The Rose That Grew From Concrete

Tupac Shakur’s love for the literary classic is impressive. Shakur had a unique love for William Shakespeare’s work; and he even quoted Shakespeare’s themes and projected them in the environment where he grew (McQuillar, and Johnson 12). The ease of taking the themes and projects was due to the surroundings in which he was raised. Tupac Shakur was brought up in East Harlem. In an interview he gave in 1995, he confessed his love for the work of Shakespeare (McQuillar, and Johnson 18). As he grew up, Tupac became accustomed to writing his own poems and songs being inspired by Shakespeare. Tupac Shakur’s poems and rap songs are a form of art that had hidden messages carried in them just as the work of Shakespeare. Most of his rap songs and poems concentrated on violence that was a normal occasion in many urban areas in America (McQuillar, and Johnson 24). Tupac had the desire to revolutionize the minds, hearts, and bodies of his fans. He used art as a way to reflect issues that were affecting the society. In fact, Tupac’s work of art had an impact on the society. Moreover, it is of high quality just as the work of William Shakespeare.

Tupac’s collection of the poems in the book titled “The Rose That Grew from Concrete” portrays a theme of redemption, in which Tupac thinks that the black people will once come out from their hardships and shine (McQuillar, and Johnson 33). The book shows that Tupac was hopeful of liberation of the black people. The concrete symbolizes the hard conditions the black people were living in, and the rose symbolizes their redemption. One of the Tupac’s captivating poems is “Untitled” that portrays people who take the journey to find hope. The poem gives an outlook of how the culture of the black people is insignificant in the eyes of the whites (Shakur 85). A line “But now like a nightmare I wake 2 c that I live like a prisoner of poverty” (1) showed that the black people were inferior and incapable of doing activities that the white people would perform. The poem arouses the emotions of the readers encouraging them to fight for their rights because they know what they can do. The poem portrays a society where the number of single mothers was increasing, and the young boys were ruining their lives because their parents and teachers do not guide them. The first line of the poem says “please wake me up when I’m free,” (1), and the third line reads “I’ll wither and die in ignorance” (3). The message is a lesson to young black people, who can easily find themselves with ruined lives because of lack of guidance (Shakur 76).

Tupac’s education made it possible to use both rap songs and poems to send the message. His first poem came out in 1999, which portrayed the struggles that black people in the United States of America were going through. Most of his poetry work was confessional, as he would allow the readers of his poems to come in his soul and mind. One of the poems Tupac wrote is “Sometimes I Cry”, which is very emotional for the reader. The poem portrays how black people suffered inwardly and had no one, with whom they could share their sorrow. The third line of the poem states “I cry because I am alone” (3) meaning that the black people were left by themselves in America with the administration not taking any measures to address their needs (Shakur 79). The poem portrays a sad tone to signify how people who were alienated felt.

Tupac wrote other poems that had a romantic touch. The poems titled “The Mutual Heartache” and “A Love Unspoken” have a sense of love just as the pieces of art that William Shakespeare wrote. The “Mutual Heartache poem” can easily compare to a poem by William Shakespeare about Romeo and Juliet portraying a love that was forbidden (McQuillar, and Johnson 15). Tupac’s poem contains two lovers who had reasons why they could not be together. The two lovers live in different worlds and the man does not pour his heart to his woman. However, the lady claims to know the man’s life as a desperate attempt to make the man accept their relationship (Shakur 91). Line five of the poem states “u talk as I do but yet u do not” (5), lines seven states “understand when I mumble” (7) and lastly line eight states “u c as I do, but your vision is blurred by naivete” (8). The poem later narrates how the differences between the two lovers will separate them despite their feelings. “A Love Unspoken” discusses whether a couple should continue living in the love life of secrecy or they should disclose their feelings to the world (Shakur 74). Tupac also had sets of poems narrating about politics such as “How Can We Be Free” and “And Tomorrow.”

In conclusion, Tupac’s Shakur’s way of delivering his messages through artistry proved impactful to many, especially the black people. His messages were strong enough to propel black citizens who underwent long periods of suffering (McQuillar, and Johnson 88). Because of the impacts that his poetry had on the people under pressure, his work is on the same high level as the work of William Shakespeare. Tupac Shakur always relayed his feelings through his poetry and songs, which ranged from independence of black Americans to love and politics. Tupac’s artistry epitomized a person, who had feelings of liberation and who also cared for the future (McQuillar, and Johnson 92). The effect of his message on the people proves that his art is of high regards as the work of other artists such as William Shakespeare.

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