Humor in Hardship: A History of the Cakewalk Dance Descriptive Essay by TrailofAs

This paper discusses the cakewalk dance, which was the first dance to cross over from black to white culture, and from the stage to ballrooms. The author describes how it began around 1850 among African-American slaves in the southern U.S. as a hybrid form of traditional African movements and dance concepts. It was called the Chalk Line Walk at that time, and evolved over time into an exaggeration of the white, upper class ballroom dance of the time. The author explains how the dance became known as the cakewalk dance, and how it continued to become more sophisticated, until it gained popularity outside the slave and plantation owner circles and was used in shows and vaudeville acts. Although it no longer exists in its original form, the cakewalk's influence can still be seen in the high stepping march used by marching bands across the U.S., and its music was the precursor to what is now known as ragtime.