Hurricane

It is interesting that Lin waits until the middle of the second act to actually tell the story of Hamilton’s early life, not just mention it. By doing this, he emphasized that Hamilton was a nobody before he wrote that poem to get him off the island.

It also shows how much Hamilton represses his grief. Hamilton deals with grief in a way that’s very understandable considering his path. He pushes it away and refuses to acknowledge it. He repressed his mother’s death, his cousin’s death, and here, Laurens' death. If he were to be swept up in his grief, then he would have been crushed by the weight of his losses.

Hamilton finally recognizes many of his losses in Hurricane and it shows “the cracks in the foundation of his mind.” Through grief, he comes to the wrong conclusion and writes the Reynolds Pamphlet after letting out his repressed memories.

The only instance we see of Hamilton accepting his grief is in It’s Quiet Uptown, and he doesn’t handle it well. Robert Troup observed in a letter to Rufus King in 1801 that said:

Never did I see a man so completely overwhelmed with grief as Hamilton had been.

Chernow further states:

Hamilton was an altered man after Philip died. He even looked different. [Robert] Troup said that his face was “strongly stamped with grief,” and this condition was captured on canvas by an Albany painter, Ezra Ames… Ames captured Hamilton looking troubled and introspective, as if lost in thought and staring into an abyss. The ebullient wit had fled, and the eyes were fixed downward in a melancholy gaze. Some new, impenetrable darkness had engulfed his mind.

See the before and after photos of Hamilton
Before:

After:

A hurricane holds special meaning to Hamilton. It is both his maker and breaker and it’s only right that it reprises its role as breaker in the song named after it.

As presented earlier in “Alexander Hamilton”, the hurricane that destroyed his island inspired Hamilton to write a letter to his father. The letter, published in the Royal Danish American Gazette, found its way to local businessmen who paid for his passage to New York. For even extra historical flair, his ship encountered a storm on the way to America.

In Non-Stop, we see Hamilton as the storm. He’s working, flying through government ranks and at the very height of his prowess in the musical. He’s written the Federalist Papers (51 of the essays, to be exact), influenced the Constitution and had a say in its making, and earned his space behind President Washington in his cabinet as Secretary of Treasury.

Hamilton faces the eye wall in the series of songs between “One Last time” and “We Know”. The eye wall, the most violent part of the storm, can equate the accusations of extortion and the loss of Washington’s support in the political sphere. Washington acted as a shield to many of Hamilton’s critics. After all, who would dare possibly insult the nation’s leader and liberator by attacking his partner, Hamilton? Devoid of the former president’s protection, Hamilton is slammed by the press and Adams in “The Adams Administration” and looses a good chunk of supporters. The charge of extortion in “We Know” is the last straw before Hamilton thrusts himself into the safe space of the eye of the hurricane.

Which brings us to this song, Hurricane. Hamilton has fought through the storm of accusations of extortion from Burr, Jefferson, and Madison and landed in the eye of the hurricane, a quiet and gentle place when compared to the rest of the storm. It’s the place in his mind where he retreats from the influences of others and undergoes some self reflection. He reviews his life experiences from the very beginning, and ultimately comes to the decision that destroys him. Being in the eye of the hurricane is only a temporary fix for Hamilton. It’s a precarious position, one that is unforgiving if you take one step out of your range.

In Hamilton: An American Revolution, Lin gives some insight into the song. He says that it’s only plausible for Hamilton to come to the wrong conclusion of writing the Reynolds Pamphlet, the 95 page pamphlet that burns the bridge of his political career and public reputation, if he reviewed “the cracks in the foundation of his mind.” He’s thinking “I have always successfully wrote my way out, why should this situation be any different from before?”

The eye of a cyclone is an area of calm at the center of the storm.

It is a well-known, although perhaps not well-understood phenomenon that in advance of large storms, the sky can take on a yellow-green or orange hue.

I read the “Alexander Hamilton” biography in 2009, and in the second chapter I realized that I was going to turn this into a play. In that chapter you see how Hamilton had this Dickensian early life that consisted of constant trauma.

After a hurricane destroys St. Croix — the island he was from — he wrote a poem about the wreckage; consequently, wealthy people on the island recognized how good the poem was and were like: let’s get this kid an education, he shouldn’t be working behind a desk.

