How has Jamaica been influenced by societies?
by Crystal
(Jamaica)
A: The way Jamaicans dance and sing, the reggae beat in church and on the street all stemmed from
way back. African Slaves use to comfort themselves with song and dance on the street and in small
gatherings. Religious worship was major. Out of it came the pocomania influence, then came the Christian influence
as well...which many called the 'white man's religion.'
The pocomanias had special dances, so did the chrisitans. It slowly trickled into the roots of the society.
People adopted it everywhere. So when mento, ska, rocksteady, and reggae was born, you could hear the beat from
these early influences in all of them.
...but it did not stop there. The rastafarians came on the scene with their thing. They had a totally different
outlook on life. Even their God was different. Music became a major part of their "worship"...and they created
their own style (reggae mixed with a religious fervor)...then they added drumming, religious lyrics and took
the music in a totally different direction.
As if this was not enough, food took on the religious element as well. The choice of food for many was based upon
their religious belief. Take the Rastafarians for example, they ate what they consider only clean healthy foods
(ital, no pork, lots of vegetables..and so on)
in tandem with the biblical diet. Some christians (7th day worshippers) did the same thing as well. Other
christians follow the regular more traditional diet, while other religions follow strict diets according to their
choice.
Dress took a different turn as well. When the astafarians came on the scene, you could see the difference in the
way they dressed. tam, red/yellow/green colors, long flowing robes in some cases, the dreads...and so on).
Christians followed their beliefs as well. some dressed the traditional Jamaican way, while others follow strict
rules according to their denomination.
Sex was more on a personal level. Jamaicans have a special dance which we called "whine" where they twist their
waste and gyrate as if they are having sex. This started way back when...but it is still around today.
Where did this come from? Once again, the African influence. This had such a strong
influence on dance that the "whine" had no escape.
Today sex before marriage is unacceptable in many christian churches, as well as rastafarian culture (religion).
Even then, members of both religion still do it. Some though, remain faithful to the principles.
So in a nutshell...yes. Religion has significant influence on all of 'em.
