The Rose That Grew From Concrete, And Alice Walker

What exactly is a hero? A hero is often portrayed in literature and song with many differences from one another, making it difficult to distinguish what a hero is. Are they a strong warrior that does the impossible, one who has persevered when the odds were stacked against them, or one who is willing to stand up against anyone who threatens morality? Bonnie Tyler, Tupac Shakur, and Alice Walker display different qualities or ideas of a hero in their respective works “Holding out for a Hero,” “The Rose that Grew from Concrete,” and “Use.” These heroes inspire others in different ways, yet they all do so none the less.

In the song "Holding out for a Hero,” Bonnie Tyler establishes intelligence, strength, and morality as necessary to a hero.

First Tyler declares "Where is the street-wise Hercules...” (“Holding Out for A Hero” 3) this quote makes an allusion to Hercules, who used his wit to conquer the impossible task.

An example of Hercules’ use of his intelligence is when he was tasked to clean the Augean stables in on day. This was deemed impossible as the stables had never been cleaned. Hercules’ solution is to reroute the rivers of Alpheus and Peneus to wash out the filth. Had he tried to simply clean the stables traditionally, he would not have been able to complete the task. Even if, by some blessing of the divine, he cleaned the stables in such a way, such a lowly and dirty task would have lowered his reputation. Another example of Hercules’ intelligence occurred when he cunningly manipulated Atlas into aiding him and later escaped his scheme for freedom. Hercules was commanded to collect the golden apples of Zeus, which required the aid of Atlas, who was sentenced to carry the Earth upon his shoulders for eternity. Hercules arrived before the titan and offered to hold the Earth for Atlas so that he could fetch him the apples; Atlas agreed because he would do anything to be relieved of his burden. When Atlas returned, he attempted

to scamper off with the apples, however, Hercules saw Atlas’ intentions and asked him to hold the Earth for merely a moment so that he could cushion his shoulders. Atlas foolishly complied and did so only to witness the flight of Hercules. In these two examples, Hercules displayed his problem solving skills and his cunning, all traits of associated with intelligence. After she states that intelligence is a trait of a hero, she states strength is as well when she sings “He’s gotta be strong and he’s gotta be fast and he’s gotta be fresh from the fight” (10-12). Strength can be related to physical strength and will power. Strength of the physical nature is a good strength for a hero to have, it allows them to fight against the odds directly as opposed to the more difficult outsmarting and scheming that weaker individuals might employ. Will and determination allows the hero to overcome obstacles that the ordinary man would not. When one’s will is broken, it does not matter how smart or strong they are anymore, they cannot progress. The will to keep moving forward against all odds is a strength not found in all individuals, making the trait very valuable. Finally, Bonnie Tyler also states that morality is a trait of a hero. It is implied that she does when she says “Isn’t there a white knight upon a fiery steed?”(5) and “It’s gonna take a superman to sweep me off of my feet”(23). This is so because a white knight is an illusion to purity and superman is a pure hearted character in DC Comics. A white knight can be a symbol of morality as white symbolizes purity, because in history white was the hardest color of clothing to clean thus a clean white toga represented cleanliness and, in turn purity, and a knight is associated with chivalry, a code of honor on the battlefield that is used today as an allusion to the aid of the weak. An example of a white knight in literature is the trope of the knight-errant, a wandering chivalrous warrior that typically aides an individual in distress, such as Sir Yvain, of the romantic story of the ~12th century named “The Knight of the Lion”, who aided a lion in a battle against a serpent before the two became companions. Superman is not dissimilar as he is often shown saving citizens in distress and defeating enemies who threaten the world. All of these traits come together in “Holding out for a Hero” and thus provide a picture of a great, cunning, moral, and powerful warrior.
Tupac Shakur’s rap, “The Rose that grew from Concrete,” displays the tenacity of a hero by extended metaphor and rhetorical question.

Throughout the rap he uses extended metaphor to state that when someone succeeds when their original circumstance seems incredibly difficult to rise from, that an observer does not prioritize the long term effects their origin has left them and that instead they recognize their determination. His metaphor is a rose that grew from concrete, as the name of his work implies. He states that when one sees a rose growing from concrete that they don’t prioritize its scratches and marks upon its petals. Instead, he states that they, like they do with the successful individual, recognize the rose for its ability to grow even when the world seemed to be against it. By use if this extended metaphor, he intends to enlighten the listener on the subject of someone great having humble origins. The scratches and marks are metaphors for the scars their past has left them that still are visible in the present. In this extended metaphor, one can see the hero’s struggle to overcome when the worlds seems to be against him. Tupac uses another technique to display a hero’s tenacity, the rhetorical question. He asks the listener about how they’d react if they saw a rose growing from concrete, that if we say “"Damn, look at all the scratches and marks on the rose that grew from concrete?” (“The Rose that Grew from Concrete” 3-4) He instead states that we, in fact,

say “Damn! A rose grew from the concrete?!” (5) He questions the listener’s psyche and how they react to those who succeeded even when a metaphorical concrete barrier seemingly prohibited them from their goal. Throughout the entirety of the rap, the lyrics of the rap continue to use the metaphor, adding phrases like “Keepin’ all these dreams... Provin nature’s laws wrong… It learned to walk without having feet.” (15-17) These add to the work by With the use of these literary devices, Tupac Shakur has depicted a hero as someone who, despite having bad fortune in their beginnings, manage to achieve far greater success than others would believe possible for someone of their origin.
“Everyday Use” is a short story, written by Alice Walker, which features a mother, known as Mama, who has to make a difficult decision between her two children that reflects what she values. This appears to be a problem that anybody could go through in their life, but this story can be seen as a statement that anyone can be a hero. The plot of “Everyday Use” is told through the eyes of Mama who has had two daughter, Dee and Maggie. Dee, the eldest, is an educated and determined individual who has rejected African-American culture for African culture; this goes to the point where she creates a new identity and name for herself, “Wangero,” after she has departed from her family. Maggie is described as unattractive, shy, and innocent, leading a simple and traditional life with Mama. Conflict arises when Wangero (Dee) returns to visit and begins to claim family heirlooms as her own until she reaches for a quilt made by her great-grandmother which Mama denies her. Wangero wants the items merely for decoration as opposed to actually using them as intended, thus Mama rejects her wants stating that she means to give the quilt to Maggie due to her belief that she would use it. Maggie complies with Wangero’s desires presumably because she doesn’t want the altercation to grow out of control. However, Mama takes the quilt from Wangero and hands it to Maggie, sealing her choice. Mama is a hero in this story as she is willing to oppose her daughter’s twisted perception of heritage, making the right decision. This story stands as testament that anyone can be a hero as Mama is. Her willingness to do what is right against any opposition, even her own daughter, is an atypical display of strength that many others wouldn’t be able to achieve.
All three of these works provide different varieties of heroes that seem unrelated. In Bonnie Tyler’s song it is a daring and moral warrior, in Tupac’s rap it is one who has succeeded against all odds, and in Alice Walker’s short story it is anybody who makes the right decision. These traits are quite different and thus seemingly difficult to draw similarities from, yet there appears to be a defining trait. A hero is someone that inspires others, whether it be from a larger than life warrior, one who has succeeded when the odds were against them, or a nameless anybody who makes a defining decision. A hero is someone who we can look up to and feel inspired to rise up to their level through any way we can. This is what a hero has been, is, and ever will be.