After that, I decided I had to write this play. Hamilton literally wrote a verse to get him off an island — that’s the most hip-hop shit ever. He transcends the struggle, and if you look at your favorite rapper, that’s most likely what they did.

Retells part of Alexander’s origin story from the opening number, this time from his own, rather than history’s, perspective. As such, it contains numerous personal additions, including myriad references to Hamilton’s 1772 letter to his father, which (somewhat melodramatically) describes the havoc wreaked by the hurricane.

“I looked up and the town had its eyes on me” reprises Hamilton’s conversations with Washington, specifically drawing a line between the town and the recurrent concept of history having its eyes on Hamilton. The town where he grew up is history and in the past, but it was also his first inkling of the power his words had to affect his legacy to the world.

This line references Hamilton’s background—impoverished and marked by tragedy, it could definitely be described as “hell.” Hamilton’s belief in a religious hell varied throughout his life, though.

This whole verse, up to “I wrote my own deliverance,” could be seen as a powerful description of the power of writing on, not only Hamilton’s life, but also on Lin-Manuel’s, as he wrote and sings the verse. Plus, for anyone who is a writer, it’s a great affirmation of the power of the pen.

The music underlying this section calls back the theme from “Yorktown (The World Turned Upside Down).” In addition to evoking the revolution, it also alludes to the frenzied pace and mounting turmoil in Hamilton’s life. Using “Yorktown’s” musical motif, which is associated with (the Revolutionaries', and, by extension, Hamilton’s) victory, makes this very ironic: where Hamilton’s convictions brought him success during the war, they now lead to his downfall. Hamilton’s world is, once again, about to turn upside down.

Hamilton became known to early Revolutionaries through his writings. His first foray as a revolutionary essayist was to refute Samuel Seabury’s “A Westchester Farmer.” The first part was the thirty-page “A Full Vindication of the Measures of the Congress,” which was then followed by the famous eighty-page-long “Farmer Refuted.” Typical Hamilton, machine-gunning discourse from the word “go.”

A reference to the famously cracked Liberty Bell which hung in the Pennsylvania State House (now Independence Hall) when Colonists voted to pursue American independence and the resultant Declaration of Independence was signed and delivered to the public. The bell got its name from the inscription cast on it, Leviticus (25:10):

Proclaim LIBERTY throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof

The bell was cast in London, and cracked when local ringers tested its sound upon its arrival in Philadelphia. Much has been made of this fact. See former president Benjamin Harrison, in 1893:

This old bell was made in England, but it had to be re-cast in America before it was attuned to proclaim the right of self-government and the equal rights of men.

As Eliza detailed in “Helpless”, this line can refer to two things. First, how Hamilton made Eliza fall in love with him through his way with words, but also how he also made her fall in a more saddening way in how he betrayed her and cheated on her, as is stated in the next song, “The Reynolds Pamphlet”.

This was the time when Hamilton wrote most of The Federalist Papers in order to defend The United States Constitution. This was heard in the song ‘Non-Stop".

Rather than its synonyms such as ‘stupidity’ and “idiocy”, “ignorance” has historical connotations of racism. This refers to Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, as they both opposed Hamilton’s financial plan, stating it gave too much power to the national government.

This refers to Hamilton’s initiatives as Treasury Secretary which included establishing the national debt, forming a national bank, and using paper money rather than coin. Bringing something “into existence” also adds to the godlike diction associated with Hamilton in this verse. It’s not quite “let there be light,” but “let there be credit” did do quite a lot for America in the long run.

This line, when grouped with the others in this section of the song, also serves Alexander by giving him an excuse to write The Reynolds Pamphlet, as it explains why he feels he can write his way out of anything.

Hamilton had an “ebb and flow” belief when it came to religion. When asked about the lack of any mention of God in a draft of the Constitution, he joked, “We forgot.”

He did not get the answers he wanted from religion, but he also seemed to respect religion as a way of learning the basic responsibilities of being human, rather than as salvation.

In this line and the next, Hamilton’s justifiable pride in his own writing ability starts to verge on hubris. When you are the main character in a tragedy, giving the audience an eloquent and well-reasoned argument about exactly how and in what way you are more powerful than God is never a good sign. The power of Hamilton’s pen is about to fail him, spectacularly.

