Anthropology 210
October 2013
Writing Assignment 1, Question 1 Both the countries of Brazil and Jamaica have similar histories when it comes to black slaves. In the fifteenth century sugar plantations were booming in Brazil and wealth was being accumulated very quickly (McMurray, n.d.). The Brazilians could not rely on the Indians who once inhabited the country for labor, because new diseases were introduced to the Indians so many of them died off. Because of this, Brazilians began importing slaves to Portugal as early as 1433, and throughout the next three centuries over three and a half million slaves were brought to Brazil (McMurray, n.d.). Jamaica had a similar experience. After piracy became a common and almost accepted experience in the seventeenth century, the stolen loot was actually able to fund the development of plantations in Jamaica. The island’s elite imported hundreds of thousands of West and Central African slaves over the next three centuries to work as laborers on the sugar plantations (McMurray, n.d.). Not only do the two countries have a similar history, but also they have a lot in common in their culture and music. Brazilian music has a lot of influence from the African culture and has several origins that relate back to Africa, and a common theme in Brazilian music is resistance. One of the forms of music, Candomblé, was used as a form of resistance, because it aimed to keep Africa and African gods alive in the minds of the Africans that were held captive and forced to work as slaves (McMurray, n.d.). Many of the instruments and songs associated with Candomblé originated from Nigeria, and the songs are usually sung in an African language (McMurray, n.d.). Another example of resistance in the form of music is the martial art form called capoeira, where there are songs accompanying it that came from various regions of Central Africa. It was a form of resistance because it “helped young African slaves in Brazil prepare for rebellion by clandestinely learning and practicing fighting skills” (McMurray, n.d., p.17). The third and most famous type of Brazilian music that has African influences and has a theme of resistance is samba. The music and style of dance originated from the Kongo-Angola region, but now it is mainly used in the favelas around Rio de Janiero to help celebrate Carnival. Even though the Samba is a popular style of music and celebration in Brazil, its black roots allow it to be an “important form of identification with and celebration of that African/slave cultural heritage” (McMurray, n.d., p.18). Samba music was used as a form of resistance because it was a way for the poor Brazilians to celebrate their heritage and speak out against the oppression, poverty, poor living conditions, and the lack of jobs they faced. Jamaican culture and styles of music have a lot of similarities to Brazilian culture and styles of music. Just like Brazilian music, a common theme in Jamaican music is resistance. One of the most popular types of music in Jamaica, reggae, has many influences and origins from Africa and the African culture. Specifically, pocomania is a general form of worship known in Jamaica. It has a strong African influence because it uses drums played with sticks and has accompanying singing (McMurray, n.d.). Pocomania is one of the origins of Reggae, which just shows how much African cultures have influenced music styles in Jamaica. A common theme in Jamaican music is resistance, because the artists are singing about the oppression that the blacks faced in Jamaica. Even after slavery was abolished, the blacks were discriminated against, could not find jobs, and still had poor living conditions. Resistance is clearly evident in a song titled “Redemption Song” by a popular Rastafarian artist, Bob Marley. Marley sings, “Emancipate yourself from mental slavery; none but ourselves can free our minds” (Marley, 1980). By “mental slavery” Marley is referring to the oppression and white supremacy that the Jamaicans face every day. Although both Brazil and Jamaica have music that was influenced by African cultures, they have different elements of the African music that influenced them. For example, Brazilian music was influenced by umbrigada, which is belly-bouncing in dancing (McMurray, n.d.). This did not have any influence on Jamaican music. Another example is that Brazilian music has a certain rather nasal tone of singing, which was influenced by African culture but did not influence Jamaican culture. But, both cultures place an importance on drums, which was influenced by African culture (McMurray, n.d.). The two cultures have many similarities in their styles of resistance music and many parallels can be made between the two.

Works Cited
Marley, Bob (1980). Redemption Song. On Uprising (record). Jamaica: Island Records
McMurray, D. (n.d.) Music of Opposition/Music of Solidarity: Case Studies in the Cultural and Political Uses of Popular Music . Oregon State University, Anthropology Department, Corvallis, OR.