An Analysis Of Rosalie's Tornado Child

Everyday we walk in our shoes, knowing who we are. What is in the mirror is not what everybody’s perception is. To be a black woman who doesn’t know her own power is terrifying. Everybody knows your potential except you. Kwame Dawes was inspired by Rosalie’s story, so he wrote "Tornado Child." In “Tornado Child”, Kwame Dawes paints Rosalie’s life adventures as a natural disaster, through the use of his colorful diction and metaphors and also showcasing intense imagery. This free verse poem is like most of Dawes poems, inspired by sights, sounds, and rhythms around him.

Kwame Dawes begins to describes Rosalie’s life, and how she can send the gift of chaos your way no matter who you are. In the fourth line the poet states, “I might bring you back, all warm and scared,” presenting the absence of balance in Rosalie’s life. Kwame Dawes, the soft diction mixed with shady language makes his audience think about how unpredictable Rosalie knows she is. The poet presents the characteristics of a tornado using words like swirl, whip, spinning and wild whirl.

In the second stanza it takes a turn revealing that Rosalie actually has no control "I tremble at the elements," which counteracts with the first stanza where she is expressed to be in control.

The confusion of the poem shows how Rosalie's mind is unpredictable."when my mother pushed me out into the black of a tornado night". The use of this line shows since her mother gave birth to her, she is taught to believe she is trouble. Being black is hard enough, but to be a woman in that time was even worse. If you weren’t considered human as a black man who were you to be a black

woman?

The third stanza portrays Rosalie as famous to the people around her, like a police report, she had such a distinct look about her. There would be no way she could pass someone on the

street without being noticed by her features. Dawes writes "Even now I tie a bandanna to silence the din of anarchy in these coir-thick plaits." Rosalie is tormented to hide her differences, like her hair type, to this day Rosalie tries to silence the uproar of her “disorder”. Dawes also paints her to be a loner not by choice, but rather because doesn’t, she is the puzzle piece that doesn't fit.

The fourth stanza leads into how open Rosalie is with her sexuality. She proudly displays is enticing by stating "they tremble at the whip of my supple thighs." This is where Kwame Dawes depicts her as a woman who doesn’t know her power; so she clings onto her sexuality as strength. She is brought to the level of a dog, serving others with her body; this is the only thing she can be proud of.

He ends with the fifth stanza making a full circle at end of Rosalie’s life she has an indecisive path. Kwame Dawes transformed colors to represent symbolic meaning. For example, the white sheets embody a bare portrait and "swirl of color" opens her up to many possibilities. He hopes for a new beginning where she will be appreciated for her attributes.

Kwame Dawes introduces the poem with a repeated statement that you are suppose to ponder on while reciting the poem "I am a tornado child". It is almost like a warning to persuade individuals to be curious of what she has to offer. The all around theme is to walk through and experience a free-wheeling soul. The unconstrained thoughts mixed with the deep and dark word choice are part of her character.

Kwame Dawes, poem about Rosalie’s life experiences makes the anyone lead on to question about the kind of life she had. What made her latch on to sexuality and to describe herself as crazy and unpredictable? To be a tornado child is not a hopeful label, it is a realistic one.