What Is The Theme Of Hard Rock Returns To Prison

Etheridge Knight’s “Hard Rock Returns to Prison from the Hospital for the Criminal Insane” (1968) effectively illustrates the devastation a group of prisoners’ feel as the state of their hero, Hard Rock, is realized. Though he was once the most fearless of the inmates, he is no longer the man he once was due a lobotomy performed by the doctors. Hard Rock is no typical hero, however, he still represents the hope for a future that all the inmates admire. The loss of hope that comes with the destruction of the inmates’ hero is artfully communicated through Knight’s use of tonal shifts representing the shifts in the inmates’ reaction to this situation, the use of diction in the deification of Hard Rock, and the use of similes to avoid the acceptance

The first stanza opens with descriptions of Hard Rock that serve as a foundation for the readers to base their understanding of who Hard Rock is. He is “‘known not to take no shit / From nobody,’ and had the scars to prove it” (1-2). After describing his menacing physical qualities, the poem transitions into stanza two with a slight shift in tone that leaves the reader with a feeling that something has changed: “The WORD was that Hard Rock wasn’t a mean nigger / Anymore” (7). This helps set the stage to anticipate how Hard Rock’s transformation; however, stanza two ends with no clarification of what the new Hard Rock is like. Then in the first line of stanza three the tone shifts yet again, “As we waited we wrapped ourselves in the cloak / Of his exploits” (15). They talk of how “he / Smacked the captain with his dinner tray” (17-18) and how “He set / The record for time in the Hole---67 straight days!” (18-19). This shift to a nostalgic tone shows the inmates reluctance to accept the possibility that Hard Rock may have changed. The reader is then quickly thrust back into reality at the open of the fourth stanza when there is yet another tonal shift that parallels that of stanza two. In anticipation the inmates watch as their hero is tested for the first time; “A hillbilly called him a black son of a bitch” (24) and “a screw who knew Hard Rock / From before shook him down and barked

In the past, they had scares that Hard Rock would be softened, that the screws would finally crack him. However, up until now their hero has remained resilient even while spending 67 days in the Hole. If that could not tame him, then what could? Hard Rock, though not the traditional “hero,” is still very clearly a hero to those present within the prison. Without his bravery and charisma, though violent it may be, the inmates would be left without a person who represents the possibility of hope in the prison. Twice in stanza two, Knight had the word “WORD” fully capitalized. In various translations of the Bible, “word” is capitalized when it is referring to the word of God. In this instance, it is fully capitalized because the things they have heard deal with their Messiah figure and are of high importance. Shortly after hearing the rumors, the inmates revel in the stories they know where their mighty hero has withstood the harsh oppression put on by the guards. They talk of how it took “‘eight / Screws to put him in the Hole’” (16-17) and how “‘he / Smacked the captain with his dinner tray’” (17-18). These stories are legends all the inmates know that help to preserve their memories and immortalize their hero. Soon after reflecting on these triumphs, their hero gets tested, only to fail, revealing to the