“Deliverance” is a theological synonym for salvation from sin, but also can more simply mean freedom.

Hamilton was pious in his youth, but was much less so for most of his adulthood (until after Philip’s death). Here, Hamilton is saying that he found his own effort more efficacious than God or fatalism. He took control of his narrative.

The connection of deliverance to writing, narrative, and agency is interesting because of another concept that is never mentioned by the musical, but has interesting ties to it: self-determination. A word with two significant definitions:

The first is “determination of one’s own fate or course of action without compulsion; free will.” Instead of leaving the course of his life up to the whims of higher powers, Hamilton determines to create his own fate, to author his own salvation.

The other definition of self-determination is a political term concerning the rights of self-governing nations. It literally means the “freedom of the people of a given area to determine their own political status; independence.”

So here we have yet another way that Hamilton is “just like his country.”

The eye of the hurricane is the quietest place in the hurricane, however, it is surrounded by the eye wall. The eye wall is the most dangerous part of the hurricane. It has the most violent winds and is known to do the most damage. The actual hurricane is moving; either really fast or really slow. This is where the “For just a moment” line comes in, because if you are in the eye of the hurricane, it moves away as fast as it came.

How is this relevant to Hamilton, you ask? Well, yes, Hamilton is in the eye of the hurricane; he thinks that all he needs to do is write his way out, and then he’ll escape the whole storm. But if you put just one toe out of line and into the eye wall, then you are swept away and you don’t come back. Hamilton, when writing the Reynolds Pamphlet, did just that, and messed up his whole life even worse than before.

As for the yellow sky, it is true. The sky can take on a yellow or orange color in the eye of the hurricane. But a yellow sky can also predict the coming of a tornado or very strong hail. In this song, the yellow sky could be predicting the tornado that comes when Hamilton writes the Reynolds Pamphlet. Nice going, Ham.

Chernow:

For a week, a woman named Ann McDonnell tended Rachel before summoning a Dr. Heering on February 17 [1768]; by that point, Alexander, too, had contracted the unspecified disease. Dr. Heering subjected mother and child to the medieval purgatives so popular in eighteenth-century medicine. Rachel had to endure an emetic and a medicinal herb called valerian, which expelled gas from the alimentary canal; Alexander submitted to bloodletting and an enema. Mother and son must have been joined in a horrid scene of vomiting, flatulence, and defecation as they lay side by side in a feverish state in the single upstairs bed. The delirious Alexander was probably writhing inches from his mother when she expired at nine o’clock on the night of February 19.

Man, that’s cold, Burr. You foreshadowing bastard.

Burr may also still be telling himself to be patient and wait, unlike the ensemble who are speaking more ‘directly’ to Hamilton. He is saying “wait for it” in anticipation because he knows that Hamilton cannot resist defending himself and saying too much.

Man, that’s cold, Burr. You foreshadowing bastard.

Burr may also still be telling himself to be patient and wait, unlike the ensemble who are speaking more ‘directly’ to Hamilton. He is saying “wait for it” in anticipation because he knows that Hamilton cannot resist defending himself and saying too much.

You can read this as Burr (or perhaps especially the ensemble) telling Hamilton to “wait for it,” i.e. maybe don’t do this super dumb thing. This is a place where Burr’s trademark phrase and caution might have come in handy.

Alternatively, you could read it as Burr, in his role as a character, gleefully anticipating his rival’s imminent own-goal.

Double meaning here, especially in contrast to earlier: “Far as I can see” can simply refer to sight, literally, “the limit of one’s sight,” but it can also refer to events from one’s own perspective. Earlier in the song it seems to use the former meaning, whereas here it uses the latter, equating the two to describe Hamilton’s current narrow-mindedness; the limit of his sight has become his own perspective, showing how he fails to consider the way others will react to the Reynolds Pamphlet.

It is also true to the historical Reynolds Pamphlet in that Alexander actually wrote a 90-page pamphlet, including every tiny detail about the two-year affair and scandal. “Everything as far as I can see”, indeed.

In addition to “wait for it,” here is another motif reprise acting as a warning. Washington reminds Hamilton that putting what he did in writing means it will go on the record and down in history. Meanwhile, the women in Hamilton’s life warn that his public actions will affect not just his own image and legacy, but also that of the women who love him.

