Changing And Metamorphic State Of The Narrator example essay topic

A Poem Some Will Have To Understand is a poem of change and progress. Leroi Jones incorporates tonal and literary structure in the poem, and couples it with strong visual imagery to portray the mutability and self-discovery the narrator undergoes through the progression of the plot throughout the poem. It is mainly focused on the process of the narrator and his extraordinary transformation from a mindless thug, to a flaming revolutionary through self-discovery and an emotional first person dialogue. Even before the start of the poem, Jones' manipulation and his extensive use of wordplay in the poem to come is foreshadowed with the duality of the words, "have to" (A) in the title.

In one sense, Jones is speaking to fellow- Afro Americans in the sense that as a race, this poem would be understood universally by all African-Americans because it speaks to them in a personal way about their lives. But in a more hostile connotation, he applies these words in a forceful manner, indicating that one must understand what he is trying to communicate without choice. This play on words serves as a compass that points to the direction that the poem will carry on in, and that the journey and metamorphic transformation of the African-American (as represented by the narrator), is happening and everyone must recognize it, whether they want to or not. The narrator's momentous journey begins with the introduction of himself through descriptive and precise dialogue, and literary devices used in the first stanza. This first stanza "sets the stage" and serves as an item for contrast later in the poem as the narrator shifts and changes with the linear progression of the stanzas in the poem. The opening line of the poem, "Dull unwashed windows of eyes and buildings of industry" (A) reveals that the narrator is tired and dirtied from seeing the segregated world for most of his life through the eyes of a black man.

The connotation of "industry" (A) in the sentence is slave like in nature. Instead of using the word labor, or work, Jones uses "industry" (A) to signify the physical back breaking labor that often recruited the underprivileged, most of them being African-Americans. We learn from this that the narrator comes from an impoverished and unfortunate neighborhood. But the narrator proclaims himself as " (... ) a slick colored boy, 12 miles from his home" (A), showing that he is a street smart fellow who has a hustler type attitude and is unlike most of his fellow African-Americans, as he practices "no industry" (A). He is literally a street hustler " (... ) who is no longer a credit to [his] race" (A) breaking off from the cultural standards or beliefs that his other fellow African-American leaders have set forth before him. The fact that the narrator is living in an impoverished environment, where many are trying to change their lives by working in the "industry" (A), and that he himself does nothing to change and mold his life, gives a sense of hopelessness and a complete lack of self-motivation in the first stanza.

But toward the end of the first stanza, the alliteration at the end of it emphasizes the "s" sound rapidly, creating a sense of slow but forward steady progress, a sign that the impending " (... ) slow spring" (A) of his change is coming, all the narrator can do now is wait for it. The second stanza's structure is riddled with complexity. The lines are disjointed and kinetic, fusing progress with the narrator's previously conservative attitude. It is a sign that the narrator is beginning to change, his personality being infused with new found motivation and life.

The lines in the poem alternate, with only lines 11, 13, 15 and 17 to anchor the stanza to the last stanza's lax and conservative attitude, reiterating the changing and metamorphic state of the narrator. The narrator had thought that he had " (... ) come to the end of [his] life" (A), wandering through life without "industry" (A), but in the second stanza, he quickly finds that it is due to his "watercolor ego" (A). The use of the word "watercolor" (A) embellishes and emphasizes the inner and personal content of the narrator. "Watercolor" (A), is used as an adjective, instead of a noun, putting a direct emphasis and implication on the narrator's character.

A watercolor is unlike regular paint in that it is not opaque; instead it is a lightly tinted shade of a color, not permanent, and easily changeable and manipulated in anyway. The juxtaposition of these two words then emphasis the mutability and the lack of confidence in the narrator's character in the past. Simultaneously, the use of "watercolor" (A) in the second stanza emphasizes that the narrator's past attitudes are starting to fade, and change with the tides of time. The narrator consciously is aware of his changing status when he mentions that he did not have " (... ) the preciseness a violent man could propose" (A). Up to this point, Jones' has simply been implicating violence and its effects on the narrator, but here, it is implicitly and directly stated bluntly without prediction, like a spear going through tender flesh.

It pierces the mood of poem, exacting a feeling of tension and momentary confusion and shock. The dramatic effect of the use of the word "violent" (A) goes partially to show how precise and exacting violence. The narrator contrasts this point with his life by mentioning the lack of it in his life, showing that he is missing that sense of direction and confidence that he needs to change and move somewhere in life. The other partial usage of the word "violent" (A) is used as a tool along with the word "preciseness" (A), begging that "violence" (A) is the author's tool in which he will exact his revenge on the "industry" (A). The narrator uses these tools against " (... ) the wheels (... ) " (A) that " (... ) won't let us alone" (A).

These "wheels" (A) symbolize traditional "industry" (A) and the wheels of torture and suffering, similar to medieval times. This suffering and torture is made circular and creates a vision of a cycle of violence and suffering, indicating that this suffering has been and will be going on and on, unless something is done. The activism and passion of the narrator's tone picks up here and is relentless beyond this point. This image of torture and violence is coupled together with hollow and useless images of hopelessness such as the "fantasy" (A) of "justice" (A) and the " (... ) dry charcoal winters (... ) " (A), creating a figurative vision of a dry deserted place, with immediate visions of Joshua trees and dead plants that still exist, but are dead and hollow inside. He even mocks the useless of " (... ) all the pitifully intelligent citizens [he has] forced himself to love" (A).

Not only does this contrast the narrator's opinion on death, and motivation from the first stanza, but it begs the onset of the narrator's next and final stage of transition from a non-opinionated, lost individual, to a powerful and confident leader. The third stanza is when the narrator finally commits himself to make the decision for his future. The structure of the stanza resembles the first, in that it retains the same prosaic tone and static qualities, but there are no other links to the narrator's previous attitudes or opinions. The shift from the usage of the pronoun "I" (A) to "We" (A), indicates a complete change of attitude, from the selfish street hustler, to a leader who suddenly represents his people in its entirety. Emphasis is drawn upon this in that no attempt is drawn to compare who the narrator was and who he is now. The "mystics and romantics, knowledgeable workers of the land" (A), different factions of the civil rights movement, are mentioned by the narrator.

But the " (... ) natural phenomenon" (A) of change has not come, as the narrator proudly states. This leaves him in a position of authority to bring salvation to his people through the use of violence as he proudly states in the last line of the poem "Will the machine gunners please step forward?" (A) He then proceeds to use tools of violence to achieve his goals for his people. Leroi Jones uses the dynamics of the literary and the emotional to fully capture the transformation of a wandering thug, to a passionate leader. Through this process, we are witnesses to a rebirth of a new black man, who finds his identity and his strength from within, and harnesses it to propel his cause forward. Jones gives us a gem of a poem, a white tulip in a field of red daises, it is something that will blossom and last forever, and we cannot help but to understand Jones' message.