Twirler

Jane Martin used a number of techniques to tell her unique story of the life beyond the baton twirlers. By narrating this tale in first person as April March, Martin gave the biography or autobiograph (if a ficticous character), a very personal quality. Through each event one is drawn towards a feeling of awe and amasement which the author herself held. Through the theme Martin ment to teach us to respect the twirler. They too have feelings and are doing what they love to do. It is like making music, yet with a baton. A few unique symbols are also brought out. April, the twirler, refers to herself and those like her as "the niggers of a white university." Obviously through even just this one phrase Martin is portraying the discrimination and hatred felt by baton twirlers and reveals her own pity for them. The use of the baton to communicate or "see" God was also interesting. At the twirling on December twenty-first the blood from their hands was to represent their sacrifices to do God's will and become twirtlers, through which they can see him. The razored batons perhaps represent or symbolized the challenge and pain that the art caused them all. Through all of this, Martin is trying to develop a deeper understanding of twirlers as she both pities them for the way they are treated but also admires them for continuing on.
The way "twirler" is structured also adds to the emotional expression its author, Jane Martin, feels. By beginning with childhood she shows April was destined to twirl and loved doing it. Then she went on to show that April's mother supported her in what she did as did her father through dance classes and costumes. From there the reader is shown the difficulties April had to overcome, that her trip to success was not an easy one. The man that spit in her face exemplafied many painful memories as did the crushing of April's hand, making the reader feel for the twirler. The benefits of twriling were then explained, through Charlene Ann. Even though she was sick, Charlene kept twirling because she loved it so much and it made her feel alive. Martin takes the reader from an explanation, to a downfall, and then an understanding of why those people did what they did. Through her structure and selection of detail, the author clearly gave away her own thoughts and feelings on the subject.
All of April's story and the different elements add to the tone of the story, which really portrays the authors attitude toward twirling. We are brought through joy found by April throuhgout her discovery of a secret passion, saddness and distress during the hard times, an the intensity of the December ordeal. Throughout the whole the attitude of the author remaind sincere and understanding toward the subject, yeilding a very touching piece on an interesting topic.