This line is important in its own right, as it can both show a bit of Hamilton’s character and talent. The poor boy has been through so much, from his parents leaving him (both either on purpose or because of death) to a hurricane that destroyed nearly everything.

One, he’s trying to recreate the miracle that got him out of the hopeless situation that got him to the place in society he is in right now. He’s essentially saying: “Hey! Look! I’m good at writing so I should be excused for cheating on my wife, it’s all good!”

However, this method doesn’t work, as the last hurricane he was in wasn’t his own fault. He used his wit and talent to get out of it, he’s trying to use the same strategy to make his way out of the metaphorical “hurricane” he created. He wrote down honesty both times. First, honesty with his feelings, second, honesty with the situation. Telling everyone you cheated on your wife won’t get you out of your metaphorical hurricane.

Two, he’s showing his character off. He is stubborn. Stubborn beyond belief. Even with everyone in the back of his mind telling him to calm down, to let it go, that his mistakes will be recorded, and that he should just learn when to be patient.

The woman he loves, a member of her family which he claimed to care about, the very woman that had to put up with the person who turned him into a scandal, and one of the last people he could have called a friend if he tried to fix their relationship all telling him to just calm down. Even when the rest of the company joins in, he still does nothing. He does nothing to listen to them. He believes his intelligence is superior to them, and therefore doesn’t listen to the nagging voices in the back of his head to calm down.

In the workshop for Hurricane, Hamilton acknowledges Laurens would definitely not approve, with the line “The friend who would tell me not to do it is in the ground.” However, he still continues. Such a stubborn character.

During this period of history, good character traits were seen as something that could lift someone to public office. Today, character traits are in general portrayed as negative in a politician, cited to prevent their election.

Hamilton felt that his honesty was the defining character trait that the people would consider. He may not have even regarded his adultery (a grievous action, to be sure) as a factor for public examination. Here, he essentially implies, “Yes, I committed adultery, but that has nothing to do with my relationship to the people, so it shouldn’t even be considered.” He was, unfortunately, mistaken.

By this point in the Broadway production, the ensemble has set up Hamilton’s desk, chairs, and paper around him. Maria Reynolds plays the final key role, walking up behind him to place a quill in his waiting hand, which will write the Reynolds Pamphlet and sign Hamilton’s political death.

This song is set somewhere in 1797. It occurs before the publication of the Reynolds Pamphlet and the chaos that ensues, but after the affair itself, thus landing Hamilton in the shaky mid-ground between two sides of this storm.

Throughout this number, Hamilton has described tragedies that have happened to him. The fact that he lumps his affair with Maria in this category implies that he views himself as the victim—and explains why he expects others to be forgiving of his transgressions. Despite publishing the Pamphlet, Hamilton has not truly taken responsibility for his infidelity.

Placing Hamilton in “the eye of the storm” could also be an illustration of the idea that, when someone is in the center of a crisis, they can’t get perspective on it. In terms of Hamilton’s situation, he’s only thinking about himself and his reputation, and not the repercussions that his actions will have on his wife and family.

Hamilton’s reputation is on a downward trend, leading indirectly to the death of his son, who in himself forms a part of Hamilton’s legacy. That’s a tragic irony: Hamilton’s hubris in irresponsibly trying to protect his honor causes him to lose the very thing he’s trying to protect.

The chorus in the stage play dances toward Hamilton during this line, begging him to stop what he is doing. They yearn for him to be a bit more like Burr, and not to rage forward, foreshadowing what will happen if he commits own to paper.

At the end of the line, it is apparent he will disregard their advice and go ahead with his futile plan anyway. They end the phrase by turning their backs to him, in disgust or at least in dismay of what is about to happen.

The repetition of “Wait for it…” builds up suspense for a game-changing idea and emphasizes the significance of what follows, reflecting the dangerous nature of the Reynolds Pamphlet.

The Reynolds Pamphlet was a 98-page document that could be considered the first major political sex scandal in American history.

Here, Hamilton describes his “amorous connection” with Maria Reynolds, with the “privity and connivance” (consent and facilitation) of her husband, James, as a means of extorting Hamilton. Throughout the pamphlet, Hamilton spends considerable time talking about how he did not steal any money from the US Treasury, even going so far as to suggest Eliza would approve of using their own money instead.