Since a young age, Robert DeShaun Peace exhibited two different personalities, each corresponding to a different name of his. Rob was the part of him his mother wanted him to be: a studious, hardworking, correct young man who would go far in life. He went by Shawn when he was hanging around the neighborhood, with his dad’s contacts and the Burger Boyz, smoking or dealing. Ironically, each personality exhibited different stereotypical aspects of Hip Hop culture. Some he embraced, such as the idea of instant gratification. Unfortunately, the anti-intellectualism and violence associated with Hip Hop and drug dealing had the biggest effect in Rob’s life, causing his death. The need to provide for his mother and also seize the unknown was a motivator
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When he made the decision to attend Yale, Jackie was ecstatic to know that her son was going to become something better than her, something she had always dreamed of and had worked so hard for. However, Rob “was embarrassed enough by the way his mother had been telling everyone she knew where he was going to school”, afraid of being curbed by the other gang members of the neighborhood (117). Such embarrassment of letting others know about his academic abilities demonstrates how hip hop instills an idea of anti-intellectualism as discussed during lecture. Rob is one of the few individuals in Orange, NJ, that has the possibility of doing something with his life other than getting involved in drugs and violence, yet he is afraid that if others find out about his situation, he will be assaulted and his teeth will be shattered to pieces. Rob wanted to continue being the tough guy, the one everyone knew as the “Bone-Thugs kid” because he “knew the lyrics of every Bone Thugs-n-Harmony song” (79-80). Similarly, the grim last few moments of Rob Peace’s life, his “shirt, soaked with blood, clung to his chest and stomach. His eyes were closed, and his mouth parted…”(379) indicate the cruel consequences of the violence hip hop is known to sometimes promote. Hip Hop culture became engrained into neighborhoods such as the one where Rob lived, so it was inevitable not to be affected by them. Gang violence
When he made the decision to attend Yale, Jackie was ecstatic to know that her son was going to become something better than her, something she had always dreamed of and had worked so hard for. However, Rob “was embarrassed enough by the way his mother had been telling everyone she knew where he was going to school”, afraid of being curbed by the other gang members of the neighborhood (117). Such embarrassment of letting others know about his academic abilities demonstrates how hip hop instills an idea of anti-intellectualism as discussed during lecture. Rob is one of the few individuals in Orange, NJ, that has the possibility of doing something with his life other than getting involved in drugs and violence, yet he is afraid that if others find out about his situation, he will be assaulted and his teeth will be shattered to pieces. Rob wanted to continue being the tough guy, the one everyone knew as the “Bone-Thugs kid” because he “knew the lyrics of every Bone Thugs-n-Harmony song” (79-80). Similarly, the grim last few moments of Rob Peace’s life, his “shirt, soaked with blood, clung to his chest and stomach. His eyes were closed, and his mouth parted…”(379) indicate the cruel consequences of the violence hip hop is known to sometimes promote. Hip Hop culture became engrained into neighborhoods such as the one where Rob lived, so it was inevitable not to be affected by them. Gang violence