Eminem: The Fall and Rise of a Superstar

Poetry offers different perspectives into life and the world. Through the use of the lyrics in his songs, the rapper Eminem offers his own perspective of his life and the events that have occurred throughout it. In this essay I shall be discussing a few key themes from his songs and how they are communicated to the audience through the use on language techniques and language in general, as well as how they relate to Eminem’s context.

One theme that has a recurring use in his songs is the issue of poverty, as Eminem spent his childhood and early adulthood living in poverty. Eminem often refers to his past and the difficult times he went through. Having to live in a trailer park, growing up in a poor suburb, and his low paying job history. The theme of poverty is touched upon in the songs “Cleaning out my closet” and “Mockingbird”. The song “cleaning out my closet” is about Eminem’s shaky relationship with his mother and how he does not forgive her for the way she treated him while growing up. Through the use of language techniques like the assonance “commotion emotion run deep as oceans exploding” he creates the mournful mood of the song. The title of the song is a metaphor for how Eminem is cleaning out his closet, or letting go of his emotional baggage through the use of his song.
Throughout the song, Eminem makes references to real events that happened during his childhood, “goin through public housing systems,” and the use of slang like “bitchin” is an example of Eminem’s context.

The issue of poverty is touched upon again in the song “Mockingbird” which is addressed to Eminem’s daughters. Once again the title is of significant meaning, as a direct reference to the children’s lullaby, “hush little baby.” The song is intended to sooth his daughters, much like a lullaby is designed to do, and also like in the lullaby, Eminem is saying he will give his daughters anything to prove that he really does love them. “Ima give you the world, ima buy a