Tracy Chapman is a singer/songwriter known for her heavy and meaningful material. In her song, “The Rape of the World” she discusses the wrongs of humanity against Mother Nature.
“The Rape of the World”
Mother of us all
Place of our birth
How can we stand aside
And watch the rape of the world
This the beginning of the end
This the most heinous of crimes
This the deadliest of sins
The greatest violation of all time
Within this first stanza, Chapman has only described who she is addressing, and vaguely what is happening. She says that what is happening is “the rape of the world” and goes on to implant the idea that this action is “the most heinous of crimes, …the deadliest of sins, the greatest violation of all time.” This gives the audience a predetermined view on what is to come; moreover, the crime itself.
The rhyme scheme for this stanza is very soft, including the slight rhyme of aside, crimes, and time. This slight rhyme puts an emphasis on these words. Chapman made this emphasis to make her message more pointed. It is well accomplished. It is a juxtaposition of Chapman’s soft voice. It almost makes the audience feel guilty already, before hearing the accusation and the crimes with detail.
Mother of us all
Place of our birth
We all are witness
To the rape of the world
You’ve seen her stripped mined
You’ve heard of bombs exploded underground
You know the sun shines
Hotter than ever before
In this verse, Chapman goes on to tell what all the persons being addressed has witnessed and is witnessing such as the “her stripped mined.” This is a reference to mining and it’s negative effects on Earth. It is a violation that was previously mentioned in the last stanza. The next action witnessed is the sound of “bombs exploded underground.” This is another reference to mining. It is a harsh way to clear Earth out beneath the crust. Chapman goes on to say that “You know the sun shines hotter than ever before.” This is a reference to global warming and the breaking down of the atmosphere and Earth’s natural UV shield.
Between each line, the piano adds a dramatic riff. This clarifies the solemn message and shows the audience that Chapman is serious about the issue at hand.
Mother of us all
Place of our birth
We all are witness
To the rape of the world
Some claim to have crowned her
A queen
With cities of concrete and steel
But there is no glory no honor
In what results from the rape of the world
In the third stanza, she claims that some people are hypocritical in the situation being presented by claiming to place Mother Earth on a pedestal but then living in big cities that are hazardous to Earth. They claim her as a queen, but no queen is treated in such a manner. This is to say that there is no glory or honor bestowed upon the earth and therefore what will result from “the rape of the world”, or the mistreatment of the earth. As mentioned in the first stanza, this mistreatment is the beginning of the end. Put simply, we the audience, are killing the our home, Earth.
Mother of us all
Place of our birth
How can we stand aside
And watch the rape of the world
If you look you’ll see it with your own eyes
If you listen you will hear her cries
If you care you will stand and testify
And stop the rape of the world
In the second to last stanza, Chapman reiterates her original question, “How can we stand aside and watch the rape of the world?” She goes on to describe what the audience would experience and understand if they stopped and paid attention .
“If you care, you will stand and testify and stop the rape of the world,” this is a call to arms. This is a call to stand up and make change to better help the Earth and not to cause so much damage to it.
Stop the rape of the world
Mother of us all
Mother of us all
Mother of us all
Mother of us all
The very last stanza is a repetition. “Stop the rape of the world” is one last call for humanity to stop their harmful ways. Chapman goes on to repeat the phrase, “mother of us all.” Tracy Chapman repeats this phrase a total of four times. This is to drive the guilt home. All throughout the song, the phrase “Mother of us all, place of our birth” is repeated at the beginning of each verse. This phrase is to make humanity realize that Earth is not just a planet but our home, mother, and birthplace. This is another guilt-trip tactic. This is to say that driving the whole song home with “mother of us all” repeated at the end is the mother of all guilt trip. Who would hurt their mother so badly?
