One’s beliefs, ideas, traditions, and behaviors all come from the culture in which they have grown apart of. Lifestyles vary dramatically across the world and all tie into the society and families they were born. Different cultures comprise different values, which help regulate the behaviors of those in the society. Although some of these values are okay in some countries, in many others they would cause uprising. In Bob Marley’s song, “ So Much Trouble in the World,” he tells his view of what is happening in the world around him. Through the music and lyrics, Bob Marley shows his ties to Rastafarianism, a religious movement from Jamaica. Through the lyrics, Marley refers to “Jah” which is referencing to Haile Selassie, the man Rastafarians saw as their re-incarnated God. In America, the main religion is Christianity. Christians believe in one figure, God, where Rastafarians believe in 3, the main one being “Jah”. The ultimate hope of militant Rastafarians is that all black people can return to Africa for a while, though eventually they hope to span the globe and become the dominant race of humanity. Many of them believe that, ultimately, the world’s white population will experience a total collapse. Where Christianity doesn’t focus on race solely as the problem. There are many differences between the religions and cultural concepts that come with it. Growing up in Trenchtown, Jamaica Bob Marley grew up in the ghetto, which provided him with a hard and unpredictable childhood and life. In Jamaican culture, they focus social class that is largely determined by color and shade of their skin. Lighter color skinned people are at the top of the social hierarchy. They dominate the business, banking, and commerce that take place in Jamaica. Deteriorating economic conditions during the 1970s led to recurrent violence as rival gangs affiliated with the major political parties evolved into powerful organized crime networks involved in international drug smuggling and money laundering. Violent crime, drug trafficking, and poverty pose significant challenges to the government today. Growing up in these situations make it tough and change the values of people.
Jamaica is an island of music, art, and poverty. They move at a slower pace than the United States, there is less of urgency to accomplish tasks. In the United States, it is more about wealth, ambition, and individualism. Americans make their own path, rather than worry about the concerns of the family or community. Throughout the lyrics, there are many phrases relating to the government and wealthy people who are trying so hard to control the world, fighting ruthlessly for power, money and control in everyway. They are letting their egos take over. This is a view that is not accepted by people like Bob Marley and his society. He wants the people in power to relate to the poor man, like where he grew up.
Throughout “So Much Trouble in the World,” Bob Marley is pointing out that there is so much wrong going on between cultures. Looking at the meaning of the words in the song, show the connection between the culture and religion of where Bob Marley is from. There are many differences in which he views the world and sees as right and wrong. Although he fights to try and get the word out to fix some of the problems, the will always be cultural differences throughout the world.