Many freelance writers and poets have attracted inspiration and inspiration from their youth, past encounters, and hope for the future. Discontinued for an orphanage at a young age, Jimmy Santiago Baca was convicted of drug possession by the age of twenty-one. During his a long time in jail, Baca learned how to learn and write, eventually posting his early poems from within the jail wall space. Despite his achievements and prestigious accolades, Baca remains a humble person by aiding kids who are facing the same struggles he encountered growing up. Through his poems he shows "the splendor of human being lifetime amidst the desolate area of jail life" (Baca 7). In his poems, Jimmy Santiago Baca takes the audience through the feelings of loss, dejection, and the quest for identity that pertains to his life in jail.
Jimmy Santiago Baca was raised with a tough childhood. His parents divorced at an early age, and he was shuffled between relatives and orphanages. During his teenage years, he was in and out of detention centers and was always found spending his time on Albuquerque's streets and metropolitan barrios. Baca first began to create poetry during his stay static in prison, recognizing how to express his thoughts and ideals through poetry. While Baca is at prison for drug charges, he immersed himself in the world of catalogs, reading the works of many famous poets. Through the procedure of self-discovery, he educated himself English and Spanish, and finally received his GED. His experience in jail contains "lockdowns, solitary confinements, electroshock therapy treatment, and beatings by prison guards. . . [forcing] him to the lowest ebb of his life" (Baca, CW: SS 3). After jail, Baca still left for North Carolina before time for New Mexico, where he put in time residing in Albuquerque working peculiar jobs like a nighttime watchman, janitor, and laborer. After the labor and birth of his first child took place, Baca finally settled down with his wife and commenced "fully [embracing] his history. . . with the mainly Chicano community" (Baca, CW: SS 6). Since that time, Baca has begun to seriously release his works of books to the general public.
Jimmy Santiago Baca is considered a renowned Chicano poet because of his "rich imagery and lyricism of his poetry" (Baca, DA 1). In his works, he shows that poetry is not always restorative, but resilient when individuals life is given the opportunity. When he was given that chance, Baca discovered circumstances of freedom and humanity away from the dreary realities, by celebrating the human being spirit in extreme situations through his poems. Each poem signifies a little part of his life from the procedure of reestablishing his life after his years in jail. His poems never have had a consistent style, some may have rhythms a lot like prose, but others are incredibly lyrical. The brand lengths can vary greatly from brief to long, while some poems may have a mixture of short and much longer lines. With his series maneuvering, Baca had skills in switching shades (Duane, CP 1, 2). The main topic of his poems were developed from his encounters, such as his personal reactions to the troubled life he lived as a young adult. Baca's poetry include the reoccurring "topics of transformation, metamorphosis, and self-actualization" (Baca, CW: SS 4), which were regular thoughts and changes of Baca. Therefore, his works screen the truths of the human center while in hardship, with the aid of "wisdom, courage, beauty, and above all, wish" (Taylor, KYAPBG 1). The central target of Baca's poetry is thought to bring compassion from the center and embracing mankind in times of extreme dislocation.
Baca's poem - "Who Knows Me But Me" has many elements of perseverance, perseverance, and realization that are evident in almost all of his poetry. The poem begins with the loudspeaker receiving new constraints, but the presenter finds ways to live with the constraints. Among the list of restraints and negativity, the presenter develops a good attitude. With the new limitations and experiences in hand, he begins to realize his own personal information; the speaker discovers to "[find] parts of [himself] never imagined by [him]. " The poem ends with the loudspeaker questioning who is aware of him when he says something is beautiful.
Mainly, the poem seems forthright and lifeless, repetitive and simple, but this poem has great meaning behind what's seen on the top level. Throughout the poem, the viewers have the ability to experience "the physical and mental obstacles" (Baca, DA 2). which happen during prison life. The limitations in the very beginning of the poem are symbolized using anaphora to include focus on the continuous struggles which are faced in prison. "They take my heart and soul and rip it open, I live without heart" creates an indifferent tone from the presenter. "I followed these signs like an old tracker and implemented the paths deep in myself" explains that his encounters paved a means for the loudspeaker to "explore the general theme of an individual's painful seek out identity and interpretation" (Baca, DA 2). The shade of the poem shifts from indifferent to uplifting and empowering to show that the activities discovered were positive improvements for the speaker. Since the loudspeaker has gone through many sufferings, he proves that those sufferings helped him for future years. Everyone evolves within themselves every day, but when the time comes for hardships to be encountered, the experiences may become good for their possibility of life.
The emotions of loss, dejection, and the quest for identity activities from Jimmy Santiago Baca's life in prison are shown throughout his poetry. Baca offers means on how to restore a shattered life, somewhat than dwell on the unpleasant past. Since then, he has been able to change the lives of several Hispanic and Amerindian individuals, by displaying the real perception from the intimidating prisons that guide the changing views of these lives.
