Poet: Tupac Shakur Poem: And 2Morrow Critical Analysis Tupac Shakur is one of the most legendary and popular poetic/rap artists to this day. He is considered to be one of the most influential people of his time, influencing every African-American citizen in North America. Thought of as the creator of rap, Tupac has sold over seventy-five million albums worldwide although his career ended as quickly as it started. Six, is the number of years Tupac spent making rap professionally. Thirteen is the number of years Tupac spent writing poetry and rap lyrics.
Twenty-five is how old Tupac was when he received four bullets to his chest causing him to pass away. In those twenty-five years, Tupac has influenced millions of people and artists that you know hear on the radio today. His poetry and rap music is considered to be one of the best. And 2Morrow is a poem that represents his life, the struggles he’s faced, and the way he feels about life. If Tupac can influence so many people in that short amount of time that must be proof that he is potentially one of the best poets and that this poem is defiantly the best. And 2Morrow Today is filled with anger ueled with hidden hate scared of being outcast afraid of common fate Today is built on tragedies which no one wants 2 face nightmares 2 humanities and morally disgraced Tonight is filled with rage violence in the air children bred with ruthlessness because no one at home cares Tonight I lay my head down but the pressure never stops knawing at my sanity content when I am dropped But 2morrow I c change a chance 2 build a new Built on spirit intent of Heart and ideals based on truth and tomorrow I wake with second wind and strong because of pride 2 know I fought with all my heart 2 keep my ream alive (Shakur) This poem resembles the thoughts of a young man before he became a professional artist. Tupac wrote most of his poems during his senior years of high school as a hobby. No one knows exactly why Tupac would use the number “2” to resemble “to”, but skeptics believe that it represents Tupac’s belief that two people can fight threw rough times better then one can. To help understand Tupac’s poem, you must grasp yourself around the image of a very young boy, who has no father, grew up in the rougher parts of New York, and was barely supported by his mother.
This poem is a perfect example of a closed form traditional sonnet. The rhyming scheme is in the form of ABCB, the best example of that is if you were to look at the first stanza, the last word in line two and four rhyme. This type of rhyming scheme is very basic, but it really helps emphasize his thoughts and bring out an emotional, aggressive tone. Imagery is one of the many things that are used substantially during this poem to help express Tupac’s emotions and thoughts. For example, lines such as; “Tonight is filled with rage, violence in the air” give off an image of the area Tupac grew up in, during nightfall.
Another example of imagery; “and tomorrow I wake with second wind”. This line helps express Tupac’s feelings about the changes he wants to encounter in order to fulfill his dreams. Tupac uses “today”, “tonight”, and “2Morrow” as symbols of the times when he believes certain things happen. The “2” in “2morrow” can symbolize the way his mother helped Tupac achieve his lifelong dream. Tupac uses repetition, alliteration, consonance, and certain forms of archetypes to express his emotional thoughts.
This “2” can be viewed as a form of alliteration; it is constantly being repeated to draw the idea that two is better then one. Repetition is most commonly used in this poem to emphasize during a certain time which certain things happen. For example; “Today is filled with anger” and “Tonight is filled with rage”. Consonance can be found in the very first stanza. If you read aloud the first stanza of this poem, you will begin to hear how Tupac emphasized the “n” sound in the words; anger, hidden, being, and common to help set that aggressive tone.
Not only does the use of consonance set the tone, it really helps with the flow of the poem. This poem has many forms of archetypal stereotypes. An individual that grew up during tough times always sticks to his dreams and finds an escape in the end. This is one of the most common stereotypes that can be found in a variety of entertainment sources. The reality of it is that all humans are born with dreams to better themselves, but the percentage of the ones that succeed are a lot less then the ones that do.
There is also another stereotype in this poem; it’s the way Tupac expresses nighttime as a time “filled with rage”. In most movies, nighttime is usually when the evil doers commit to their actions of doing wrong in society. Reading Tupac’s poetry does not quite compare to when he, himself would sing them. If he were to sing his poetry it was as if his poetry would come to life. I believe that Tupac was one of the best poets for that age and I can not find a more influential writer then him during this time.
To this day he is believed to be one of the best and I am truly a believer. The way Tupac uses imagery, symbolism, repetition, alliteration, consonance, and archetypes is truly amazing for a high school student. Personally I believe I would never be able to write a poem such as his because I have not experienced the things he has and my form of art is expressed through sports. Tupac is legendary and many can argue over who is the most influential poet/artist. I believe it is Tupac. Works Cited • Shakur, Tupac. “And 2Morrow . ” Poem Hunter. N. p. , 5/25/2007. Web. 23 Oct 2011. .
