Okült Afrika Sinemasında Ruhsal Yamyamlık

Abstract

Kamerun ve Nijerya’da bildik hayal dünyası, vudu/kara büyüyü “ruh yeme” (ruhsal yamyamlık) mitiyle ilişkilendirir; cadı ya da doğa üstü varlıkların bir kişinin ruhunu/yaşam enerjisini tüketerek hastalık, kaza ya da ölüme yol açtığına inanılır. Folklor kökenli bu mit, her iki ülkede güçlü biçimde yerleşmiş ve çok sayıda video filme esin vermiştir. Makale, göstergebilim ve ikincil kaynaklarla bu filmlerde “ruh yeme”nin çoğunlukla mecazî ve örtük (örtmece) bir sinema diliyle; özel efektler, söyleyiş ve elipsler gibi göstergeler/simgeler üzerinden temsil edildiğini savunur. Düşük bütçelerin de etkisiyle bu yaklaşım, aslında dehşet verici bir deneyimin çoğu kez yumuşatılmış biçimde sunulmasına yol açar.

Keywords

• Ruhsal yamyamlık
• Korku filmi
• Nollywood
• Okült Afrika Sineması
• Collywood

Spiritual Cannibalism in Occult African Cinema: A Semiotic Perspective on Cameroonian and Nigerian Films’ Depiction of “Soul Eating”

Abstract

The popular imagination in Cameroon and Nigeria associates voodoo or black magic with a host of horrific practices one of which is “soul eating”. Also known as spiritual cannibalism or soul cannibalism, this “soul eating” is a situation where some witches or paranormal entities spiritually or mysteriously consume a human being’s soul or vital energy, thereby causing the latter to suffer a physical sickness, a mysterious accident or any inexplicable circumstance that can even be mortal in real life. Although a product of folktales and legends, the myth of “soul eating” has become strongly rooted in Cameroonian and Nigerian societies. This myth has inspired many Nigerian and Cameroonian video films, some of which even attempt vivid and sensational depictions of the phenomenon (spiritual cannibalism). The cinematic techniques deployed in these occult films to represent the “soul eating” myth/practice are diverse, interesting, but understudied. In view of filling this gap in knowledge, the present article uses semiotics and secondary sources to show how the cinematic language used in the depiction of “soul eating” in Cameroonian and Nigerian video films is mainly metaphoric and euphemistic. The paper argues that Nigerian and Cameroonian horror film directors mainly use indexes and symbols in the form of special effects, diction and ellipses to represent horrific spiritual cannibalism. These symbolic and indexical approaches – which may largely be attributed to low film budget – most often lead to euphemistic representations of a supposedly gory and frightening experience.

Keywords

• Spiritual Cannibalism
• Horor Movies
• Nollywood
• Collywood
• Occult African Film
• Soul Eater

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