dance: Exploring the role of fengyang flower drums in shaping collective identity, revitalizing tradition, and overcoming social prejudice

Abstract

As an important form of China's intangible cultural heritage, traditional cultural dances such as the Fengyang Flower Drums have a long history and rich value, but they are currently facing the dilemma of being blocked from dissemination, difficult to pass on, and being "stigmatized". This paper explores the Fengyang Flower Drum as a vehicle to study its positive role in shaping collective identity, revitalizing traditions, and overcoming social prejudice. The development and promotion of the Fengyang Flower Drum have helped disadvantaged groups shape their collective identities and gain emotional comfort and empathy through participation and cooperation. The evolutionary process is crucial to the revitalization of traditional culture, and social values and cultural connotations are interdependent and mutually influential. According to the survey, what attracts people to the Fengyang Flower Drum is mainly its historical connotation (80%) and self-indulgence (65%), which is a product of local history and culture, and the regional cultural influence promotes the development of socio-academic and cultural values. As a traditional Chinese cultural dance, the Fengyang Flower Drum plays a positive role in contributing to the promotion of cultural diversity, social harmony, and the development of traditional cultural heritage by shaping collective identity, revitalizing traditions, and overcoming social prejudices. Therefore, reconceptualizing its value and strengthening its inheritance will enable the Fengyang Flower Drum to effectively avoid stigmatization, thereby promoting the revitalization of traditional cultural dances in contemporary society.