The Rose That Grew From Concrete Analysis

Tupac Amaru Shakur was an African-American rapper, poet, and record producer during the 1990’s. In his adolescent years, he attended the Baltimore School for the Arts where he took acting and dance classes, like ballet. He was taught radical politics by his mother, which helped him develop ideas about topics he would later use in his many works. At an early age, Tupac had seen the injustices of the real world. His mother was a former Black Panther activist who turned to substance abuse during Tupac’s childhood. Aside from that, he and his mother also moved many times while they lived together in New York City. While Tupac was in Baltimore, he discovered rap; not long after, he and his mother moved to the West Coast where he joined the rap group

Next, Tupac’s view of himself towards other people acts as a cornerstone for change. Shakur’s strong belief that he made something out of himself from nothing, and the audience can as well, is evident throughout all of his many poetic works. In the poem, “The Rose That Grew From Concrete”, Shakur explains that one must pursue their dreams and aspirations in order to live a long, healthy life. The “concrete” mentioned in the poem is a symbol for the ghettos that Shakur used to live in. Also, Shakur is stating where the rose grew, when he says “Did you hear about the rose that grew from a crack in the concrete” (The Rose That Grew From Concrete 1-2)? Alliteration is used when it is said that there is a “crack in the concrete” and it’s used to show that one can rise above from improbable situations, like poverty. The “rose” is a metaphor for how Tupac made it out of the ghetto. Tupac is then explaining the phenomena of the rose when he states “Proving nature’s law is wrong it learned to walk without having feet” (The Rose That Grew From Concrete 3-4). Shakur uses personification when the rose is given the ability to walk. What Shakur means by that is he found certain ways to succeed in life that would only work for him. Shakur deeply wishes that others would take the same opportunity that he made for himself and let it be a model for all that pursuing one’s dreams is key to living a long life. Tupac then explains that the rose also learned to breathe on its own when he conveys “Long live the rose that grew from concrete when no one else ever cared” (The Rose That Grew From Concrete 7-8). Shakur uses alliteration when he says “long live” in reference to the rose. Shakur is saying long live because he was one of the few that actually made it out of the ghettos and made something of himself, which deserves